Coach Sweat’s 4-Step Weight Loss Plan

You asked, and you got it!

But first, let me answer all those critics saying, “Coach Sweat isn’t a dietitian, he’s a personal trainer! How can he recommend a weight loss plan?!?!?”

It’s true…I’m not a registered dietitian…not even close…so if you have colitis, severe food allergies, or any issues that should be discussed with a registered dietitian, please consult a registered dietitian!

That being said, you’ll soon notice that I’m not saying anything that you don’t already know. What I’m doing is giving you a STRATEGY that will help you do what you already know you need to do.

And all 4 steps come down to following my #1 rule of weight loss…”There’s no point in doing anything, unless you’re willing to do it FOREVER.”

That’s right….what’s the point of dropping 40 pounds if you’re going to put it back on in 3 months?

So please….keep that #1 rule in mind every time you make a change to your diet.

All right, now for the plan…..

Step 1 – Get off the sweet stuff – Believe it or not, sugars are addictive, and they don’t even fill you up. Did you know that a bag of skittles has 3 times the calories of an apple? And which one do you think will fill you up for longer, and give you more energy? Not only that, guess what you’ll want soon after you eat a whole bunch of sugar?….more sugar!

In my opinion, sugars (and even worse high fructose corn syrup) are the single biggest obstacle for people who are looking to lose weight. If you’re serious about losing weight, you’ll have to cut back on the sweet stuff. Here are a few suggestions:

1) Instead of juice (it’s got a ton of sugar), drink water or seltzer water.
2) Instead of candy and other sweet stuff, eat fresh fruit…pick your favorite, any fruit will do.
3) Try plain yogurt mixed with fruit and a little granola for dessert.

And give it 6-weeks. You’ll be amazed at how you’ll no longer crave the sugar…and you’ll be ready for “step 2.”

Step 2 – Get rid of the bad, unnecessary fats – This one won’t be as hard as you might think. Grill or bake your food instead of frying your food. If you drink whole milk, try skim milk. Instead of eating ice cream every night, try yogurt with fruit (killing 2 birds with 1 stone!)
Not all fats are bad for you. Some fats, like those found in almonds, walnuts, and olive oil, are actually good for you if eaten in moderation. Moderation is the key.

Step 3 – Eat more whole grains – This is another simple switch. Replace your white breads with whole grain alternatives. Look for breads and cereals that say “100% whole grain” or “100% whole wheat.” A general rule of thumb, if it has more than 4 grams of fiber per serving, it’ll fill you up longer, getting you more mileage out of your food.

Step 4 – Eat more vegetables – Choose whichever vegetables you like best. Make a salad, grill up some asparagus and summer squash, dip some carrots in hummus, whatever works for you. Just be sure not to load them up with sugary, fatty salad dressings, or fry them up in a bunch of grease!

Step 5 – Stick with the changes you’ve made…forever – Even if you don’t take all of my suggestions…if you take a couple of them, and stick with them, you’ll be that much closer to your weight loss goal. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. And if you “fall off the wagon” or “treat yourself every once in a while,” no big deal.

Good luck!

3 Proven Ways to Lose Weight

The clients I choose to work with are not impressed with “quick fix” weight loss programs….for good reason….they’ve tried them, and they’ve realized what 97% of participants realize….that meal replacement, calorie restriction diets don’t work in the long run!

So where can you go to find proven, effective weight loss strategies that will help you not only lose weight, but keep it off for good?

I suggest the National Weight Control Registry. The National Weight Control Registry is a database of people who have lost over 30 pounds and have managed to keep that weight of for over 5 years. Now that’s what I call success!

So what are these people doing that allows them to reach and maintain their weight loss goals?

Here are 3 things that just about all of them have done:

1) They eat 5-6 small meals a day.
2) They keep a food journal.
3) They exercise regularly.

Let’s talk about each one of these proven, effective weight loss strategies and why they work so well.

1) Eating small, frequent meals keeps your metabolism working at its best. If you go a long time without eating food your body goes into a kind of “starvation mode.” You start to burn calories more slowly because your body is trying to conserve energy. It doesn’t know that you have a refrigerator full of food! It actually thinks that you may have to go days before you get your next meal!

On the other side of the coin….eating a big meal also compromises your metabolism. Have you ever experienced the “food coma” before? When you eat a huge meal….especially a meal loaded with high-glycemic carbohydrates….your blood sugar spikes, you feel tired, and your body says to itself, “Give me a break! You’re not going to use all of these calories for energy! I’m going to store them as fat!”

2) Keeping a food journal does something very important…it holds you accountable to yourself. So many times clients have said to me, “I would have eaten a brownie instead of that apple, but I knew I would have to write it down!” It’s funny how it works, but it’s true! Keeping a food journal is one of the most effective weight loss strategies out there!

3) Its no secret that exercising is an important part of any weight loss program. This has been proven time and time again. If anyone tells you differently, they are either lying to you or trying to sell you something. But why is exercise so important? There are 2 reasons:

First, the more obvious reason; exercise burns calories. Second, exercise builds muscle mass, which burns calories even when you’re not exercising!

In my opinion, building muscle is one of the most misunderstood, yet most effective weight loss strategies out there. If you’re only focused on the scale, you are forgetting about one of the most important weight loss factors….your muscles, which ironically, weight twice as much as body fat.

So pump some iron, keep a journal, and eat a lot of small, healthy meals. These are proven, effective weight loss strategies that have helped so many people, and they’ll help you too!

5 Reasons you Can’t Lose Weight

Cut out those unnecessary fats and sugars

If you’re like most of us who have struggled with your weight loss you probably feel fatter than you were when you first started! There’s a reason for that….it’s because you are! No offense, but if you’re like many Americans, your metabolism is in lousy shape! Here are some of the reasons why:

1) Yo-yo dieting — When you lose a lot of weight quickly you’re typically losing a lot of lean muscle rather than body fat. Muscle burns calories even when you’re not exercising, while fat is nothing more than “dead weight.” This slows your metabolism, causing you to store more of the food you eat as body fat. Not only that, if you ever start eating a normal amount of food again…..forget about it! You just bought yourself a ticket to “fat storage city!”

2) Crash dieting — You know those diets that tell you to “drink a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, and eat a reasonable dinner?” It is not at all uncommon for people to lose a lot of weight initially, when they go on these diets. But did you know that 95% of these people gain the weight back after a year and 97% gain the weight back after two years!!* Talk about yo-yo dieting!

3) Sedentary lifestyle — If you’re not using energy your body knows it! Your body says, “Give me a break! You’re not going use the food you just ate for energy!” Instead of sending those calories (energy) to your muscles where they can be used, it will store them as fat! This doesn’t mean you have to spend 3 hours a day at the gym…just go for a walk after dinner!

4) Eating garbage — Many of the foods we eat are loaded with chemicals, saturated fats, sugars, and high glycemic carbohydrates (foods that cause our blood sugars to rise quickly). None of these are good for us! Believe it or not, by substituting a few of the foods we eat with healthier foods, we can really start chipping away at that unwanted body fat!

5) Chronic stress — When you get stressed out your body goes into “fight or flight” mode, causing it to release a bunch of glucose (sugar) into the blood stream for an immediate burst of energy. Since you’re probably not trying to run away from a lion, or kill a gorilla with your bare hands, your body is not going to use that glucose for energy. Guess what it’s going to do?…That’s right…store it as fat! So next time you start to feel stressed out take a few deep breaths or go for a walk.

With all these calorie restriction diets, sugary foods, and sit down jobs, many of us have become “metabolically challenged” over the years. Don’t worry! If you can put an end to these trends, you’ll be on your way to getting your metabolism working again so you can finally lose weight and keep it off!

*Tsai AG, Wadden TA. Systematic review: An evaluation of major commercial weight loss programs in the United States. Ann Intern Med 2005;142:55-56

Calorie Wars

 Many experts say “a calorie is a calorie.” In other words as long as you burn more calories than you eat, you’ll lose weight. Likewise, if you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. Although this may be true technically, I think this way of thinking is foolish. That’s right….I said it!…Not all calories are created equal!

 Juice vs. Fruit
 Apple juice is a classic juice you will find in just about any grocery store. It taste pretty good and people think of it as a healthy alternative to soda. After all, it’s real juice….not just some “juice drink” loaded up with sugar. That being said, a 16 ounce glass contains 234 calories and 224 of those calories come directly from sugar.
 Let’s compare that large glass of apple juice to eating apples and drinking a large glass of water. If you were to eat 3 medium sized apples you would consume 216 calories, and those calories would be loaded with nutrients, including over 10 grams of healthy, dietary fiber! So what do you think will fill you up for longer? That glass of apple juice, or those 3 apples?
 Winner…..Apples!

 French Fries vs. Salad
 Every time you walk into McDonald’s and order a cheese burger they serve it with fries. Not only that, they give you the opportunity to “supersize it” for just a few cents extra! It’s a deal that’s tough to pass up. Those supersized fries contain 610 calories, and 261 of them come from fat.
 Let’s compare that to a healthy salad. You would have to eat over 27 cups of salad to consume the same amount of calories. That’s almost 2 gallons of salad! If you ate that much salad your body would have enough nutrients for a week!
 I know what you’re probably thinking. “What about the salad dressing?” OK…Toss that salad up with some extra virgin olive oil, some balsamic vinegar, and a few of your favorite spices….and maybe cut it down to 21 cups!
 Winner….Salad!

 So if you think you can get all the energy you need from a glass of juice and a big bag or fries, then maybe you’re right…a calorie is a calorie. But as far as I’m concerned, the type of calorie is much more important.

Nutrition Made Simple

Most people are confused about nutrition. They genuinely want to eat right, but they have more questions than answers. Are carbs bad for me?….How much is a “serving size?”….Should avoid eating all fatty foods or are some fatty foods good for me?…Do I need to count calories?…and the list goes on.

Rather than overload your brain with more technical mumbo-jumbo about how your body absorbs and burns calories, I’d rather just give you 7 simple tips to follow. If you can manage to exercise regularly and follow these 7 tips, you should definitely be in tip-top shape before you know it!

1) Snack on fresh fruits. Fresh fruits are loaded with fiber and other nutrients, and they also taste good! If you’re craving a candy bar, eat an apple. It’s got less than 1/3 of the calories, yet 10 times the nutritional value. I know you’re thinking, “but it doesn’t taste as good!” Cut back on the sweet stuff for 6 weeks and you won’t even want it…trust me!

2) Eat vegetables any chance you get. Fresh vegetables are probably the best things you could possibly put in your body! If you can, have a salad with every meal. Load it up with broccoli, tomatoes, onions, peppers, carrots, dark green leafy lettuce, and any other vegetables you can think of. Watch out for those salad dressing though! They’re usually loaded with fat and even more sugar. Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and your favorite spices is a much healthier alternative.

3) Eat lean-clean proteins. Baked fish, chicken, and turkey are a few examples. Stay away from the fried stuff!

4) Eat whole grains. Choose whole wheat bread over white bread any chance you get. Also, choose breakfast cereals that have a lot of fiber and less sugar.

5) Drink water. Try to drink at least 8 cups of water a day. Your body needs it, especially if you’ve been exercising. Not only that, but water alternatives, like juice and soda, are loaded with useless unnecessary calories.

6) Don’t skip meals. You think skipping breakfast is a good idea because you are eating fewer calories. WRONG! Eat at least 3 healthy meals a day. You shouldn’t be walking around hungry.

7) Hold off on the garbage! Sure you can have an ice cream cone every now and then, but not every day! The same goes for fried foods and candy.

Follow these tips for 6 weeks. You’ll be amazed how a few smart food substitutions will have you looking and feeling better in no time!

Add fruit to plain yogurt. It'll taste better than you think!

Calorie Wars

Many experts say “a calorie is a calorie.” In other words as long as you burn more calories than you eat, you’ll lose weight. Likewise, if you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. Although this may be true technically, I think this way of thinking is foolish. That’s right….I said it!…Not all calories are created equal!

Juice vs. Fruit

Apple juice is a classic juice you will find in just about any grocery store. It taste pretty good and people think of it as a healthy alternative to soda. After all, it’s real juice….not just some “juice drink” loaded up with sugar. That being said, a 16 ounce glass contains 234 calories and 224 of those calories come directly from sugar.
Let’s compare that large glass of apple juice to eating apples and drinking a large glass of water. If you were to eat 3 medium sized apples you would consume 216 calories, and those calories would be loaded with nutrients, including over 10 grams of healthy, dietary fiber! So what do you think will fill you up for longer? That glass of apple juice, or those 3 apples?

Winner…..Apples!

French Fries vs. Salad

Every time you walk into McDonald’s and order a cheese burger they serve it with fries. Not only that, they give you the opportunity to “supersize it” for just a few cents extra! It’s a deal that’s tough to pass up. Those supersized fries contain 610 calories, and 261 of them come from fat.
Let’s compare that to a healthy salad. You would have to eat over 27 cups of salad to consume the same amount of calories. That’s almost 2 gallons of salad! If you ate that much salad your body would have enough nutrients for a week!
I know what you’re probably thinking. “What about the salad dressing?” OK…Toss that salad up with some extra virgin olive oil, some balsamic vinegar, and a few of your favorite spices….and maybe cut it down to 21 cups!

Winner….Salad!

So if you think you can get all the energy you need from a glass of juice and a big bag or fries, then maybe you’re right…a calorie is a calorie. But as far as I’m concerned, the type of calorie is much more important.

Nutrition Made Simple

Most people are confused about nutrition. They genuinely want to eat right, but they have more questions than answers. Are carbs bad for me?….How much is a “serving size?”….Should avoid eating all fatty foods or are some fatty foods good for me?…Do I need to count calories?…and the list goes on.

Rather than overload your brain with more technical mumbo-jumbo about how your body absorbs and burns calories, I’d rather just give you 7 simple tips to follow. If you can manage to exercise regularly and follow these 7 tips, you should definitely be in tip-top shape before you know it!

1) Snack on fresh fruits. Fresh fruits are loaded with fiber and other nutrients, and they also taste good! If you’re craving a candy bar, eat an apple. It’s got less than 1/3 of the calories, yet 10 times the nutritional value. I know you’re thinking, “but it doesn’t taste as good!” Cut back on the sweet stuff for 6 weeks and you won’t even want it…trust me!

2) Eat vegetables any chance you get. Fresh vegetables are probably the best things you could possibly put in your body! If you can, have a salad with every meal. Load it up with broccoli, tomatoes, onions, peppers, carrots, dark green leafy lettuce, and any other vegetables you can think of. Watch out for those salad dressing though! They’re usually loaded with fat and even more sugar. Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and your favorite spices is a much healthier alternative.

3) Eat lean-clean proteins. Baked fish, chicken, and turkey are a few examples. Stay away from the fried stuff!

4) Eat whole grains. Choose whole wheat bread over white bread any chance you get. Also, choose breakfast cereals that have a lot of fiber and less sugar.

5) Drink water. Try to drink at least 8 cups of water a day. Your body needs it, especially if you’ve been exercising. Not only that, but water alternatives, like juice and soda, are loaded with useless unnecessary calories.

6) Don’t skip meals. You think skipping breakfast is a good idea because you are eating fewer calories. WRONG! Eat at least 3 healthy meals a day. You shouldn’t be walking around hungry.

7) Hold off on the garbage! Sure you can have an ice cream cone every now and then, but not every day! The same goes for fried foods and candy.

Follow these tips for 6 weeks. You’ll be amazed how a few smart food substitutions will have you looking and feeling better in no time!

Diet Wars — Atkins vs. Ornish

What a match up! A high carbohydrate vs. a low carbohydrate diet! Someone must be right and someone must be wrong! Let’s find out!

Ornish – Pros: The Ornish Diet recommends that you eat a lot of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, and soy products. No matter how you slice it….these things are good for you!

Ornish – Cons: Ornish is a low-fat, low-protein diet. It is very difficult for many people to stick to it for the long haul. Also, proteins and fats are an important part of any diet. If you choose to follow the Ornish Diet, my recommendations….take an Omega 3 supplement and don’t forget the beans and soy!

Atkins – Pros: Who doesn’t want to eat steak, eggs, and chicken at every meal! Since proteins and fats take longer to digest, someone on the Atkins diet would likely be less hungry throughout the day.

Atkins – Cons: The Atkins Diet may be attractive to someone who is sick of low calorie, low fat diets, but it is simply not healthy! What do you think all of that fat and protein is doing to your arteries, liver, kidneys, and heart?!? Let me assure you…it’s not good! Also, do you really intend to stay away from carbohydrates for the rest of your life? Most of us will not…and when you eat those carbs, your body won’t know what to do with them, and will store them directly as fat…..guaranteed!

Conclusion: Ornish wins…but be careful!

The Ornish Diet is clearly a healthier way to eat. That being said, it’s difficult to stick to and a good diet that’s impossible to follow is a bad diet! You also need to remember that losing weight and keeping it off requires a healthy lifestyle and your diet is only part of that picture!