1. Nutrition is key

To lose weight, take in less calories than you expend.

You can work out until you pass out from exhaustion, and unless you are following a healthy nutrition plan, you will see little results.

Many people make fitness resolutions and give up after a short time due to not seeing quick results. This is due to not giving it enough time and not eating in a way to encourage weight loss and muscle gain.

People believe eating little food will help you lose weight. Yes, if you eat like a bird you will lose weight. However, it is very unhealthy and can cause you long term problems. You can measure your food intake by counting calories. To lose weight you must eat fewer calories than your body uses. Eating more calories than your body uses will cause your body to store the unused calories as fat. A term you will hear me refer to will be metabolism. The definition of metabolism is the chemical processes occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for the maintenance of life. In metabolism some substances are broken down to yield energy for vital processes while other substances, necessary for life, are synthesized. In English it is the process of which your body converts what you eat into energy.

1. Key
   

2. Points

100% Fat free is bad. You need heart healthy unsaturated fats (Omegas)

Fat free foods are often drowned in sugar which will convert to fat if not used.

More than anything else that you will read on this website I can not stress enough how important a role a proper nutrition program plays in physical fitness. The old saying "You are what you eat" is quite valid. If you eat a diet of junk your body will look like junk. If you follow a healthy nutritional program your body will show it. Your eating habits account for a good 75% of your overall physical fitness. Yes, I said 75%.

Common Misconceptions

To lose weight your one of your goals is to raise your metabolism. The best metaphor I can attribute your metabolism to is a camp fire. What happens to a camp fire if you don't put enough wood on it? It burns out, correct? Well, what happens to a camp fire if you put too much wood on it at once? You can smother it, yes? With that said, what happens if you put some wood on the fire at specific intervals during the day? The fire burns strong all day long. That metaphor is synonymous to your metabolism. If you eat too little or too much you ruin your metabolism. But if you eat throughout the day you keep your metabolism strong.

Instead of eating 3 large meals a day have 5 or 6 half meals every 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Eating this way allows you to feel full all day long. It also trains your body to know that it will receive nutrition throughout the day and does not need to store it (if you were eating too little) and it does not overwhelm your body as when it does when you binge eat.

Proteins

Protein is made up of building blocks called amino acids. While our bodies can make most of the 20 amino acids we need, some can only come from the food we eat.

Our bodies use the amino acids in protein-rich foods to make proteins required to perform many functions throughout our bodies – in fact, they're a vital of part of literally every cell in your body.

Protein's main function is to build, maintain and repair all your body's tissue, such as muscles, organs, skin and hair. Protein can also be used as energy by your body, but this usually only happens when carbohydrate and fat stores are in short supply.

Eating a variety of protein-rich foods throughout the day helps ensure you're getting the balanced combination of the amino acids your body needs. If you eat more protein than your body needs, it tends to get broken down and stored as fat, not protein.

Complex Carbohydrates

Now what to eat? Your nutritional plan will depend on your goals. If your goal is to cut some fat then switching over to whole grain products instead of eating processed sugars will be a big step. Instead of having white bread, pasta, rice, etc switch over to their whole wheat counter part. However, be careful when you are shopping. Many products will be labeled as whole wheat, but may contain only partial whole wheat. Be sure that "whole grain" or "whole wheat" is the first ingredient on the package and there is no other type of flour in the ingredients. Most 100% whole wheat products are labeled as such. A whole grain product I recommend is rolled oats. Rolled oats can be found next to the oatmeal at the supermarket. Rolled oats is basically non-processed unsweetened oatmeal. By itself it does taste pretty bland, but if you add sugar free maple syrup or cinnamon to it the flavor will be more favorable. Many people add wheat germ or half of a sliced banana to their rolled oats. The key is to properly balance your diet between protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats, while minimizing unhealthy fats.

Sugars

The other problem is many people ignore the sugar content of the food. Sugar spikes your insulin levels, which causes your body to store more of what you eat as fat. You must minimize sugars!

The easiest way to tell which of your foods is healthier in regards to it carbohydrate content you may choose to use the "Glycemic Index." This scale is used to tell you how much impact your choice of foods will have on your insulin levels. You can find out more about the Glycemic Index and where your favorite foods rate on that scale by visiting this website.

Fats

Many people look just at the fat content of nutrition labels. There are two problems with this. First of all most labels don't distinguish between healthy and unhealthy fats. Yes, some fats are healthy and necessary for your body to have.

You can break fats into four categories. The essential, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

· The Essential: Essential fatty acids (aka omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids) (very healthy)

· The Good: Monounsaturated fat, Polyunsaturated fat (healthy in moderation)

· The Bad: Saturated Fat (avoid)

· The Ugly: Trans-fat, Hydrogenated fats (avoid like the plague)

The Essential Fatty Acids

· Alpha linolenic acid (LNA) (omega-3)

· Linoleic acid (LA) (omega-6)

· Oleic Acid (OA) (omega-9) (not technically an EFA but it very important)

Those aren't the only kinds of essential fatty acids, but to spare you confusion I will leave the list to those 3 predominant acids. Your body can do the rest when you intake those acids, as it will convert them to other essential fatty acids that your body will need.

What role do these essential fatty acids play in your diet?

· Energy Production

· Diffusion of oxygen into the bloodstream

· Brain and nerve tissue development

· Control cell membrane fluids

· Stabilize insulin and blood sugar levels

· Anti-inflammatory effect

· Helpful in inflammatory conditions

· Strengthen immune system

· Reduce water retention, by assisting in sodium and water removal.

· Calming effect and regulates mood

The best sources of these essential fatty acids are fish, flaxseeds, and several healthy oils. Personally, due to my bodybuilding nutritional plan, I do not eat much of a variety of food. I need to obtain my essential fatty acids from supplements. I will not post on my website what supplement brand I use or where I got it for this site will not sell any products. However if you wish to know what I use and where to get it cheapest please e-mail me.

Sodium

Sodium aka salt plays another big roll in your diet. Sodium not only causes your body to retain water, but having too much sodium can damage your kidneys and will increase your blood pressure. You must keep sodium under 100% of the daily recommended intake. If you are a trying to gain that cut look you must minimize your sodium intake.

You don't have to take your diet to the extreme I have taken mine to, however by simply substituting much of what you eat with the whole wheat counterpart, or for one with a lower fat, sugar, and/or sodium content will greatly aide you in you fitness goals.

More than anything else losing weight comes down to caloric intake vs. caloric expenditure. To get a rough idea on what your caloric expenditure is you may choose to use this calculator.

Remember that the calculator is just an estimate and trial and error will take some time for you to figure out what your exact needs are.

But, whatever you do, above all else...

Stay away from quick dieting fads and products that you see on television! Avoid quick fixes like the plague!

Like I said 100 times before and I will say it again. All you need to do is stick to a healthy nutritional and physical exercise program in order to attain your Extreme Physique.