How to Lose 15 Pounds Sustainably

The first step in achieving the ideal body that you desire is by setting an achievable goal.  In between that goal there should be milestones which will help not only with tracking your progress, but also in building your self confidence. With creating a goal, there are two key factors that you should keep in mind; (1) your goal should be reasonable and (2) the amount of time that you give yourself to reach that goal should be realistic. Setting goals is imperative if you wish to achieve anything in life. 

For example, if you had the goal of building muscle, I would create a plan for you that would take anywhere from 20-24 weeks to achieve said goal.  Within those 20-24 weeks we would set milestones each week of how much weight we should expect to gain. When bulking up you should expect weight gain in increments between 0.5-1lb per week. Therefore, if the goal is to gain 20lbs in 20 weeks we now have a realistic goal of 1lb per week within a realistic time-frame of 20 weeks.  On the other hand, if you were aiming to lose fat I would create a plan for you in which you could achieve a goal of losing 15 pounds of fat in approximately 12-16 weeks. That plan would basically look like this: 

Goal: LOSE 15 POUNDS OF FAT IN 16 WEEKS

Start Date: ___________ End Date:____________

Step 1: Create a nutrition plan that will enable you to lose approximately one pound of fat per week.

Step 2: Take your starting weight.

Step 3: Utilize the given nutrition plan and the guidelines included within it.

Step 4: Track your weight on the same day every week at the same time (try to refrain from taking your weight daily and stick to one day per week to check your weight).

Milestones: 

1. End of week 1 - LOST 1 POUND
2. End of week 2 - LOST 2 POUNDS

Note: If during weekly weigh ins you are either not losing weight or losing too much weight, your nutrition plan and daily eating needs to be re-evaluated as well as your exercise routine and/or your cardio protocol.

A clearly defined goal with realistic milestones is your key to success. Without it, would be like getting into a car and not having any idea where you were heading. A great example of a realistic milestone would be losing 12 lbs of fat in 12 weeks, or gaining 20 lbs of muscle in 16 weeks. It truly depends on your goal. Building muscle and/or losing fat takes time and patience, but if done properly your results can be maintained for a lifetime.  Many people are under the assumption that getting into shape or being fit or muscular is an ordeal.  It’s really not! My take on nutrition and exercise is that if you understand the basic do’s and don'ts of eating properly and healthfully that dream body that you're striving for becomes an amazing byproduct of healthy living. 

The most popular goals that individuals are after are to either build muscle or lose fat.  There are many ways to do this, and almost everyone has their own opinion as to how to build muscle or lose fat. However, many fall short and give up or become frustrated with the process and abandon their hard work and return to their old eating routines and bad nutritional habits. One thing to realize is that this is a process. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. This is about fitting fitness into your lifestyle. Remember that dramatic change doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, patience, and hard work. I can assure you though that if you give your 100%, it will pay off. 

 Whether your goal is trying to gain muscle, lose fat, or maintain your weight, you need to control your calorie intake. There’s no way around it! If your goal is to build muscle and gain weight you need to take in more calories than your body is burning. If your goal is to lose fat, you need to be burning more calories than you’re taking in. Whereas a maintenance phase just requires that you take in just enough calories to sustain your current weight. 

Energy balance is key when figuring out how to tackle your nutrition plan. Energy balance is the relationship between the calories you consume through food and drinks and the energy your body expends though daily activities. Energy balance has everything to do with whether you will be in a caloric deficit and lose the unwanted fat, or in a caloric surplus and build muscle.  You could also add to fat stores depending on your training regime and how high of a caloric surplus you are implementing, which is something we definitely want to stay away from. The goal is to gain muscle, not fat. When we are in a caloric surplus some fat gain may happen, however, the goal is to minimize that as much as possible. 

Caloric Deficit:    

A caloric deficit is a state in which your body is using more energy than it is consuming. Fat loss requires that you be in a caloric deficit.  When you begin a nutrition plan in a caloric deficit your body will need to compensate for the loss in energy and take it from somewhere else.  For example, if you are burning 3,000 calories per day and only eating 2,500 calories, that remaining 500 calories will need to come from somewhere.  It could possibly be taken from body fat but it could also begin eating up your muscle. Therefore, fat loss will occur over time because the body will draw upon those fat stores for energy. However, if this is implemented without the proper strength training program your body will also take from muscle and you will end up looking like a more deflated version of how you already look. It is imperative that a diet like this is followed by a proper training regime.

Maintenance: 

A maintenance phase of dieting is a state in which you are eating neither more calories or less calories than you burn. This state is best utilized when you have achieved the look you want and wish to just maintain it. For example, a maintenance phase is that in which the body neither gains weight or loses weight. It is a state that you can maintain your results if you wish to do so. However, I believe we all have room to grow and this phase should only be utilized once you have achieved the look you’re after.

Caloric surplus: 

A caloric surplus is a state in which your body is consuming more energy than it is burning. Gaining muscle requires that you are in a caloric surplus. When you begin a nutrition plan in a caloric surplus your body will need to compensate for the excess energy and store it somewhere. If you are training properly, it will cause you to build more muscle. However, if you are not training properly it will lead to building up your body fat. When you workout, you are not building up muscle contrary to popular belief. Instead, you are tearing the muscle tissue down. This damage is repaired when you rest, recover, and refuel. The caloric surplus will fuel muscle growth. Also, while in a caloric surplus your recovery will be a lot quicker due to the added energy consumed. On the other hand when you are not in a surplus muscle gains most likely will be nonexistent and recovery will significantly be affected. 

Remember that when setting a goal it is always best to give yourself a given time-frame to accomplish it. When we set deadlines, it keeps us accountable to the goals we set for ourselves. This gives you something to shoot for each and every week. That way when you look back you can see how much you accomplished within that given time-frame you gave yourself.

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I'd love to help you, and look forward to speaking with you soon!

Have a great day!