12 Tips to a Lean, Sexy, Hard Body

12 Tips to a Lean, Sexy, Hard Body

With winter right around the corner I decided to put together 12 tips to help achieve that lean, sexy, hard body. That way when you shed the close this spring there is a new you in the mirror and on the beach.

1. Eat 5-6 smaller meals and snacks a day instead of the traditional 3 meals a day. By doing so you are keeping your metabolism sped up all day long. You should be eating every 2-3 hours.

2. Do not eat any carbohydrates after 4-5 pm (except for fibrous carbohydrates such as vegetables). Carbohydrates aren’t evil, they just need to be eaten earlier in the day so they can be used for energy, not late at night and stored as bodyfat.

3. Eat protein with each meal. Your body burns more calories digesting 1 gram of protein than it does 1 gram of fat or carbohydrate. This is known as the Thermic Effect of food. Your body actually burns calories while digesting food. Protein also slows down your insulin response to carbohydrates which lessens their chances of being stored as fat even more.

4. Avoid Fried foods. Just because it’s a Chicken Salad doesn’t mean its healthy if the chicken is fried. Opt for grilled chicken in its place. While you’re at it choose lower fat dressings and place them in a small dish on the side. Then dip your fork in the dressing then into the salad. That will save a ton of calories.

5. Eat breakfast each day. If you skip breakfast you may not be hungry till later that afternoon and most people think, “If I skip breakfast and I am not hungry I will lose weight.” Well I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news but by skipping breakfast your doing way more harm than good. Your body has been without food for the past 6-8 hours and that causes your metabolism to slow to a stop. You then skip breakfast causing it to slow even more. Then the next meal you eat your body stores as extra body fat because it doesn’t know when your going to get to eat again. By eating breakfast you actually spike your metabolism and increase how many calories you burn that day. It also works wonders for your body and brains energy needs.

6. Lift weights. Most men don’t have a problem with this but women tend to object. They are afraid they will get “too bulky” or “too big”. Well I am telling you from my own experience with clients as well as scientific evidence, that just doesn’t happen. Women who get big and bulky take the synthetic male hormone testosterone or other steroids. It doesn’t just happen from lifting weights. In fact, most men, men with loads more testosterone and manly muscle building potential, have real difficulty putting on muscle mass. If this is true for men, it’s convincingly true for women, the vessels of estrogen. Now women, you name a female actress, singer, athlete, etc. who has a physique you wouldn’t mine having. Chances are she lifts weights. Just today I read an article about Eva Mendes weight training program and nutrition. By lifting weights you increase your lean body mass. In return your body burns more calories even when you are not working out. You also get the lean, sexy, hard body you want. 2-4 Days is sufficent.

7. Eliminate Calorie Containing Beverages. You should eat your calories, not drink them. Green Tea and Water should be your first choices but other drinks such as diet coke and crystal light are fine. (Eliminate juices, Gatorade, milk, coke, etc.)

8. Perform Cardio. Lifting weights may help you achieve the body you want alone believe it or not. But cardio will definitely speed up the process. 3-5 Days at 20-45 minutes is plenty. Be sure to always progress. If you do 20 minutes this week @ 3.5 mph on a 1% incline then next week increase 1 of the 3 parameters (duration, speed, or incline). So do 25 minutes next week, or 3.8 mph, or 4% incline. By continually increasing your body doesn't have the ability to adapt and keeps changing.

9. Take Fish Oil. 2-3 grams of fish oil a day has scientifically shown to increase body fat loss. Diets rich in Omega 3 fatty acids can increase the production of a number of important mitochondrial enzymes that play a part in fat oxidation, in other words you get leaner.

10. Follow your healthy eating plan 10% of the time. The difference, in results,
between 90% adherence to your nutrition program and 100% adherence is
negligible. So allow yourself the extra 10% wiggle room. Do you like Pasta from The Pasta House? That Mexican dish I can’t even pronounce from Los Whatever its called? If so, have some during your 10% allotment. My favorite 10% food is pizza and mountain dew. Once or twice a week I allow myself to have some. This 10% wiggle room will allow you the freedom to eat a few extra things not on your menu without the guilt and subsequent psychological crash that usually accompanies such perceived transgressions.

11. Unfortunately the worst foods usually are the most convenient and the most processed foods. Avoid eating for convenience alone. Convenience stores always have healthy options. Just look around. Beef jerky, peanuts, and almonds just to name a few.

12. Avoid any easy-to-prepare breakfast foods (waffles, french toast, cold cereals, etc) as they're loaded with fattening trans-fatty acids. Avoid products containing the ingredients or words "partially hydrogenated," "high fructose corn syrup," etc.

Now with these 12 tips fresh on your mind put them to use over the winter to discover a whole new you when spring rolls around.

-Chase Karnes, NSCA-CPT