How to get lean: 5 lesser-known tips

5 unconventional ways to help you smash through that plateau and get lean for summer

If your summer holiday is fast approaching and you still haven’t quite got as lean as you’d like for the beach we might just be able to offer you a helping hand with some alternative tips to get you lean enough to see that six-pack. It’s easy to hit a plateau when trying to get lean. You keep doing the same fat burning cardio exercises, but you don’t want to cut out more calories from your diet as you’ve worked hard to build up that muscle. It can leave you in a confused, dog chasing its tail, state, but no longer, for we have unearthed five ways to get you lean that you may not already know.

Saturated fats aren’t so bad

We know, we know, saturated fats are meant to be the enemy when it comes to shedding weight and getting lean but you need fats in your diet, both saturated and unsaturated, if you want to get all healthy and lean. Think about it like this; back in the days of the caveman, they didn’t exactly eat low-fat meats did they? They ate whatever it was that they could find, so there is no point in trying to avoid foods such as eggs or beef where these fats are naturally found. Just keep away from adding any extra saturated fats to what you’re already taking on.

Keep stress under control

A study published in 2011 by Brunel University found that rats placed in extremely high-stress situations that they were not accustomed to start to use sugary and fatty foods to self-medicate. This was because the comfort food had a calming effect on the rats’ brains, restricting the release of the stress-related hormone that sends messages around the body, one of which is to store fat.

Check out our guide to beating stress if you want to keep from comfort eating.

Re-assess your consumption of refined carbs

If you’re one of the many people out there who train consistently and have adopted an optimised diet but you’re still not hitting your targets and seeing the progress that you’d expect by this point then you might want to consider reevaluating the amount of refined carbs that you’re still eating. The hormone insulin is responsible for driving weight gain in the body. Refined carbohydrates are the real issue here, as they have the strongest affect on insulin, whereas fat and protein have little to no effect on it whatsoever. If you’re consuming a lot of refined carbs like white bread and processed snacks we’d bet that you start to notice quite a big difference if you cut them out.

Hit the gym on an empty stomach

It can seem relatively difficult having to train on an empty stomach, as it can sometimes feel like all you can think about as you start to expend energy and have nothing in your system is to replace it. But if it was good enough for Schwarzenegger back in his Mr. Universe days then it’s good enough for us, and you. The best time to workout if you’re attempting to get lean is first thing in the morning, after you have fasted all night, when your blood sugar is at its lowest. If you really struggle to get through a workout on an empty stomach then try eating something that your body is able to digest quickly like fruit or a protein shake before you start your session.

Hold off on eating straight after your workout

Another semi-conventional thing that you could tweak to get yourself lean is to stop eating straight after your workout. Hold on before you go absolutely insane. Hear us out. Often when people eat straight after a workout they consume too much, as there is a compensatory mechanism where we get hungry and then overeat because we’re thinking subconsciously that we’ve been training so can therefore consume extra calories.

Don’t worry too much about replenishing your glycogen stores. Out bodies have around 1,800 calories tucked away in glycogen stores, it’s highly unlikely that your workout will have burned away all of them, so you can afford not to eat straight away. 

Read more about: Lose weight how to get lean Disqus - noscript Submitted by Steve Marshall on Sat, 2014-06-14 09:49.

Good article, thanks.
The guideline about how long, post workout, is best to eat and the ratio of protein/fat/nutrition could be inserted ? Please advise.
Thanks

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