Habit follows many different gyms, coaches, nutrition sites and athletes, so our social media fills up pretty quickly with many different content, pictures and memes. Recently, as I was scrolling through Instagram, one caught my eye. It was a meme which listed ways to improve fat loss. The post started me thinking about each item listed and I felt was spot on. Best of all, is it kept things simple. Don’t be confused; simple does not mean easy. Each of us tend to overthink and complicate things, thus making our progress toward our goals come to a standstill. Feeling overwhelmed can even stop us from starting in the first place.

Taking cues from the IG post, I am going to list their items and add some of my own. Listed in no particular order, here are some of the MOST important steps I believe can help in achieving fatloss:

Eat More Protein - I have had numerous people in and out of the gym ask me what they should be doing with their nutrition plan without presenting any sort of record or journal on what they are consuming. In nearly every single instance my first response is ‘EAT MORE PROTEIN!’. Usually I get a laugh and a funny look but I am dead serious. In general, most do not eat nearly enough protein. When trying to burn fat this is even more evident. For most, our nutritional intake is carbohydrate-heavy and fat-heavy. Adding additional protein to each of your meals while maintaining a caloric deficit (consuming less calories than are burned), is a great start to help with fat loss.
High Intensity Workouts - I know, I know this seems obvious. Keeping your intensity high during the workout is another great way to help promote fat loss. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is one type of workout which works extremely well. No matter what the workout style may be, keeping your training intensity high to put your body into an anaerobic state really helps to shed body fat.
Consistency - This is the point I feel is the most important: be consistent. To achieve fatloss, you must be consistent with your behavior patterns. First, getting to the gym consistently is the best way for you to see results. Working out 5x one week and 1x next week will stall your progress. Second, find the gym that is the right fit for you, one that you enjoy being a part of their community. Third, make it a habit of being there consistently. For example, if you are worried that you may work late, have a plan of how you will workout. Consistency does not only apply to our gym habits though. Nutrition is 90% of where results will be seen. Staying on your nutrition plan one day to be derailed the next will hinder any result you are looking to achieve. Be consistent with your nutrition, be consistent with your meal prep. Be consistent with having a plan if something changes in your day.

Eating more protein and introducing high intensity training are 100% important to targeting fatloss goals, but consistency is key. Start as small as you need, but practicing consistency is nutrition, training intensity and quality recovery is the best way to successfully achieve progress toward the fat loss goal you are striving to obtain.