fast track to fat loss

FAST TRACK TO FAT LOSS

FITera, LLC

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FAST TRACK TO FAT LOSSThe Ultimate Guide to Losing Fat, Getting Fit,

and Living a Healthy LifestyleBy Chad Tackett, BS, CPT

Second Edition

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Contents

INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 5

CHAPTER 1 – NUTRITION ............................................................................................ 13The 5 Simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss .................................................................. 13

Choosing the Right Kinds of Foods ................................................................................23

Introduction to carbs .............................................................................................23

Introduction to protein ..........................................................................................28

Introduction to fat ..................................................................................................30

Combining the Right Foods at the Right Times ............................................................ 35

When to eat starchy, simple, and fibrous carbs ................................................. 35

When to eat protein and healthy fat .................................................................... 36

When to drink water and how much ................................................................... 36

How Often to Eat and Meal Guidelines to Follow ........................................................ 41

Portions: How Much You Should Eat .............................................................................43

Planning and Preparing Your Meals .............................................................................. 47

Striking a Balance Between Fun and Effective ............................................................. 59

Alcohol, coffee drinks, and desserts ....................................................................60

Following the program when out to eat .............................................................. 74

Following the program on the go ......................................................................... 78

Staying on track over the weekend ......................................................................84

Getting the family involved ................................................................................... 86

Following the program when your family’s not on board ................................. 87

Dealing with temptation from friends and family .............................................. 89

Nutrition Summary – Key Points to Remember ...........................................................94

CHAPTER 2 – EXERCISE .................................................................................................95Get Active ......................................................................................................................... 95

The Two Types of Exercise ..............................................................................................99

Cardiovascular exercise .........................................................................................99


Resistance training ...............................................................................................100

Combining Cardiovascular Exercise with Resistance Training ................................. 102

A Workout That’s Right for YOU ...................................................................................104

Before Getting Started, Understand These Basics ....................................................106

Warming up and stretching ................................................................................ 106

Resistance training technique ............................................................................ 107

Progressive resistance ......................................................................................... 108

Monitoring your heart rate ................................................................................. 109

Interval training .................................................................................................... 110

Intermediate and Advanced Resistance Training Techniques ...................................112

Slow training ......................................................................................................... 112

Assisted training ................................................................................................... 113

Superset training .................................................................................................. 113

Breakdown training .............................................................................................. 113

Exercise Summary – Key Points to Remember .......................................................... 114

CHAPTER 3 – MOTIVATION ...................................................................................... 115The FITera Online Community Website ...................................................................... 115

Goal-Setting and the FITera Goal Planner .................................................................. 116

Measuring Your Progress .............................................................................................. 120

A 3-Minute Trick to Stay Focused and Motivated ...................................................... 123

Weekly Challenges ......................................................................................................... 127

Our 12-Week Contest .................................................................................................... 128

Improving Your Mindset ............................................................................................... 129

Motivation Summary – Key Points to Remember ...................................................... 132

GETTING STARTED ........................................................................................................ 133

REFERENCE GUIDES ...................................................................................................... 137

5FAST TRACK TO FAT LOSS

FAST TRACK TO FAT LOSSThe Ultimate Guide to Losing Fat, Getting Fit,

and Living a Healthy Lifestyle

Welcome to Fast Track to Fat Loss! I’m very excited to show you exactly how to lose fat, get fit, and live a healthy lifestyle – once and for all. Our approach has been successful for thousands of men and women wanting to look and be their best. But before I describe our program, I’d like to briefly explain what our pro-gram is not and why what you may have tried in the past didn’t work for you.

Most diets – whether low-fat, low-carb, or whatever – rely on severely restricting calories to force the body to lose weight. Some of these promote eating fewer than 1,000 calories a day. That’s just plain starvation, which isn’t healthy. You’d be better off signing up for Survivor, where at least you might win a lot of money...

The very appropriate nickname for these plans is ”crash diets” and that is exactly what happens to your metabolism – it crashes and burns. If your body is not receiving adequate fuel, it goes into

starvation mode, hoarding any calories you do take in and storing them as body fat. Then your body holds on to that fat for dear life, since it has no idea how long you’re going to be “starving.”

Instead of burning your fat for fuel, the body begins to burn protein, which is much easier to break down than fat. It takes that protein from your muscles! That’s right. If you don’t consume enough calories, you’ll “cannibalize” your own muscle tissues for use as fuel instead of burning your stored fat.


If you stay on one of these calorie-restrictive diets for very long, your body eventually resets its basal metabolic rate to a lower level than before. In other words, it adapts; it becomes more efficient and functions day to day on fewer calories than it needed before. This makes it even harder for you to lose fat.

Diets that severely restrict calories can also perpetuate bingeing. Once most of

us are done with the starvation program, we eat anything and everything we were denied on the diet – and then some. Our body wants the calories physically as much as we want them mentally, and since the body takes a bit longer to understand that we’re done starving, it continues to store the calories as more body fat. In fact, a repeated pattern of calorie-restrictive diets will make us fatter rather than thinner.

A new, Different Approach

The Fast Track to Fat Loss program takes a very different approach, one that actually conditions your body to burn fat around the clock rather than store it. Just as importantly, we make sure that your meals are enjoyable and that the plan is simple to follow, so it’s something you can stick with long term. If you’ve ever tried to follow a complicated or rigid diet plan, you know why this is so important. And even when the changes are simple, we still need to make adjustments, and that’s a whole lot easier when we have good people who are eager to offer us personal support and encouragement.

Now that you understand what Fast Track to Fat Loss isn’t, here’s what the program IS:

● One that encourages you to eat throughout the day, so you stay full and satisfied.

● One that strategically combines the right foods together for maximum energy and fat-burning.

● One that allows you to enjoy all of your favorite meals, in healthier versions.


● One that is easily adaptable to your family’s preferences, so you don’t have to eat something different than they do.

● One that shows you a plan for going out to dinner and drinks with friends without sabotaging your success.

● One that eliminates all the guesswork by showing you what to eat, how much, and when – in a way that fits your unique lifestyle, preferences, and budget.

● One that guides you through planning, grocery shopping, and preparing your foods – every step of the way.

● One that offers specific step-by-step strategies for sticking to the plan while dining out, attending social events, and enjoying cocktails, coffee drinks, and even desserts.

● One that encourages real food rather than expensive “diet foods” or unhealthy weight loss supplements.

● One that doesn’t require long, boring workouts but instead teaches you effective techniques for burning fat around the clock in just 20 minutes a day.

● One that shows you how to get better, faster results by doing fun activities you enjoy.

● One that shows you how to prevent boredom and overcome plateaus, so it’s easy to stick with it.

● One that offers a variety of tools, resources, and personal support to keep you motivated and right on track to reaching your goals.

Bottom line: The Fast Track to Fat Loss program doesn’t just give you a food plan and then leave you on your own to adapt it to your lifestyle and stay motivated. We offer the personal support, encouragement, and motivation you need as you implement the Fast Track program.

That’s what the FITera online community site has been doing for years!

● Other Fast Track members who are eager to offer support, encouragement, and share their personal experiences and tips with you. Post a blog or submit a question to the forum and I think you’ll be amazed by the personal responses you receive from others who

care about you and your upcoming success.

● Several tools and resources to help guide you through the program, such as our meal, workout, and goal planners.

What you will find on the site linked just above:

http://community.fitera.com/users/login


● The latest reliable research and other new content updated most days, including delicious, fat-burn-ing recipes, articles, video tips, and more.

● Weekly challenges to keep you focussed and on track to achieving your goals.

● Motivational contests for big prizes, including a dream vacation at the Fast Track vacation home in beauti-ful Loreto, Mexico.

● And you’ll find me there every day posting new content, announcing new website features, answering questions, and offering you the encouragement that can make a big difference.

So Fast Track to Fat Loss is the program and FITera is the community site where you’ll have quick and easy access to the program, new updated content and resources, contests and challenges, and lots of friendly people who are eager to offer you help and encouragement.

We want to offer you more than just good information. We want to provide you with the tools and resources, motivation, and personal support you need to make this a realistic lifestyle change that you can enjoy for the rest of your life.

IMPORTANT NOTE: I want to continually improve the Fast Track to Fat Loss program and would love any honest feedback or suggestions you might have. Please post your comments here. Thanks in advance!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/W7Z3BFV



Best steps for Getting startedSo what’s the best way to get started with the Fast Track to Fat Loss program for the greatest chance at success? Here are the 3 best steps and I suggest you complete them one at a time.

Step 1. Understand and implement the Nutrition component

Step 2. Understand and implement the Exercise component

Step 3. Understand the Motivation component and start using the resources offered

● Start reading the Nutrition component (page 13) and make sure you can answer each of the quizzes before moving on through the next section.

● Implement what you just learned:• Create a grocery list from our Recommended Food List.• Prepare your foods for the week (e.g., bake chicken and sweet potatoes, etc).• Refer to our Meal Guidelines Chart to create each snack and meal.• Use the fist/palm/thumb rule and listen to your body to know how much to

eat.

● Start reading the Exercise component (page 95) and make sure you can answer each of the quizzes before moving on through the next section.

● Implement what you just learned:• Get more active both around the house/office (e.g., chores, yardwork) and

doing activities you enjoy (e.g., biking, tennis).• When you’re ready, start doing the 2 forms of exercise: cardio exercise and

resistance training.

● Examples of motivational resources include setting short- and long-term goals, participating in the weekly challenges, and entering our 12-week contest.


Note: If at any time you have questions or concerns as you read through the Nutrition, Exercise, and Motivation components, log into the FITera community site to create a blog or post in the forum for prompt feedback from me and others.

If you’re like most, you’ve tried a variety of diet plans, weight loss foods and supplements, and workout gadgets, and none of them have lived up to their claims. So naturally you’re skeptical that this time will be any different.

By following the Fast Track to Fat Loss program, this time WILL be different because there will be:

Why this time Will Be Different

● NO MORE depriving yourself of the foods you love.

● NO MORE relying on super-human willpower and self-discipline.

● NO MORE wasting your valuable time counting calories, grams, or points.

● NO MORE wasting your money on expensive weight loss pills or tasteless diet foods.

● NO MORE eating meals that are different than your friends and family.

● NO MORE suffering through long, boring workouts.

We know that most people (actually, 95%) quit their weight loss program in the first 2 weeks because of the issues above and I’m willing to bet, they’re why you may have struggled in the past too. The Fast Track to Fat Loss program is a way to end all this struggle. It has proven effective in helping people find a great way to eat and exercise, and how to get the best possible results in the shortest amount of time.



Before you get started, it’s important you know that as simple and effective as this program is, it’s not always easy.

Why? Because changing old habits isn’t easy. And your days won’t always go as planned.

There will be times when you have an unhealthy meal or eat beyond comfortably full. There will be times when your schedule gets so busy that you’re unable to be active. This happens to all of us. It’s normal. But it’s very important that you don’t get down on yourself and abandon your new healthy lifestyle when this happens.

Many of us react to obstacles that throw us off track with guilt. You feel as if all your hard work has been for nothing. You might think to yourself, “I blew it; I was doing so well. Oh well, I might as well enjoy this weekend and start over on Monday.”

This all-or-nothing attitude is why so many people have so little success. If we begin to change our habits with the assumption that any deviation from our plan will ruin it, we might as well not begin. Life is full of unplanned obstacles, distractions, and temptations. Our best approach is to prepare for them the best we can, maintain a positive attitude, and

setting Clear expectations

then get right back on track whenever we stray from the plan.

We recommend that before you begin this program, you agree with yourself that “no matter what happens, rather than abandoning my new lifestyle, I’ll resume my healthy habits as soon as I can.” It is equally important to make this commitment out of confidence, not guilt.

Whatever the temptation or obstacle, keep in mind that it’s not wrong or bad to eat unhealthy foods once in a while or to miss a workout. Just remember to resume your healthy lifestyle just as quickly as you can. If you keep moving forward and you don’t let guilt and negative self-talk stop your program all together, you’ll eventually have improved eating and exercise habits and good results will follow.


Getting started with nutritionThe most important piece of the Fast Track to Fat Loss program is nutrition because it influences fat loss FAR more than anything else. I asked superstar celebrity trainer Kim Lyons (former trainer from The Biggest Loser and a regular guest expert on the Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil shows) to create a video with one of Fast Track’s greatest success stories, Eric Post, to tell you why nutrition is the key… I think you’ll find it eye-opening and a good segue into this important component of the program...

Watch this short 2-minute video on the FITera community site.

http://community.fitera.com/blog_entries/view/52107



You’ve probably heard these two ideas before: calories don’t count and you don’t need to count calories. While both statements concern calories, there’s a huge difference in their meaning and in their usefulness for fat loss.

The statement “calories don’t count” is false. Calories absolutely DO count because you have to create a caloric deficit to lose fat; that is, you must burn more calories than you consume.

If you consume more calories than you burn, you gain fat. If you burn about the same number of calories as you consume, your weight will remain the same. But if you burn more calories than you consume, you create a caloric deficit and you lose fat.

N U T r I T I o NThe nutrition portion of the Fast Track to Fat Loss program is centered on what we call the 5 Simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss. First, I’ll briefly discuss each one and then give you a step-by-step plan for putting each one into practice. If you follow these 5 Keys closely and consistently, you will succeed on this program!

Key # 1: Calories Count, But You Don’t Need to Count Them

While a caloric deficit is essential, there are other important factors to making sure that your weight loss is healthy, long-term fat loss. For example, in addition to creating a caloric deficit, you want to make sure you get the nutrients you need to preserve (and even gain) muscle, to condition your metabolism to work efficiently, and to supply the energy you need for an active lifestyle.

To sum up: You need to create a caloric deficit to lose fat AND you want to get the most amount of nutrients while creating this deficit. If you follow the 5 Keys closely, you’ll achieve both.


What is a calorie?

Calories are simply a measure of how much energy a food provides your body when it’s consumed. The more calories a food contains, the more potential energy it supplies your body. The number of calories your body requires to be alive and function every day is called your basal metabolic rate (BMR). This includes the number of calories it takes to think, digest, breathe, type, sit, shower, and even eat! All these actions require energy.

Your BMR is affected by your age, height, gender, activity level, body composition (fat weight versus muscle weight), and the foods you eat. The more active you are, the higher your BMR will be.

However, knowing what calories are doesn’t mean that we’re going to make you calculate, count, and measure every-thing. We know from years of working with thousands of clients that it doesn’t have to be time-consuming or difficult.

Here’s why:

rEaSoN #1

First, by following the 5 Keys, you’ll be limiting the foods you should avoid and focusing on those we recommend, and so you’ll naturally be in a caloric deficit each day. It actually becomes automatic.

Consider a bag of spinach. The entire bag has only 40 calories. Combine this spinach with a few of your favorite veggies and one of our low-calorie dressings, and some protein, such as grilled chicken breast, and you’re still only consuming 230 calories. This huge meal will fill up your plate and your stomach, and it has all the nutrients you need for fewer than 250 calories!

On the other hand, a typical fast food salad often contains a whopping 800 calories or more with as much as 70 grams of fat. That’s more than three times the calories as the spinach and chicken salad we recommend. What’s the difference? The fast food salad includes foods that we suggest limiting: processed carbs, saturated fat, and sugar.

Q

a


Here’s where the 5 Keys can be so helpful. We suggest you make some really simple changes when ordering, such as skipping the cheese and croutons, and replacing the breaded chicken with grilled chicken. Then order a low-calorie dressing on the side and you can save yourself hundreds of calories and still enjoy your meal!

Of course, you don’t have to always eat salad to lose fat. Let’s look at one of my favorite meals...

The Fast Track to Fat Loss version of Fet-tuccini Alfredo has less than 300 calories. It’s made with spaghetti squash, Greek yogurt, chicken broth, lemon juice, and a little parmesan cheese. Let’s compare it with a typical Fettuccini Alfredo that includes refined noodles, butter, cream, and high-fat cheeses totaling more than 1,000 calories per serving. But just like with the salad, if you make a few simple changes, you can drastically cut down the number of calories, saturated fat, and processed carbs and still enjoy your meal.

Here’s the deal: Calories add up very quickly if you don’t make the right choices. However, if you follow our 5 Simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss, you’ll be eating the right foods, in the right combinations, and therefore you’ll be sure to be in a caloric deficit.

rEaSoN #2

Here’s the second reason you won’t need to count calories. The Fast Track to Fat Loss program will teach you how to use a simple 2-step strategy for knowing exactly how much to eat, specifically for you. We’ll discuss portions and this 2-step strategy further below.

Key Points:

1. Calories DO count. You have to create a caloric deficit to lose fat.

2. You don’t have to count calories. Instead, you can simply follow our meal guidelines and 2-step process for determining how much to eat.

You’ll never ever have to count, calcu-late, or measure anything ever again and you’ll be creating that caloric deficit you need to guarantee fat loss. It really is that simple and with the support from all of us in the FITera online community site, you’ll find that it gets easier and easier with practice.

http://community.fitera.com/recipes/view/9918




When it comes to carbohydrates (carbs), I’ve heard it all. “Carbs make you fat…” “A low-carb diet is the only way to lose weight...” “You have to eliminate all carbs from your diet.”

I’m here to tell you that not all carbs are bad. In fact, carbs are absolutely critical to your success. If you choose the right kinds of carbs at the right time of the day, you’ll receive all of these benefits:

● The very best source of energy

● Powerful appetite suppressants

● Stay full and satisfied longer

● Keep your blood sugar well-balanced

● Lower cholesterol and reduce risk of disease

● Decrease stress and enhance your mood

● Loaded with antioxidants and phytochemicals to help fight cancer and other diseases

● Low in calories, yet jam-packed with nutrients

● Releases hormones that help minimize cravings

Key # 2: Choose Your Carbs Wisely

We’ll discuss how to choose the right kinds at the right times of the day in the next section. For now, just know that (the right kind of) carbs should be eaten at each snack/meal and that they are very important to your success, both in the short- and the long-term.

Key Points:

1. Not all carbs are bad. In fact, the right kinds are absolutely critical for not only long-term fat loss but for good health in general.

2. It’s very important that you choose the right kind, at the right time of the day, at every snack and meal.


With all the negative buzz on carbs, protein is in the nutritional spotlight. And it should be. For maximum fat loss, it is critical to eat protein at every meal.

Key # 3: Include a Protein and a Healthy Fat at Each Meal

First, a meal with carbs alone causes your insulin, or blood sugar levels, to shoot up and then crash down. This can leave you feeling tired, hungry, and weak. It also gives your body an easy opportu-nity to convert and store that meal as fat.

Second, carbs are digested in about two hours, but proteins take considerably longer. So, when you eat a protein with carbs, the protein slows down the digestion of the carbs, which allows for energy to be released slowly.

Therefore, the benefits of eating protein at each meal are substantial. You’ll feel full sooner and you’ll stay full longer, your insulin levels will stay more consis-tent giving you lasting energy, and your metabolism will work more efficiently.

In addition, including a protein source at each meal brings these benefits:

● Builds lean, fat-burning muscle and prevents muscle loss

● Builds skin, ligaments, bones, hair, cells, and nails

● Helps manufacture hormones and enzymes that are responsible for nearly every function in the body

● Improves brain function, including both memory and optimal cognition

● Aids in most aspects of health, including blood pressure, cardiovascular health, disease prevention, sleep, and longevity


Key Point:

1. It’s very important to include a protein source and a healthy fat source at every snack and meal. This will help you stay full, energized, and satisfied throughout the day and provide a variety of other benefits.

● Decreases risk of pain and injury (and much quicker recovery from injuries)

● Decreases risk of disease, such as osteoporosis

● Provides optimal chemical balance for better, longer sleep

● Improves lifespan and quality of life as you age

● Increases healthy gut bacteria to improve digestion

Healthy FatIncluding a small portion of healthy fat at each snack and meal is also important as it too helps stabilize your blood sugar and makes you feel full, satisfied, and energized much longer. You’ll also enjoy these benefits:

● Helps the body absorb vitamins A, D, E, and K

● Contains “fat-burning” hormones, such as adiponectin, which enhances your metabolism

● Increases the rate in which fats are broken down, thereby curbing your appetite

● Supports the reproductive, nervous, and immune systems

● Contributes to the health of bones, skin, joints, and hair

But it’s very important that you choose the right kind of fat, as some are linked to heart disease and therefore considered unhealthy, while others offer all the benefits listed above.

We’ll explain how to choose the good from the bad in a bit, and how much you should have at each meal, but for now just know that it’s very important to include a healthy fat at each snack and meal.


As incredible as it may seem, water is quite possibly the single most important catalyst in losing fat and keeping it off. Although most of us take it for granted, water may be the only true magic potion for permanent weight loss.

Our bodies are 60% water. We can live for weeks without food, but we will perish in a matter of days without water. Every physiological process that takes place in your body, including burning fat and developing lean muscle, depends on water.

For example, your liver needs water to convert stored fat to energy. In addition, if your kidneys are water-deprived, the liver has to do the kidneys’ work all on its own, lowering its ability to help you burn fat. So if you’re not drinking enough water, you’re setting yourself up to store fat.

Water is also a natural appetite suppres-sant, so if you’re low on water, you may overeat to compensate. Your brain does not know how to differentiate between hunger and thirst. If you think you’re hungry, your body may be sending signs that you’re thirsty.

So any time you think you’re hungry, drink a glass or two of water first. If it’s thirst, your hunger will go away. Also, when you plan to go out to dinner or attend a social

Key # 4: The Importance of Water

event, drink a few extra glasses to keep your appetite under control.

Here are some other key benefits of staying well hydrated:

● Cushions bones, organs, and joints

● Regulates body temperature ● Helps metabolize food ● Regulates waste removal ● Decreases bloating

Key Point:

1. Water is absolutely critical to your health in general and to success-ful fat loss.


Almost every trainer, athlete, and weight loss guru will tell you that “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” It may sound a bit clichéd, but this saying could not be more appropriate when it comes to fat loss.

Having your meals prepared - or at least planned - before starting your day is very important to your success. Otherwise it’s just too easy to grab the most convenient foods available, and as you know, this is usually fast food, vending machine food, and junk food at the office.

A really helpful strategy is Sunday meal prep (or any day you choose). This way you are all set for an entire week and if you are in a rush, all you have to do is refer to our Meal Guidelines Chart to quickly throw together a meal from your already prepared foods.

For example, on Sunday I take an hour to make sure that I have 2 or 3 different protein sources, healthy fats, and carbs ready for the week. This way, in the morning, when I’m in a rush, all I have to do is quickly combine a protein, a healthy fat, and the right kind of carb together for a perfectly balanced meal.

Key # 5: Plan and Prepare Your Meals in Advance

A good example is roasting a large batch of sweet potatoes and scrambling a dozen eggs for the week, so that in the morning all you have to do is heat some potatoes (carbs) and eggs (protein and healthy fat) and your healthy, well-balanced breakfast is ready to go in a very few minutes!

Key Point:

1. It is very important that you plan and prepare your foods for the week, so that combining the right foods together is quick, easy, and convenient.


summary of the 5 simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss

Key # 1:

You must create a caloric deficit to lose fat, but you don’t have to count calories to do so.

Key # 2:

Carbs are critical to your success and you should include the right kind at each snack and meal.

Key # 3:

It’s important that you include a protein and healthy fat at each snack and meal.

Key # 4:

Water is critical to your fat loss success and should be consumed throughout the day.

Key # 5:

Planning and preparing the right types of foods in advance will make following the program so much easier.

It’s very important that you include the right kind of carbs, protein, and fat in each snack or meal, that you drink water throughout the day, and that you plan each day in advance. Do this and you’ll find this program easy to follow; what’s more, you will enjoy great results. Next, we’ll discuss how to choose the right kinds of carbs, protein, and fat.


Before you move on, see if you can answer these questions to ensure your understanding and speed up your fat loss journey:

1. A caloric deficit means you are:

a.) Consuming more calories than you expend

b.) On a low-calorie dietc.) Consuming fewer calories than

you expend

2. Creating a caloric deficit isn’t always necessary to lose fat IF you’re eating healthy foods:

a.) True b.) False

3. To lose fat, you should:

a.) Include a carb at each snack and meal

b.) Limit carbsc.) Limit carbs at night only

4. Protein and carbs should not be eaten at the same time.

a.) Trueb.) False

5. Eating fat makes us fat, so we should avoid foods high in fat.

a.) Trueb.) False

6. Water:

a.) Helps convert fat to energyb.) Is a natural appetite suppressantc.) Assists in waste removald.) All of the abovee.) None of the above

7. To be successful on this program, it is very important that you:

a.) Plan and prepare your meals every day

b.) Plan and prepare your meals once a week

c.) Plan and prepare your meals ev-ery few days

d.) Any of the above

Note: you’ll find the answers to these questions here on the FITera community site.



Choosing the Right Kinds of Foods

Three types of foods provide energy in the form of calories: carbs, protein, and fats. These are called macronutrients because we need them in large quantities to function properly. Again, it is very important that you include at least one type at each snack and meal. This will not only allow you to gain all the benefits we’ve discussed above, but they will work together synergistically to help you burn fat.

There are three types of carbs to choose from: starchy, simple, and fibrous.

How do you know the good carbs from the bad in each of these three categories? It’s really simple: Think natural vs. processed. If the food comes out of the ground or from a tree, it’s natural and ideal for fat loss. Anything man-made is considered processed, and therefore not the best choice.

Examples of natural carbs are fruits and vegetables, beans, brown rice, potatoes, yams, lentils, quinoa, oats – basically anything that’s picked from the ground or a tree.

Now let’s look at some of the bad guys, the processed carbs. Because of the processing, these carbs have very little nutritional value and are usually high in calories. They typically also cause an increase in insulin levels, which enables the calories to be easily stored as fat.

Carbs


Compare a large baked sweet potato (natural) with 10 small crackers (processed) or even just 7 chips (processed). A large sweet potato has the same calories as a very small handful of crackers or chips. Which is going to give you better nutrients and energy and help you stay full longer? You guessed it, the sweet potato. You should therefore limit your intake of processed carbs, such as chips, crackers, and refined sugars.

So choosing the right kind of carbs is as simple as: selecting natural carbs over processed ones.

On our Recommended Food List, we include all starchy carbs that are ideal for fat loss, those that are natural, not processed. Since fruit (simple carbs) and vegetables (fibrous carbs) are all picked from the ground or a tree, and therefore natural, they’re all ideal.

However, some processed carbs aren’t bad; we’ve labeled these as “acceptable.” They’re a bit higher in calories because they’re processed, but they offer some good nutritional value, such as fiber. Some examples of foods in the acceptable section: 100% whole grain or sprouted bread, high-fiber low-sugar cereals, and 100% whole grain pasta.

Here’s a comprehensive list of ideal and acceptable starchy carbs:

• beans (black, kidney, lima) • black-eyed peas • brown rice (or wild, basmati) • couscous • edamame • lentils • millet • oat bran

• oatmeal (rolled oats, steel cut) • porridge • potato • pumpkin • quinoa • squash • sweet potato • yam

Ideal Starchy Carbs(foods that are natural, not processed)


Fibrous Carbs(vegetables)

• barley • bread (whole wheat) • buckwheat • corn• cream of rice • cream of wheat

• apple • apricot • banana • blackberries • blueberries • cantaloupe • cherries• cranberries • dates• grapefruit • figs • grapes • honeydew melon • kiwi • lemon

• high-fiber cereal • pasta (whole wheat) • popcorn • rice cakes• spelt bread • tortilla (whole wheat)

• limes • mango • nectarine • orange • papaya • peaches• pear • pineapple • plum • pomegranate • prunes • raisin • raspberries • strawberries • watermelon

Acceptable Starchy Carbs(foods that include some processing, but offer important nutrients)

Simple Carbs(fruits)

Here are the simple and fibrous carbs from our Recommended Food List. If we’re missing any fruits and veggies from the following list that you enjoy, feel free to let us know and add them to your grocery list!

• alfalfa • asparagus • beets

• bell peppers • broccoli • brussel sprouts


Strategies for including starchy carbs in your snacks and meals:

● Roast sweet potatoes or yams and include them with your eggs in the morning.

● Add ¼ cup oats to your shake or smoothie.

● Add beans to your salads, soups, and casseroles.

● Add quinoa as a side dish or in soups and salads.

● Add black-eyed peas to your scrambled eggs.

● Bake sliced sweet potatoes, potatoes, or yams to make “fries” as a side dish with your meal.

● Add pumpkin to pancakes, waffles, muffins, and other baked goods.

● Add couscous to meatloaf or hamburger patties.

• cabbage • carrot • cauliflower • celery • collard greens • cucumber • eggplant • fennel • garlic • green beans • green peas • jicama • kale • leeks

• mushrooms • okra • onion • parsnips • radish • romaine lettuce • snow peas • spinach • swiss chard • tomato• turnip • watercress • water chestnut • zucchini

Strategies for including simple carbs in your snacks and meals:

● Top your oatmeal with sliced bananas or chopped apples.

● Add berries to your protein shake. ● Add sliced pear to your salads. ● Add sliced banana or chopped

apple to our pancakes and waffle recipes.


● Dice mushrooms, zucchini, and onions and mix them into your hamburger patty or meatloaf.

● Add grated carrots and spinach to lasagna and other casseroles.

● Add diced bell peppers to your eggs.

● Add strawberries or pineapple to Greek yogurt.

● Grapes, string cheese, and almonds make a delicious, well-balanced snack.

● Add various melons to your shish kabobs.

● Add cranberries to potato salad.

Strategies for including fibrous carbs in your snacks and meals:

● Add spinach to your shake or smoothie. Sounds strange, but you can’t even taste it.

● Include grated zucchini, carrots, spinach, kale, and/or bell peppers to pasta sauces.

● Slice all your favorite veggies, mix them in a marinade and wrap them in foil, and grill them on the BBQ.

● Dice your favorite veggies and add them to our recipes for nachos, tacos, and burritos.

Key Points:

1. Choose natural carbs (those picked from the ground or a tree: fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, brown rice, potatoes, yams, lentils, oats) over processed carbs (those that are man-made: pasta, chips, crackers, cookies, and refined sugars).

2. Explore easy ways to add natural carbs to each snack or meal.


ProteinsThere are 2 types of proteins: complete proteins and incomplete proteins. Let’s discuss each and how to get the best results by choosing the right kinds.

Complete proteins

Complete proteins are found in animal sources such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy. They’re called complete because they contain all the necessary amino acids to support protein’s role in nutrition, including supporting muscle growth and helping stabilize blood sugar levels.

Bottom line: Complete proteins have everything they need to go to work in your body. On our Recommended Food List, you’ll see “ideal” and “acceptable” proteins. Ideal proteins are those that are lean (low in fat) and complete sources of protein.

What about the saturated fat in animal protein? Too much fat of any kind is not part of the Fast Track to Fat Loss program. So you want to make sure that your protein from animals is very lean and that you also consume fats

from plant sources (unsaturated fats). So skinless white-meat chicken (protein) with sliced avocados (healthy fat) would be far better for you than ribs (fairly high in protein but also high in saturated fat). Some good examples of lean, complete proteins are chicken, turkey, extra lean beef, all types of seafood, and lowfat dairy, such as cottage cheese and lowfat Greek yogurt.

Most protein powders (e.g., whey and egg white protein) offer a complete protein source and are really convenient to use. For example, it’s quick and easy to blend up some protein powder with fruit, coconut oil, ice, and water to make a well-balanced smoothie. Or you could stir in a ½ a scoop of protein powder into your oatmeal with some crushed almonds for the perfect balance of natural carbs (oatmeal), high-quality protein (powder), and healthy fat (almonds).

Incomplete proteins

Incomplete proteins are those from plant-based foods, such as grains, beans, and nuts; that is, they lack one or more of the essential amino acids, so they’re incomplete protein sources. These foods are primarily carbohydrates, but they also provide small to moderate amounts


of protein. We label these as acceptable proteins on the Recommended Food List.

In order to make a complete protein and give your body all it requires, it’s important to combine two or more of

these plant-based foods. Some of the best plant-based protein sources are lentils, quinoa, beans, nuts, and black-eyed peas. So, if you combined black beans and brown rice or quinoa and crushed almonds together, you have a complete protein source.

Note: you don’t necessarily have to combine two or more incomplete proteins together at each meal; but try to include several throughout the day if you’re not eating complete protein sources.

Here’s a comprehensive list of ideal and acceptable proteins:

• beef (extra lean)• buffalo • cheese (lowfat)• chicken (skinless white meat)• cottage cheese (lowfat)• egg whites • egg (whole) • fish (cod, halibut, tuna) • greek yogurt (lowfat)

• milk (lowfat)• ostrich • pork (extra lean)• protein powder• shellfish (lobster, shrimp, clams)• turkey (skinless white meat)• venison • yogurt (low-fat)

Ideal Proteins(foods that are animal-based and low-fat)

• beans (black, kidney, lima) • black-eyed peas • lentils• nut butters (peanut, almond, cashew)• nuts • quinoa

• seeds • soy beans • soy milk (unsweetened)• tempeh (unprocessed)• tofu (unprocessed)

Acceptable Proteins(foods that are plant-based )


Strategies for including protein at each snack and meal:

● Stir in a ½ scoop of protein powder with your oatmeal.

● Add Greek yogurt to your smoothie.

● When making baked goods, use one whole egg and two egg whites instead of butter.

● Add black beans and brown rice to your salad.

● Spread peanut butter on apples or celery as a quick and easy snack.

● Add lean meat to soups or stews. ● Stir in cottage cheese with

hummus for a delicious veggie dip. ● We have lots of delicious quinoa

recipes on the FITera community site, which is a good protein source for vegetarians/vegans.

Key Points:

1. Ideal proteins are those that are both low in fat and complete.

2. Complete proteins are those from animal sources, such as meats, fish, eggs, and dairy.

3. You can combine two or more incomplete proteins (e.g,. beans or quinoa) to make a complete protein source.

4. There are a lot of easy ways to add protein to each snack or meal.

FatsBasically, there are two groups of fats: saturated and unsaturated. Within these two groups, there are several more types. We’ll keep the description here simple and then get right to the list of healthy fats to choose from vs. those you should try to avoid, including helpful strategies for each.

Unsaturated Fats are the healthy kind that you want to include (in small amounts) in each of your snacks and meals. They’re made up of mono-saturated fats and polyunsaturated fats.




● Monounsaturated Fats raise “good” HDL cholesterol, lower “bad” LDL cholesterol, and protect against the buildup of plaque in your arteries.

Foods that contain monounsaturated fats include olive oil and olives, almonds, cashews, peanuts, peanut butter, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, and avocados.

● Polyunsaturated Fats: In addition to lowering your “bad” LDL cholesterol and reducing the risk of heart disease, stroke, and cancer, these fats contain essential omega-3 fatty acids, which boost brain function, help strengthen your immune system, and improve your mood. They also contain omega-6 fatty acids, which help keep your skin and eyes healthy.

Foods that contain polyunsaturated fats: Omega-3’s are primarily found in fish like salmon, mackerel, and herring, as well as flaxseed, walnuts, and tofu. Omega-6’s are found in chicken, vegetable oils, and seeds.

● Saturated Fats: Studies show that these kinds of fats raise cholesterol levels and increase your risk of heart disease.

Foods that contain saturated fats include meat and poultry and whole-fat milk and dairy products.

An exception: Coconut oil contains saturated fat, although it’s considered healthy because it’s rich in a fatty acid called lauric acid and medium chain triglycerides (MCTs). Be sure to choose organic, virgin coconut oil rather than brands that are refined and heavily processed.


● Artificial Trans Fats: These fats are made from unsaturated fat that has been chemically altered to prolong the shelf-life of packaged foods. They raise bad LDL and lower good HDL, increasing inflammation throughout the body. You definitely want to avoid these.

Foods that may contain artificial trans fats include shortening, margarine, doughnuts, deep-fried foods, and processed foods such as crackers, cookies, chips, and cakes.

• almonds• almond butter• almond milk• avocado• avocado oil• butter (grass fed)• cashews• cashew butter• chia seeds • coconut milk• coconut oil• eggs (the yolk)• fish oil supplements• flaxseed• flaxseed oil• hazelnuts• herring

• mackerel• macadamia nuts• olives • olive oil• peanut butter• peanut oil• peanuts• pecans• pistachios• pumpkin seeds• nuts • salmon• sardines• sesame seeds• sunflower seed butter• sunflower seeds• walnuts

Healthy Fats(fats that are unsaturated)

Now that you’ve had a brief overview of the types of fats, here’s a comprehensive list of “Healthy Fats” to choose to include at each of your meals, as well as the “Unhealthy Fats” to limit/avoid:


Strategies for including healthy fats in each snack and meal:

● Use olive oil for stovetop cooking, rather than margarine, lard, or shortening. For baking, try organic virgin coconut oil or vegetable oil.

● Try avocados in sandwiches, soups, and salads or make guacamole.

● Add nuts and/or seeds to vegetable dishes, oatmeal, Greek yogurt, or use them instead of breadcrumbs on chicken and fish.

● You can add olives to almost any dish, including soups, casseroles, salads, etc.

● Spread peanut butter (or any other type of nut butter, such as almond or cashew) on apples, bananas, carrots, and celery.

● Stir peanut butter in your oatmeal and in baked goods.

● Make your own healthy dressings with olive oil, flaxseed oil, sesame oil, or avocado oil.

● Try using more grilled fish in sandwiches, tacos, and other healthy dishes.

● Combine nuts and/or seeds with fruits and veggies as a healthy, balanced snack. For example, pistachios and sliced apples go well together.

• Candy bars• Commercially baked pastries, cookies, doughnuts, muffins, and cake• Deep fried foods (french fries, fried chicken, chicken nuggets, breaded fish)• High-fat cuts of processed meats (bacon, sausage, hot dogs)• Ice cream• Lard and shortening• Margarine• Packaged snack foods (crackers, microwave popcorn, chips)• Whole-fat dairy products (cream)

Unhealthy Fats


Strategies for limiting unhealthy fats:

● Read product labels and watch out for “partially hydrogenated oil” (artificial trans fats) in the ingredients.

● When eating out, avoid deep-fried foods and limit baked goods, as the kinds served in restaurants often include trans fats.

● Try to avoid fast food, as most items are loaded with saturated fats, including the worst kind, artificial trans fats.

● When eating out, ask your server to have your food cooked in olive oil. Otherwise, it’ll likely be some sort of cheap shortening or other saturated fat.

● When choosing beef, go for the extra lean types, such as top sirloin. Choose cuts that are graded “Choice” or “Select” instead of “Prime,” which usually has more fat. Also select cuts that have less visible fat (“marbling”).

● When selecting ground beef, opt for the lowest percentage of fat (look for 7% fat or less).

● Eat less red meat (beef, pork, or lamb) and more fish, chicken, and turkey.

● When eating chicken or turkey, make sure it’s skinless, boneless white meat. And remove all visible fat before cooking.

● Bake, broil, poach, or grill instead of frying.

● Avoid breaded meats and vegetables and deep-fried foods.

● Choose low-fat milk and dairy products and lower-fat cheeses like mozzarella whenever possible.

● Use liquid vegetable oils such as olive oil or flaxseed oil instead of lard or shortening.

● Avoid cream and cheese sauces, or have them served on the side to limit the amount you consume.

Key Points:

1. Choose healthy unsaturated fats (nuts, olives, avocados) over unhealthy saturated fats, especially artificial trans fats.

2. Include a small portion of healthy fat from the list above in each of your snacks and meals.

3. There are a lot of easy ways to add healthy fat to each snack or meal.


When to eat starchy, simple, and fibrous carbs

Combining the Right Foods at the Right times

It’s important to know when to eat each kind of carb, so we’ve broken it down into three easy-to-understand categories and then color-coded them so they’re easy to identify:

are color-coded red in our Meal Guidelines chart below and include foods like potatoes, brown rice, beans, oatmeal, lentils, yams, whole grains, and sweet potatoes.

are color-coded purple in the chart and are primarily fruit.

are most vegetables and color-coded green.

In general, it’s best to choose natural starchy and simple carbs early in the day. Then, later in the day, transition to fibrous carbs. The reason is simple: starchy and simple carbs offer our bod-ies the most energy so it’s important to include them earlier for fuel throughout the day. Plus, starchy and simple carbs are burned more efficiently in the morn-ing than at night.

Fibrous carbs, on the other hand, don’t offer a lot of energy because they are

so low in calories. But they’re perfect for fat loss because they’re jam-packed with healthy nutrients. These are great for later in the day, after your body has already been fueled up with starchy and simple carbs because they’re very low in calories, high in nutrients, and have very little effect on blood sugar levels.

You don’t want your blood sugar spik-ing before you go to bed, as you won’t burn it off like you can when you include starchy and simple carbs earlier in the day. Starchy and simple carbs earlier in the day aren’t a concern because you’re using those blood sugar spikes as energy as you go about your busy day.

Be sure to combine all carbs with a good source of protein and a small source of healthy fat at each snack and meal. Here’s why...

Starchy Carbs

Simple Carbs

Fibrous Carbs


When you include both protein and healthy fats with the right type of carbs at each of your meals, you’ll feel full sooner and you’ll stay full longer, your insulin levels will stay more consistent giving you lasting energy, and your metabolism will work more efficiently.

Key Points:

1. At every snack and meal, include a protein and healthy fat with the right type of carb.

2. Earlier in the day, the best type of carb is either starchy and/or simple carbs. Later in the day, the carbs of choice are fibrous carbs.

When to eat protein and healthy fat

When to drink water and how much

As you learned previously, the simple Key # 3 to guaranteed fat loss is including a protein and healthy fat at each snack and meal. Both offer a wide variety of health benefits, as we saw above, and they help negate any adverse effects carbs have on your body, such as spiking blood sugar.

The National Academy of Sports Medicine recommends 3 quarts, or 96 ounces per day. This is an okay general guideline, but it really depends on how much you weigh and how active you are. Here’s how to calculate how much water you should drink daily for both effective fat loss and good health:

Step 1. Multiply your weight by 2/3 (67%). For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should multiply 150 by .67 (67%), which equals 100 ounces of water per day.


Step 2. Factor in your activity level. Add 4 ounces of water to your daily total for every 10 minutes you work out. So if you exercise 30 minutes today, you would add 12 ounces of water to your recommended daily intake.

Here’s a quick and easy reference chart, based on your weight. Just remember to adjust for your activity level (e.g., if you workout for 20 minutes, add 8 ounces of water to the recommended total in the right column).

100 pounds (45 kgs)

110 pounds (50 kgs)

120 pounds (55 kgs)

130 pounds (59 kgs)

140 pounds (64 kgs)

150 pounds (68 kgs)

160 pounds (73 kgs)

170 pounds (77 kgs)

180 pounds (82 kgs)

190 pounds (86 kgs)

200 pounds (91 kgs)

210 pounds (95 kgs)

220 pounds (100 kgs)




67 ounces

74 ounces

80 ounces

87 ounces

94 ounces

100 ounces

107 ounces

114 ounces

121 ounces

127 ounces

134 ounces

141 ounces

148 ounces

154 ounces

161 ounces

168 ounces

Weight Ounces of Water Daily


● Your mouth is dry and sticky. ● You’re exercising at a higher

intensity than normal. ● You’re exercising longer than

normal. ● You’ve had one or more

caffeinated or alcoholic beverages.

● You’ve been working or playing outdoors.

You’ll also want to watch for signs of de-hydration, as this will help indicate when you need to drink even more water...

Signs of Dehydration

If you notice any of these common signs of dehydration, drink several glasses of water immediately and make a conscious effort to drink more throughout the day.

1. The most common symptom of dehydration is a headache. A major function of water is to flush toxins from the body. Your brain is 75% water so even being slightly dehydrated can cause a headache.

Drinking your recommended daily amount of water is pretty easy if you make a conscious effort. Drink a large glass first thing in the morning along with a large glass with each of your meals. You will also need to fill up a large water bottle to carry with you as you run errands, exercise, or work at your desk. Drink another glass before you go to bed and you’ll easily meet your recommended amount.

If you wait to drink water until you are thirsty, you will already be partially dehydrated. So it’s important to make drinking water a habit and set reminders to keep yourself drinking throughout the day. Here’s a video I recently shot that demonstrates a really simple rubber band trick to help make sure you get enough water.

Drink more water if:

● You’re exercising in a hot, humid environment.

● You’re feeling hungry.





2. Poor concentration, dizziness, and/or fatigue. Your muscles are 80% water and will fatigue easily if you are the slightest amount dehydrated.

3. Reduced urine output or dark urine. Ideally you want your urine to be a clear or pale yellow. This indicates a good state of hydration.

4. Bad breath. If you don’t have enough water passing through your mouth, bacteria can build up and cause bad breath.

5. Your skin should feel elastic. When you pinch the skin on the back of your hand, it should snap back instantly. If it doesn’t, you may be dehydrated.

6. Water retention, such as swollen ankles or puffy eyes. If you don’t drink enough, your body will re-tain water as a safety mechanism.

If you’re not used to drinking water or don’t care for it, here are a few sugges-tions for adding some flavor and variety:

● Add a splash of low-sugar fruit juice such as cranberry, apple, or grape juice.

● Add a twist of fresh mint or sliced cucumber.

● Add a squeeze of fresh orange, lemon, or lime or use a packet of crystallized lemon or lime.

● Make herbal iced tea. ● Use Crystal Lite Pure (the “Pure”

version has natural rather than artificial sweeteners).

Key Points:1. Stay well hydrated with water.

This is critical to your fat loss success as it helps you metabolize fat more efficiently and it serves as a natural appetite suppressant.

2. The amount of water you should drink is based on your weight (in pounds x 67%) and activity level (4 additional ounces per 10 minutes of exercise). Do this by drinking water first thing in the morning, with each of your meals, carrying a water bottle with you throughout the day, and finishing up the day with a large glass.

3. Watch closely for signs of dehydration: dizziness or fatigue, headaches, and/or dark urine.

4. If you’re not used to drinking water or don’t care for it, use fresh fruit, mint or cucumber, tea, or Crystal Lite Pure to add some flavor.



1. Which of the following is true?a.) Good carbs are fibrous and bad

carbs are starchyb.) Good carbs are fibrous and bad

carbs are simplec.) Good carbs are natural and bad

carbs are processedd.) All of the above

2. Which of the following are considered acceptable carbs?

a.) Spelt breadb.) Cream of wheatc.) High-fiber cereald.) All of the above

3. Which of the following food is not a complete protein source?

a.) Chickenb.) Cottage cheesec.) Black beansd.) Protein powder

4. Which of the following is the worst kind of fat for you?

a.) Monounsaturated fatsb.) Polyunsaturated fatsc.) Artificial trans fatsd.) They are all bad for you

5. Which of the following are strategies for choosing the right kinds of fat?

a.) Bake, broil, poach, or grill instead of frying

b.) Choose cuts of beef that are graded Choice or Select instead of Prime

c.) Ask your server to cook your food in olive oil rather than shortening

d.) All of the above

6. At every snack and meal, you should include:

a.) A protein b.) A healthy fatc.) One of the three types of carbs,

depending on the time of dayd.) All of the above

7. Which of the following is NOT a sign of dehydration?

a.) Poor concentration, dizziness, and/or fatigue

b.) Skin rashes on your arms and legsc.) Reduced urine output or dark

urined.) Water retention, such as swollen

ankles or puffy eyes.




How often to eat and Meal Guidelines to FollowWe recommend 5 smaller meals a day, about 3 hours apart. Eating 2 or 3 larger meals a day increases the opportunity for fat cells to extract fat from the blood and, therefore, grow bigger. Fat cells can actually adapt to a pattern of large, infrequent meals by becoming more efficient at storing fat.

In addition, a 2-3 meal-a-day pattern causes the body to face long stretches without food. By the time lunch or dinner rolls around, you’re so famished, you’re more likely to make unwise food choices and overeat.

Eating smaller meals more frequently throughout the days, on the other hand, not only prevents you from gorging on un-wise food choices, it helps you feel ener-gized and satisfied (and keeps your metab-olism revved up) throughout the day.

Note: These don’t have to be full meals; they can be snacks. For example, meal 1 for many people is breakfast,

meal 2 is a mid-morning snack, meal 3 is lunch, meal 4 is an afternoon snack, and meal 5 is dinner. A snack can be as simple as apple slices dipped in our Peanut Butter Protein Dip recipe, which offers a good balance of protein, simple carbs, and healthy fat for a perfect meal 2.

However, we understand that 5 meals/snacks a day doesn’t always fit into everyone’s schedule or personal preference. For your program to be a success, you need to do what’s right for you. So, below you’ll find the Fast Track to Fat Loss Meal Guidelines for whatever meal frequency works best for you and your schedule.

If you currently only eat 3 meals a day, a first best step would be to make sure you follow the 3 Meals a Day guidelines below. Then, the next step can be increasing to 4 meals following the 4 Meals a Day guidelines, and so on.




Meal Guidelines for 3 meals a day:

AnD/oR

AnD/oR SIMPLE CARBSTARCHY CARBPROTEIN HEALTHY FATMeal 1

AnD/oR

AnD/oR SIMPLE CARBSTARCHY CARBPROTEIN FIBROUS CARB HEALTHY FATMeal 2

PROTEIN FIBROUS CARB HEALTHY FATMeal 3


AnD/oR


AnD/oR


Meal 4

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 3



AnD/oR


AnD/oR

AnD/oR

AnD/oR

AnD/oR

SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 2

Meal 4

Meal 5

PROTEINMeal 3

Portions: How Much You should eatAs you learned with Key # 1, we believe counting calories is too complicated and time-con-suming, and it makes it harder to stick with the program. Thankfully, calorie counting isn’t at all necessary to get the results you want. A far easier approach to portions is called the Fist/Palm/Thumb Rule.

As you learned above, each snack/meal should include a protein source, one or more of the 3 types of carbs (depending on the time of day), and a healthy fat.

To select the right portion of each of these 3 food types, simply follow these guidelines:


The carb(s) that you choose for each meal should be approximately the size of your fist. For example, the average woman has a fist about the size of a small baked potato, and the average man’s fist is about the size of a medium one.

Note: Don’t worry about limiting the portion of fibrous carbs to the size of your fist. Because fibrous carbs (vegetables) are so low in calories and so rich in beneficial nutrients, it’s okay to dish up a portion larger than your fist.

The fat source you choose should be about the size of your thumb. This is about 5 almonds for the averaged-sized woman or 7 almonds for the average man.

If you want to have more than one type of food source (two types of carbs, for example, or two types of protein), just split the difference using the same size metric.

For example, your first meal of the day should include a starchy carb and/or a simple carb. Instead of taking two full-sized carb portions for each type, split the size in half and have half a baked potato (starchy carb) and half an apple (simple carb). This way the size of your total portion of carbs (starchy + simple) will still be about the size of your fist.

The same goes for your protein and fat sources: if you’re having two proteins, make sure they add up to the size of your palm (e.g., ½ a chicken breast + ¹⁄₃ cup

Starchy Carbs Healthy FatSimple Carbs Fibrous Carbs

Carbs Fat

Protein

Protein

Your choice of protein should be approximately the size of your palm (just the palm – no fingers). A 3.5-oz. chicken breast should fit perfectly into the palm of a woman’s hand, and a man will be able to fit about 5 oz. of protein into his palm.

Carbs Protein Fat


cottage cheese) and that your two fats add up to the size of your thumb (e.g., 3 almonds and 2 olives).

Note: the fist/palm/thumb rule is based on 5 meals a day. If you only eat 3 or 4 meals a day, your carb portion should be a little bit larger than your fist; your protein

First, don’t feel like you have to finish everything on your plate. The fist/palm/thumb rule is an excellent guide of how much to dish up, but ultimately, you should pay attention to your internal signs of hunger and fullness to know when to stop eating.

For example, if you begin feeling comfortably full and satisfied 3/4 of the way into your meal, put your fork down and push away from the table. To truly listen to your body for signs of fullness, it’s very important that you eat slowly.

portion should be a little bit larger than your palm; and your fat portion should be a little bit larger than your thumb. And keep in mind, you can have larger portions of fibrous carbs - you don’t need to worry about limiting them because they’re so low in calories yet packed with beneficial nutrients.

Let Your Body Be Your Guide

It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to send out signals of fullness. Eating slowly allows time to trigger the signal from your brain that you are full, which results in eating less.

Here are my top 10 tips for eating slowly:

1. Practice eating slowly. Schedule this into your day; write it on your calendar, leave notes on your fridge, and send yourself reminders. Habits typically take a month to develop, so you need to commit to consistent daily practice.

2. Sit at a table. If you eat while on the go or standing at the counter, you can easily lose track of how much you’ve eaten. You might not feel like you’ve had a complete meal and want to eat more later, even after already eating a lot.


3. Serve small portions. A finished plate is a powerful cue that you’re done with your meal. Large portions lead to overeating simply because of the tendency to eat what is in front of you. Serve yourself smaller portions and remind yourself to take your time and savor each bite. Using small plates is helpful because your brain won’t perceive the meal as smaller than normal.

4. Take smaller bites and chew thoroughly. Really try to notice the flavors and texture of what you’re eating and appreciate what it offers your body and mind. Add this to your “practice eating slowly” reminders.

5. Include a large glass of water. Water is not only really important for fat loss, but drinking also requires you to put your fork down, chew and swallow before eating more. It also helps you feel full sooner.

6. Put your fork down between bites. This forces you to relax and focus on chewing and enjoying your meal.

7. Eat with friends or family and con-verse. Having a conversation gives you an opportunity to slow down your meal sim-ply because you’re talking between bites.

8. Have a small healthy snack (with water) before your meal. It’s especially difficult to eat slowly when you’re famished. But if you arrive at your meal in control after a small pre-meal snack, you’ll have a much easier time eating slowly.

9. Turn off the TV. It’s hard to “hear” your stomach telling you you’re full when you’re distracted by a ballgame or drama series. Turn off the TV and it’ll be much easier to listen for signs of fullness.

10. Dim the lights and play soft music. Our environment has a big impact on our mental state, and we can set the right mood for eating slowly with soft music and dimmed lights.


Step 1: Dish up your portions based on the fist/palm/thumb rule.

Step 2: Listen to your body and stop eating when you’re comfortably full.

If you follow these two simple steps after choosing the right kind of foods, you cannot fail on our program. No tedious counting or confusing calculations needed!

In summary, choosing the correct portions is a simple 2-step process after you choose your foods from our Recommended Food List:

Key points

1. We recommend 5 smaller meals a day, about 3 hours apart. These don’t all have to be full meals; they can be snacks.

2. If 5 meals don’t fit into your schedule, you can follow our guidelines for 3 or 4 meals a day. Since you’ll have fewer meals, your portions can be a little larger than your fist (carbs), palm (protein), and thumb (fats).

Although planning and preparation is Key # 5, it’s definitely not the least important. Taking just a little time to plan and prepare your foods will make all the difference in the world. Here’s a simple 4-step process to follow each week to make sure that having the right foods together at the right times is quick, easy, and convenient.

3. Dish up your portions based on this fist/palm/thumb rule. You don’t have to eat everything on your plate; listen to your body and stop eating when you’re comfortably full.

Planning and Preparing Your Meals

Carbs Protein Fat


Step 1: Choose the foods you’d like to eat for the week from our Recommended Food List:

Starchy Carbs Healthy FatSimple Carbs Fibrous Carbs Protein

• beans (black, kidney, lima)

• black-eyed peas • brown rice (or

wild, basmati) • couscous • edamame • lentils • millet • oat bran • oatmeal (rolled

oats, steel cut) • porridge • potato • pumpkin • quinoa • squash • sweet potato • yam

• apple • apricot • banana • blackberries • blueberries • cantaloupe • cherries• cranberries • dates• grapefruit • figs • grapes • honeydew melon • kiwi • lemon • limes • mango • nectarine • orange • papaya • peaches• pear • pineapple • plum • pomegranate • prunes • raisin • raspberries • strawberries • watermelon

• alfalfa • asparagus • beets • bell peppers • broccoli • brussel sprouts • cabbage • carrot • cauliflower • celery • collard greens • cucumber • eggplant • fennel • garlic • green beans • green peas • jicama • kale • leeks • mushrooms • okra • onion • parsnips • radish • romaine lettuce • snow peas • spinach • swiss chard • tomato• turnip • watercress • water chestnut • zucchini

• beef (extra lean)• buffalo • cheese (lowfat)• chicken (skinless

white meat)• cottage cheese

(lowfat)• egg whites • egg (whole) • fish (cod, halibut,

tuna) • greek yogurt

(lowfat)• milk (lowfat)• ostrich • pork (extra lean)• protein powder• shellfish (lobster,

shrimp, clams)• turkey (skinless

white meat)• venison • yogurt (low-fat)

• almonds• almond butter• almond milk• avocado• avocado oil• butter (grass fed)• cashews• cashew butter• chia seeds • coconut milk• coconut oil• eggs (the yolk)• fish oil

supplements• flaxseed• flaxseed oil• hazelnuts• herring• mackerel• macadamia nuts• olives • olive oil• peanut butter• peanut oil• peanuts• pecans• pistachios• pumpkin seeds• nuts • salmon• sardines• sesame seeds• sunflower seed

butter• sunflower seeds• walnuts

• barley • bread (whole

wheat) • buckwheat • corn• cream of rice • cream of wheat • high-fiber cereal • pasta (whole

wheat) • popcorn • rice cakes• spelt bread • tortilla (whole

wheat)


• black-eyed peas • lentils• nut butters

(peanut, almond, cashew)

• nuts • quinoa• seeds • soy beans • soy milk

(unsweetened)• tempeh

(unprocessed)• tofu (unprocessed)

Ideal Ideal

Acceptable

Acceptable


Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

Create a grocery list from the foods you chose in step 1 and add anything else you might need, such as:

Click here for tips on the best ways to prepare each of the foods in our Recommended Food List. You’ll also be able to submit any questions you have or ideas you’d like to share, and I’ll be there posting answers and feedback!

*Some people like to prepare foods for just three days at a time, twice a week. That’s totally fine. Do what works well for your schedule!**Peanut butter has protein too, so this is a well-balanced snack.

Prepare your foods for the week*. For example:

Take a moment each morning (or the night before) to refer to our Meal Guide-lines Chart and plan each meal. Here’s an example based on 4 meals a day:

● Ziplock bags (for storing on-the-go snacks)

● Aluminum foil (for grilling veggies on the BBQ)

● Tupperware or glass containers (for storing prepared foods for the week)

● Grill or bake chicken and fish ● Bake sweet potatoes ● Make a large batch of brown rice

and oatmeal

● Healthy condiments (e.g., mustard and salsa)

● Spices and seasonings (e.g,. cinnamon and pepper)

● Lemons, limes, and mint (to flavor water)

● Grill or steam your favorite vegetables

● Slice carrots, celery, and apples for on-the-go snacks


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SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 2

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

Meal 3

Meal 4

Grilled chicken breast with a small baked sweet potato and grilled veggies (in olive oil marinade)

Oatmeal with protein powder and peanut butter stirred in.

Sliced apples and celery with peanut butter**

Grilled fish and veggies (in olive oil marinade)



As you can see, step 3, preparing foods for the week, is very important to step 4, combining the right foods. You always want to have your favorite healthy foods (a balance of the right type of carbs with proteins and healthy fats) readily available, so that step 4 is super quick and easy.

Yes, it takes a little time, but so does waiting in the drive-thru at McDonalds. With a little practice you’ll get in the habit and it’ll be a regular part of your day that takes very little time, thought, or effort.

● Grill chicken breast and veggies on the BBQ.

● Bake sweet potatoes.

● Make a large batch of oatmeal and quinoa.

Note: All the other foods from this grocery list are “ready to go” (i.e., you don’t need to cook or prepare cottage cheese, bananas, almonds, etc.; they’re ready to add to meals as is).

the Complete 4-step Plan in Practice (A sample)

STEP 1 and 2:

STEP 3:

Choosing Your Foods for the Week and Creating a Grocery List

Prepare your foods for the week (or the next few days):

Starchy Carbs

Healthy Fat Simple Carbs Miscellaneous

Fibrous CarbsProtein

Chicken (boneless, skinless breast)

Cottage cheese (lowfat)

Greek yogurt (lowfat, unsweetened)

Protein powder (whey, chocolate)

String cheese (lowfat)

Spinach

Broccoli

Celery

Bell peppers

Cucumbers

Oats (old fashioned)

Sweet potatoes

Quinoa

Hummus

Almonds

Olive oil

Peanut butter

Banana

Apples

Strawberries

Ziplock bags

Aluminum foil

Vinegar


Here’s an example of 3 days of planned meals based on the above grocery list at 4 meals/day.

STEP 4: Plan your meals for the day

AnD/oR

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SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 1

Meal 1

AnD/oR

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AnD/oR

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SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 2

Meal 2

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

Meal 3

Meal 3

Greek yogurt with sliced strawberries and crushed almonds, plus a few celery sticks

Grilled chicken breast with a small baked sweet potato and grilled veggies (in olive oil marinade)

Oatmeal with protein powder and peanut butter stirred in.

Protein shake made with ice, water, protein powder, banana, and peanut butter

Sliced apples and celery with peanut butter*

Sliced cucumbers dipped in a mixture of cottage cheese and hummus**

Day 1

Day 2

*Peanut butter has protein too, so this is a well-balanced snack.

**There is olive oil in hummus, which serves as the healthy fat.

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

Meal 4

Meal 4

Spinach salad with grilled chicken and vinaigrette made with olive oil

Grilled fish and veggies (in olive oil marinade)


AnD/oR SIMPLE CARBSTARCHY CARBPROTEIN HEALTHY FAT

Meal 1

AnD/oR

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SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 2

PROTEIN

Meal 3

String cheese* with sliced apples and cucumbers

Oatmeal topped with Greek yogurt and crushed almonds

Spinach salad with grilled chicken, quinoa, sliced strawberries, and vinaigrette made with olive oil.

Day 3

*String cheese is a good source of healthy fat.

FIBROUS CARB HEALTHY FATPROTEIN

Meal 4Grilled veggies (in olive oil marinade) and cottage cheese

now it’s Your turn





oats, steel cut) • porridge • potato • pumpkin • quinoa • squash • sweet potato • yam

• apple • apricot • banana • blackberries • blueberries • cantaloupe • cherries• cranberries • dates• grapefruit • figs • grapes • honeydew melon • kiwi • lemon • limes • mango • nectarine • orange • papaya

• alfalfa • asparagus • beets • bell peppers • broccoli • brussel sprouts • cabbage • carrot • cauliflower • celery • collard greens • cucumber • eggplant • fennel • garlic • green beans • green peas • jicama • kale • leeks





(lowfat)• milk (lowfat)• ostrich • pork (extra lean)• protein powder• shellfish (lobster,

shrimp, clams)


supplements• flaxseed• flaxseed oil• hazelnuts• herring• mackerel• macadamia nuts

Ideal Ideal

Step 1: Choose the foods you’d like to eat for the week from our Recommended Food List:

Continues on the next page



• peaches• pear • pineapple • plum • pomegranate • prunes • raisin • raspberries • strawberries • watermelon

• mushrooms • okra • onion • parsnips • radish • romaine lettuce • snow peas • spinach • swiss chard • tomato• turnip • watercress • water chestnut • zucchini

• turkey (skinless white meat)

• venison • yogurt (low-fat)

• olives • olive oil• peanut butter• peanut oil• peanuts• pecans• pistachios• pumpkin seeds• nuts • salmon• sardines• sesame seeds• sunflower seed





wheat)







Acceptable

Acceptable

Continues from the previous page

STEP 2: Create a grocery list from the foods you chose in step 1 that includes any foods you don’t already have in your kitchen.

Starchy Carbs

Healthy Fat Simple Carbs Miscellaneous

Fibrous CarbsProtein


STEP 3:

STEP 4:

Prepare your foods for the week (or next few days)

Plan your meals for the day

Click here for tips on the best ways to prepare each of the foods on our Recommended Food List. You’ll also be able to submit any questions you have (or ideas you’d like to share), and I’ll be there each day posting answers and feedback!


AnD/oR


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AnD/oR

SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 1

Meal 2

Meal 4

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 3



To use our Meal Planner on the FITera community site, click here to log-in and then click the Nutrition tab.

Note: if you’re eating 3 meals a day, these recipes will work well for meal 1. If 4 meals a day, these recipes will work well for meals 1 and 2.

● Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

● Perfect Breakfast Casserole

● Banana Bread

● Quinoa Quiche

Here are some suggested recipes following a 5-meal-a-day plan using our

meal guidelines


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SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 2

Meal 4

Meal 5

PROTEINMeal 3

Meal 1 recipes AnD/oR

Starchy Carbs Healthy FatSimple CarbsProtein

● Carrot Cake Oatmeal

● Yogurt with Fruit & Nuts

● Quinoa with Prunes & Walnuts

● Crockpot Oatmeal Loaf












Note: if you’re eating 3 meals a day, these recipes will work well for meal 2.


● Apples Dipped in Protein Peanut Butter Dip

● Granola Bars

● Pre-Workout Smoothie

● Pina Colada Protein Milkshake

● Chocolate Coconut Protein Balls

● Veggies Dipped in Spicy Protein Hummus

● Kale and Garbanzo Bean Salad

● Healthy Nachos

● Cucumber, Broccoli, & Strawberry Salad with Grilled Shrimp

● Portobello Caprese Sandwich

● Arugula Salad with Pears, Cranberries, Goat Cheese & Pistachios with Grilled Chicken

● Cauliflower Fried Rice with Ham

● Arugula Stir-Fry with Tofu

Meal 2 recipes

Meal 3 recipes

Meal 4 recipes

AnD/oR

Starchy Carbs Healthy FatSimple CarbsProtein

Fibrous Carbs

Fibrous Carbs

AnD/oR

Starchy Carbs Simple Carbs Healthy Fat

Healthy Fat

Protein

Protein

● Couscous with Raisins, Almonds, & Onions with Cottage Cheese

● Shrimp Kabobs with Watermelon & Cilantro Sauce

● Homemade Granola with Greek Yogurt

● Black Bean Spaghetti with Bell Peppers & Onions & Lean Steak

● Veggie Burgers

● Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers

● Butternut Squash Soup with Onion & Apple, topped with Greek Yogurt

● Fish Taco Lettuce Wraps

● Beef, Beet, & Arugula Salad

● Brussel Sprouts & Roasted Chestnuts with Cottage Cheese

● Shirataki Mac N’ Cheese






































Note: Most of our healthy dessert recipes are made up of protein, simple or starchy carbs, and healthy fat. Although protein, fibrous carbs, and a little healthy fat is always ideal later in the day, depriving yourself of dessert just isn’t realistic. So, focus on protein, fibrous carbs and healthy fat later in the day, but small portions of our healthier desserts are fine if it helps you stick to the plan.

● Veggie-Packed Meat Loaf

● Pistachio Crusted Salmon & Spinach Salad

● Zucchini Pad Thai

● Shrimp & Veggie Stir-Fry

● Cheesecake

● Chocolate Bar

● Pumpkin Pie Pudding

● Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

● Pumpkin Pie

Meal 5 recipes

Healthy Dessert recipes:

Fibrous Carbs Healthy FatProtein

● Crockpot Italian Chicken with Steamed Veggies

● Chicken and Vegetable Kabobs

● Thai Beef Salad

● Bean Sprout Pasta

● Almond Joy Popcorn

● Chocolate Cupcakes

● Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

● Oreo Cookies





















1. Eating 2 or 3 larger meals a day…

a.) Increases the opportunity for fat cells to grow bigger

b.) Increases the risk of becoming so famished that you make unwise food choices and/or overeat

c.) Is okay to start, but we encourage you to eventually try to eat smaller meals 4-5 times a day


2. Which of the following isn’t involved in choosing the right portions:

a.) Select foods from the Recommended Food List

b.) Dish up your portions based on this fist/palm/thumb rule

c.) Listen to your body and stop eating when you’re comfortably full

d.) Count your calories and grams of fat, protein, and carbs


3. Which of the following is true?

a.) It’s important to prepare your foods in advance for the week

b.) It’s okay to prepare your foods twice a week if that works better for you

c.) Take a moment each morning (or the night before) to refer to our Meal Guidelines Chart and plan each meal.


4. Which of the following foods does not follow this meal # 4 guideline: Protein + Fibrous Carb + Healthy Fat

a.) Grilled shrimp and veggies in olive oil

b.) Spinach salad with cottage cheese and walnuts

c.) Baked chicken with roasted sweet potatoes and avocado slices

d.) Steamed veggies with tofu and pumpkin seeds



striking a Balance between Fun and effectiveThe key to long-term fat loss success is striking a balance between healthy and effective (so you get good results) and fun and enjoyable (so you can stick with the plan long-term). That’s what this section is all about: striking that balance!

Most diets deprive you of the delicious foods and drinks you love, which is a primary reason there is such a HUGE failure rate (more than 95% fail on diets). What’s the point of being lean and fit if you can’t also enjoy yourself?

I believe there’s a much better, more effective approach and it’s by following a simple 4-step process any time you have a night out planned with friends or just want to indulge on your favorite food and/or drinks. It goes like this:

Step # 1: Be a little more active the day of the “special event” – whether that’s a 15-minute longer workout … or playing with your kids … or going on a bike ride, playing tennis, or whatever. Just be more active.

Step # 2: Be a little more strict with your meals and really focus on veggies and protein. 20-30% of the calories contained in protein are used up when your body processes them. Just make sure they’re lean, such as turkey, grilled chicken, cottage cheese, tuna, or protein powder.

Fibrous carbs (with protein) are also perfect for meals prior to your special event, as they’re low in calories and high in fiber. This will help you stay satiated (full and satisfied) throughout the day and regulate blood sugar swings. A few of the best choices are spinach, kale, broccoli, cabbage, and bell peppers.

For example, let’s say you normally have chicken fajitas for lunch. Instead of using a tortilla, use romaine lettuce to wrap your chicken and veggies. This simple change will save you 200 calories that you can use later on your favorite food and drinks.

Step # 3: Make simple changes to the foods and drinks you want to enjoy. For example, if you normally order a bacon cheeseburger with fries and a margarita when you’re out with friends, asking for the burger without bacon, cheese, and mayo will save you more than 500 calories. Get a side salad instead


of fries and you’ll save an additional 300 calories. Asking for the margarita to be made with fresh squeezed lime juice rather than their normal mixer will save you at least 250 calories.

Just these few changes saved you more than 1,000 calories and you were still able to enjoy a burger and cocktail out with friends! Plus, you arrived at the meal with an extra “calorie budget” of around 500 calories from following steps 1 and 2 (by expending more and consuming less that day). So, even if your meal and drinks added up to 1,000 calories, your net amount was only 500 calories for a fun night out with friends. At the end of the night because you used these 3 steps, you likely won’t have consumed any more calories than normal, and you were able to splurge.

Step # 4: Finally, get right back on track after the special event. Don’t be one of those people who figures they blew it on a Friday so they might as well go crazy the rest of the weekend and then start over on Monday. Have fun on your night out, but get right back on the plan the next day. If you splurged more than you planned, you can repeat steps 1 and 2 the next day to make up for it.

Alcohol, Coffee Drinks, and Desserts – oh My!(How to Strike a Balance with These High-Calorie Favorites)

You can eat all the right foods and work out until you’re blue in the face and still have a difficult time losing fat if you’re not careful with alcohol consumption.

Alcohol has 7 calories per gram, almost as much as fat (9 calories per gram) and nearly twice as many calories as a gram of carbohydrate or protein (4 calories per gram). So, even a couple of drinks can set you back as much as 300-500 calories or more, making your caloric deficit very challenging to achieve.

In addition, when you consume alcohol at the same time as food, your body tends to burn the alcohol first, sparing the fat. So the more alcohol you consume, the more likely your food will be stored as fat.

alcohol


Finally, studies show that alcohol not only makes people hungrier, it lowers their inhibitions, which means they’re more likely to binge or make unwise food choices. The more you drink, the less you care about what you are eating and how it might be sabotaging your progress.

That was the bad news. Ready for the good? You don’t have to cut out alcohol altogether to lose fat.

There are ways to minimize the impact alcohol has on your diet. If you’re going to indulge, please consider these suggestions:

● Choose a light beer over some of the heavy microbrews. Several lite beers now have as few as 55 calories in a 12-oz. bottle, whereas some microbrews have more than 250 calories. So choose wisely.

● Use all-natural diet sodas, diet tonic, club soda, Crystal Light Pure (all-natural), or seltzer instead of liqueurs (which are sweet and syrupy), colas, tonics, and super-sugary bottled mixes like the ones for a lot of bar-made margaritas and daiquiris. This can save you 200 to 300 calories or more per cocktail.

For example, lemon Crystal Light Pure, fresh squeezed lime, and/or orange juice, and a little tequila offers a lot fewer calories than a traditional margarita because you’re cutting out all the sugar and calories from the mixer. Some margaritas have more than 500 calories and close to 60 grams of sugar! But a Crystal Lite margarita has just over 100 calories. And it tastes really good ... even better, in my opinion.


● Do you enjoy wine? It can be a good choice, as it has fewer calories than many cocktails and micro-brews. However, consuming 2 or 3 glasses means a lot of additional calories, so watch your intake.

● Don’t forget water. For every alcoholic drink you have, drink at least one extra glass of water. This will help your body metabolize the alcohol and may counteract some of the dehydrating effects of the alcohol on the body, such as next-day hangovers.

● It takes your liver 1 hour to process and metabolize 1 ounce of alcohol, so space your drinks out accordingly. The less you overload the liver, the better it will be able to process the alcohol and work on any fats from your meal that are waiting to be broken down.

● Don’t drink on an empty stomach. Skimping on food in order to make room for drinks will most likely end up backfiring. Here’s why: Most cocktails are loaded with sugar, so during a night of drinking, people end up with soaring blood sugar, followed by a crash that leaves them ready to devour anything in sight.

You can prevent this from happening by having a snack at home before you go out that

includes a protein, natural carb with fiber, and a small amount of healthy fat. A good example would be a half an apple, string cheese, and a large glass of water. Greek yogurt, berries, and almonds is another good one. Well-balanced, healthy snacks like this will help stabilize your blood-sugar without slowing down your metabolism. An added benefit of snacking before having a drink is that the alcohol will be absorbed more slowly into the bloodstream, thereby minimizing its fat loss-damaging effects.

● Since alcohol lowers inhibitions, it’s important to have an easy-to-follow strategy in place before you take that first sip. Look up the bar or restaurant menu online before going out and go ahead and make your choices ahead of time and enter it into your phone. Then set an alert to remind yourself to order wisely.


● One drink a day is the widely accepted definition of moderate drinking, but there’s a misconception that you can go without alcohol all week and save your seven drinks for the weekend. That’s not the best approach, as it has a much worse effect than one drink a day. When you down three or four drinks in one night, your body has many hundreds of alcohol calories to process before it can continue to break down food calories or stored fat. Plus, all those drinks throw your blood sugar even more out of whack so you’re extra-hungry and not in the right frame of mind to make wise food choices.

● The morning after poses a new challenge. You’ll likely have a craving for greasy, fattening food. Part of the problem is that you’re dehydrated (alcohol is a diuretic), and that can make you feel even hungrier. Plus, the body needs energy to help the effects of a night out drinking, so it wants the richest source of energy it can find, which is fat.

To avoid this: When you’re out, drink a big glass of water for every alcoholic beverage you have. Then, before going to bed, have more water, along with a small snack that is high in fiber and protein. This will help get important nutrients into the body that were lost during alcohol consumption, and foods high in fiber stay in the stomach longer, so you’ll be less prone to hunger in the morning.

● For many people, the fun of going out for drinks is ordering something different or exotic and socializing with friends – not necessarily the alcohol. There are lots of delicious, fun non-alcoholic drinks you can order, such as a mojito without the rum or added sugar. Offering to be the designated driver will also help you stick to your plan of not drinking, and will keep others from applying any pressure for you to drink while offering them a safe ride home.

By following the above tips, you can still lose fat while consuming alcohol. In fact, a recent Harvard study assigned more than 500 overweight subjects to one of two 1,500 calorie diets. The first group’s diet included a glass of wine every day, while the other group drank a glass of grape juice. The wine group actually lost just over 11 pounds, while the juice drinkers lost 8.3 pounds. When used sparingly, alcohol can be a part of a healthy meal plan if planned and executed wisely.


Here are a few simple cocktail recipes that have a fraction of the sugar and calories yet still taste really good:

Raspberry Mojito

● 1 shot of light rum

● 3 oz. club soda

● 7 mint leaves

● 4 or 5 raspberries

● 1 oz. Da Vinci’s Sugar Free Syrup (choose natural version)

● Fresh squeezed lime

Directions: Add 4 or 5 ice cubes to a glass and muddle mint and raspberries. Add rum, club soda, syrup, and stir or shake. Add fresh squeezed lime.

Fruity White Sangria

● 16 oz. og Crystal Lite Pure lemonade

● 8 oz. of pineapple juice

● 1 liter of seltzer

● 1 bottle white wine

● A cup of chopped apples, sliced strawberries, and cherries

Directions: Chop and slice fruit. Pour all the ingredients into a serving pitcher and add ice. Stir and refrigerate so the flavors blend. Makes ten 8-oz. servings.

Pina Colada

● 1 shot of coconut-flavored rum

● 3 oz. pineapple juice

● 4 oz. sparkling water or coconut water

● 1 tablespoon of Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut Lite

Directions: Blend until ice is crushed and well mixed.


Skinny Iced Tea

● 1 shot of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka

● 8 oz. Crystal Lite Pure Lemonade

● 1 lemon wedge

Directions: Fill a glass with ice, pour 1 shot of Firefly, fill glass with light lemonade, and garnish with lemon wedge.

Strawberry Daiquiri

● 1 cup strawberries, either fresh or frozen

● 1 shot of light rum

● 5 or 6 ice cubes

● 2 tsp stevia

Directions: Blend until ice is crushed and well mixed.

Iced Mocha Coffee

● 8 oz. coffee

● 6-10 ice cubes

● Sugar-free, low-fat creamer

● 1 shot of Bailey’s Irish Cream

Directions: Brew a cup of coffee and put it in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to cool. Stir in creamer and Bailey’s and pour into a tall glass with ice. Blend until ice is crushed and well mixed.

Gin & Tonic

● 6 oz. diet tonic water

● 1 shot of gin

● Fresh squeezed lime

● 4 or 5 ice cubes

Directions: Pour the gin and tonic over ice and stir. Squeeze lime and enjoy!


Did you know that some of the most popular coffee drinks contain up to 700 calories? Even if your first meal follows our program perfectly, you could consume an entire day’s worth of calories before you start your day. Even worse, those calories from your coffee drink offer very little nutritional value.

Fortunately, there are a variety of ways of decreasing the fat, sugar, and calories when ordering your favorite coffee drinks:

Coffee Drinks

● Start with black coffee. It’s not the coffee that’s fattening, but all the extras that get added. An 8 oz. cup of coffee has just 10 calories and no sugar. You can control how much of those extras you put in your coffee, and you can make wiser choices. Try ordering black coffee with a little stevia (natural sweetener) and unsweetened almond milk.

● Go nonfat. Always start your coffee drink order by requesting nonfat milk. Some coffee shops might advertise that a drink is

low-calorie, but the barista may use whole milk, which has a much higher fat and calorie content.

● Skip the whipped cream. It melts into the coffee, so you can barely taste it anyway. If you add whipped cream to a tall mocha, you’re adding as much as 100 calo-ries and 9 grams of (unhealthy) fat.

● Ask for extra foam. The foam takes up more space in the drink, so this helps decrease the amount of milk or cream used and the number of calories in the drink.

● Add ice. Any drink with ice will have fewer calories than its hot alternative because the ice takes up space and has no calories. For a drink that already has ice, ask for extra ice to make it lower in calories, and cooler and more refreshing.

● Add spices. Most coffee shops have cinnamon, cocoa, and nut-meg you can add for extra flavor without adding many calories.


● Order smaller. If you are currently buying a grande (16 oz.) or even a venti (20 oz.) size coffee drink, you can easily cut calories by gradually working your way down towards a tall (12 oz), mini (10 oz.), or even a short (8 oz.). Most coffee shops don’t advertise a short size, but they’ll likely have it if you ask.

● Use sugar-free syrups. Flavored syrups are common additions to coffee drinks, but they are almost pure sugar and add lots of extra calories. Try the sugar-free versions that use all-natural sweeteners (e.g., stevia).

*I’ll work on the recipes for each of these coffee drinks and post them in the FITera community site!

Also, you can check the calorie count of your customized Starbucks drink online. In fact, most coffee shops now have websites with the nutritional information of each drink. The more you’re aware of what you’re drinking, the easier it’ll be to make the right decision.

Keep in mind too that you can make a much healthier, less expensive coffee drink at home. Here are 6 coffee drinks that contain 100 calories or fewer*:

1. Tall Skinny Latte: You’ll get a boost of protein with this coffee drink, which is a healthy way to start your day. Add sugar-free syrup for flavor if you’d like, or order it iced to de-crease the amount of milk and the number of calories. It has 100 cal-ories, 0 grams fat, 15 grams carbs, and 10 grams protein.

2. Skinny Cappuccino: The great thing about cappuccino is the foam. The light fluffy top of this drink makes you feel like you’re drinking something much more decadent and fattening when you’re really not. It has 60 calories, 0 grams fat, 9 grams carbs, and 6 grams protein.

3. Brewed coffee or Caffè Americano. Brewed coffee and espresso contain essentially no fat, sugar, or calories.

4. Skinny Peppermint Mocha. This coffee drink is sweet and delicious enough to substitute as dessert. A small serving is plenty to satisfy your sweet tooth. It has 100 calories, 1 gram fat, 13 carbs, and 10 grams protein.


http://www.starbucks.com/menu/catalog/nutrition?drink=all#view_control=nutrition


5. Iced Skinny Flavored Latte: Add your favorite sugar-free flavor syrup. Try vanilla, hazelnut, almond, peppermint or other varieties. It has 60 calories, 0 grams fat, 9 grams carbs, and 6 grams protein.

6. Caffe Misto: This drink is half filtered coffee and half heated nonfat milk. It has 40 calories, 0 grams fat, 6 grams carbs, and 4 grams protein.

Let’s face it: Most healthy desserts don’t satisfy the requirements of the dessert ritual. A dessert should be sweet and a little bit rich. You should be able to savor each succulent mouthful slowly. You should feel as if someone has given you a small gift, a pleasurable experience to cap off a long day. Most healthy desserts aren’t savor-worthy. You choke them down, grateful for that vague hint of sweetness, and think longingly of chocolate mousse, velvety cheesecake, and mountains of whipped cream.

I’m about to change all that. Weight loss isn’t about losing all the foods you love and replacing them with chalk. It’s about getting that same luscious, satisfying, indulgent flavor with healthier ingredients.

You can eat all your favorite desserts; all you need to do is make a few healthy swaps in the ingredients. And before you get worried, we’re not talking about swaps like subbing out chocolate for carob. We’re talking about trading non-healthy fats for healthy ones, high fructose corn syrup for healthy sweeteners, and artificial foods for real ones.

Seem like a reasonable trade? Try these recipes, and we’re pretty sure you’ll be completely sold. They take between 5-15 minutes to make, they support your body in its efforts to burn fat, and they’re amazingly inexpensive.

Desserts


None of these recipes have a ridiculous amount of calories, but that wasn’t actually the goal when we created them. Low calorie doesn’t equal fat loss; you could eat a tablespoon of heavy whipping cream (200 calories) and it would still be much, much worse for your fat-burning plans than 200 calories worth of raspberries, for example.

Even low-fat snacks are often terrible for your fat-loss plans. Those 100-calorie snack packs are basically devoid of any kind of nutritional value; they’re empty calories, and your body more or less never registers them as food. You stay hungry and unsatisfied.

Take 100 calories of strawberries and almonds, and suddenly you’re satisfied and nourished, have satisfied your sweet tooth, and are actively burning fat to digest that food. All this to say: we’re not trying to make these recipes low in calories or fat just for the heck of it. We’ve engineered them to be good for fat loss. That means they are lower in calories – because you need to take in fewer calories than you burn to get rid of fat – but we weren’t obsessing over getting those numbers to zero, which, thankfully, means we can concoct a much more satisfying, flavorful dessert.

Note: because these desserts are high in protein, relatively low in calories, and packed with nutrients, it’s okay to eat a small- to medium-sized portion. To be clear, protein with fibrous carbs and a little healthy fat is always better at night than even the healthiest dessert. BUT for most people, depriving themselves of dessert just isn’t realistic. And I’d much prefer you enjoy healthier desserts than quit the plan altogether. So try to focus on protein, healthy fat, and fibrous carbs at night as an ideal first option, but small portions of our healthier desserts are fine if it helps you stick to the plan.

As we go through these recipes, I’m going to explain why subbing out certain ingredients makes for a better fat-burning dessert and without sacrificing flavor. But without further ado, let’s get to it…

Low Calorie Doesn’t Necessarily Equal Fat Loss


Recipe #1: Strawberry Cheesecake

Cheesecake is one of the richest, most fattening desserts out there – if you’re using regular cream cheese to make it. When you substitute cream cheese made with Greek yogurt, you get 3 times the protein with half the calories and fat and it tastes just as good! Greek yogurt cream cheese is readily available now in almost every grocery store, so you’ll be able to whip this recipe up without needing to hunt down a specialty store.

Preparation time (not including baking or chilling): 10-15 minutes

Serving size: 1 piece

Servings: 12Only $0.53 per serving

Ingredients:Crust:

● 1 cup dates, pitted and soaked in warm water for 10 minutes, then drained

● 1 cup almonds, crushed

Filling: ● 1 cup Greek yogurt cream cheese ● 1 cup low-fat Greek yogurt ● 2 large eggs ● 2 egg whites ● 1 oz (about 1/3 cup) all-natural

cheesecake (or vanilla) flavored pudding mix

● 1/4 cup powdered stevia ● 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Sauce: ● 8 strawberries, hulled ● 1 tablespoon water ● 1 teaspoon stevia

Directions:1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

2. To make the crust, blend dates and crushed almonds together until it forms into a ball. Press mixture into bottom of a 9 x 9 pan.

3. To make the filling, add Greek yogurt cream cheese and Greek yogurt in a food processor or blender (or electric mixer) and blend until smooth.

4. Add stevia, vanilla, eggs, and egg whites while continuing to blend.


5. Pour mixture into the pan on top of crust. Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until almost set.

6. Turn oven off and open the oven door partially for about 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven to cool on a wire rack.

7. To make the sauce, combine strawberries, water, and stevia in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour evenly on cheesecake.

8. Freeze for about 1-2 hours or chill in fridge for 8 hours.

recipe #2: Protein Pumpkin Cake

Many health-food nuts have been stumped by cake. Cake is moist and fluffy when made well, which usually means lots of butter and oil. You don’t need these fatty ingredients to make your cake turn out light and moist, however for we’ve got a recipe you can whip up in just a couple minutes, using pre-made cake mix. Yes, that’s right. Our tricks can actually make pre-made cake mix healthier.

Now, we don’t recommend this all the time – there are some not-so-healthy ingredients in cake mix – but we know you don’t have all the time in the world and sometimes you need to work fast. This recipe will cut the fat in your average off-the-shelf cake mix by as much as 500% while adding protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals for maximum fat loss.


All you need is: ● Cake mix and whatever else it calls

for on the box (e.g., eggs and water)

● Canned pumpkin (pumpkin puree, not pie mix)

● Protein powder

Step 1:Instead of using the entire box of cake mix, split the mix in half and save the second half for another time. Most cake mixes come in a 16 oz. box. So in this case, you’d use 8 oz., which is exactly one cup. Replace the missing 8 oz of cake mix with that same amount of protein powder.

I personally prefer vanilla whey protein powder for this recipe, but there are a variety of protein types and flavors, all of which you can find at your local grocery or health food store. This will save you 20 grams of sugar per serving and offer a really good source of protein, which helps you stay full longer, stabilizes your blood sugar, and improves your metabolism.

Directions:1. Simply mix all of the ingredients

together and pour the mixture into a cake pan (or even better, muffin tins, so that it’s pre-portioned for you).

Check out how, by doing these 2 simple steps, we just transformed cake that was high in (unhealthy) fat, sugar, calories, and processed carbs into a delicious, protein-packed, low-calorie energy booster.

Step 2:Use one 15-oz. can of pumpkin puree instead of the 7 tbsp of butter it calls for on the back of the box. This will save you more than 800 calories and nearly 100 grams of fat.

There are numerous health benefits of pumpkin; for example, it contains a variety of vitamins, minerals and fiber (which, among other things, helps you stay full and energized much longer). Pumpkin also makes the cake really moist; it’s not at all dry like most “healthier” versions of baked foods.


recipe #3: Coconut Whipped Cream

Both of those cake recipes are rich and delicious without a topping, but hey, some of you just don’t feel like it’s cake unless it’s frosted. Or maybe you’d love to eat some fresh fruit for a dessert but you really need a bit of rich sweetness to dip those strawberries into.

We’ve got you covered with a recipe that takes out all the bad trans fats and replaces them with healthy, fat-burning fats; has half the calories of regular whipped cream; and nixes the high fructose corn syrup that most store-bought versions are spiked with. It also includes a good source of protein. As with the rest of these recipes, it’s quick, easy, and inexpensive to make.

Directions:1. Place the can of coconut milk in the

refrigerator overnight.

2. Scoop out the firm layer of coconut cream that has solidified at the top of the can (don’t include the liquid).

3. In a large bowl, whip the coconut cream, yogurt, and stevia with an electric mixer for 3 to 5 minutes until it becomes light and fluffy. Enjoy!Ingredients:

● One 15-oz. can of full-fat coconut milk

● 1/2 cup Greek yogurt

● Stevia to taste (optional)


Following the Program When You Go out to eat3 Popular Restaurant Meals Transformed into Fat-Burning Delicacies

I know all too well what most diet programs are like. As a fitness professional for more than 20 years, I’ve heard my clients tell me heartbreaking story after story about the way they’ve deprived themselves for the sake of a new fad. Invariably, they slip right back into their old ways – and who wouldn’t? Most diets suck all the fun out of life. It’s horrible to feel like you can’t go out to dinner just because you’ll be too tempted by your old favorites on the menu.

I hear this all the time: I know I should lose some weight, but I just can’t give up cheese or I try to stick to my diet, but every time I go out to a restaurant, I can’t pass up my favorite meal.

In my opinion, thinking you have to rigorously deny yourself everything good in life is the reason so many people fail on their fat-loss journey before they’ve even begun. Why would you put yourself through months of picking at a plain salad while your friends dive into a juicy burger?

The answer is simple: That’s how weight loss is done, right? And you want to lose fat more than you want the burger...well, at least you do until you’re out to dinner.

I’ve got good news for you: you don’t have to give up your favorite foods to eat healthy. You don’t have to give up going out to eat with your friends and your family. You don’t even have to become the person who always orders a salad.

You can make better, healthier eating choices while still enjoying the same favorite foods you always have - like pizza, nachos, and burgers.

I’m not talking about the healthy versions that are mere shadows of the real thing. I’m not suggesting you make pizza crust out of zucchini or burgers out of beans.

I’m talking about simple changes you can make to your order at a restaurant that mean you’ll be served a delicious meal – with a lot fewer fat, sugar, and calories.


Here are three traditionally fattening favorites - along with the tricks that turn them into healthy fat-burners.

a Better Burger

With a few simple changes, you can save anywhere from 400 to 1,000 calories on your burger at any restaurant. Here’s how:

1. Hold the Fat-Loaders.

Ask them to leave off the extras that offer less nutritional value, like cheese, mayo, any special sauces, and bacon. This can save more than 500 calories right off the bat!

Can’t bring yourself to give up all your extras? Go ahead and order it with cheese but leave off the rest. Remember: It isn’t all or nothing. Leaving off the mayo and bacon is still a huge improvement.

Add a bit of mustard or extra pickles and you’ll still get lots of flavor! Mustard contains no sugar and no fat, unlike ketchup and mayo, and it packs a ton of flavor. Every restaurant has it available.

2. Go Halfsizes.

If you’re absolutely craving the taste of a burger but the portions are huge, simply ask your server to slice your burger in half and bring you a box containing the rest. You won’t be tempted by the other half, and you’ll have lunch for tomorrow. This additional step can save as much as 300-600 calories.

How many times have you ordered a burger only to feel uncomfortably full by the time you get to the last bite? It can take as much as a half hour for your body to realize it’s full, so eat your one-half slowly, and you’ll probably find that by the time you’re finished, you’re comfortably full and happy to eat your other half for lunch the next day.

3. Swap Out Your Sides.

French fries are one of the biggest fat-laden culprits on most burger orders. Once you omit the mayo and cheese, the burger itself can actually have fewer calories than the giant mound of fries!

Instead of fries, ask for a side salad, grilled or steamed veggies, a fruit cup, or cottage cheese. Any of these substitutions can save as much as 350 calories from your meal total and you’ll feel better afterward, too.


You’ll notice that all of these are fairly simple fixes. Here are a few more for the super-committed:

● Many restaurants will now wrap your burger in lettuce leaves instead of a bun, saving almost 200 calories and cutting out the processed carbs.

● Ketchup and BBQ sauce are fine in moderation, but huge gobs can pile on sugar and calories. Try using mustard for the majority of your flavor, and using ketchup and BBQ sparingly.

● Love onion rings? They’re incredibly tasty even without the fried batter. Peel off most of it and you’ll still get a tasty treat with a lot less fat and calories!

Pizza

You can cut 400 calories off your next slice of pizza with just a few simple tricks.

1. Thin Your Crust.

Instead of thick crust, pan, or deep-dish, ask for thin crust. Just changing to New York style pizza saves 110 calories per slice!

Whatever number of slices you normally have, swap out one for a side salad instead. If you usually have 3 slices, have 2 and a side salad. You’ll save 135 calories, and you’ll be a lot more comfortable when you’re full.

2. Lower the Dairy Count.

Ask your server to halve the cheese for you. You’ll save 90 calories and to be honest, you probably won’t even miss the extra. You’ll still have a mouthful of cheese!

If your favorite pizza normally comes with a white sauce, ask for a tomato sauce instead. White sauces are pure cream, and you’ll save more than 100 calories a slice going with red instead.

The same goes for dipping in ranch dressing. If you love dipping your pizza in sauce, use marinara instead to save 140 calories per slice.


3. Instead of Meat Toppings...

like pepperoni, sausage, Canadian bacon, and beef, try veggie toppings like onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Veggie options are all low in calories and high in fiber and nutrients, which will make you feel fuller faster. You’ll save as many as 200 calories.

If you’re really craving meat, order chicken instead. It’s much lower in calories. If you absolutely must have your pepperoni fix, though, go for half the amount once again; half of the fat and calories is still a lot better than the whole shebang.

Nachos

Nachos are normally laden with calories – small surprise, when they’re slathered in cheese and sour cream. With a few simple changes, they’re still incredibly tasty, but you’ll consume 600-700 calories less than the “classic” version.

1. Make Some Substitutions.

Most nachos are served with refried beans, which contain lard. Get black or pinto beans instead, and you’ll save more than 200 calories right away.

Change out the ground beef (also cooked in fat) for shredded or grilled chicken or extra veggies, and you’ll save another 230 calories. Swap the sour cream for pico de gallo or salsa, and you’ve saved 200 more. That’s 630 calories for simple substitutions. But if you can’t stand the idea of giving up everything...

2. Adjust Your Ratios.

Your average bowl of nachos is about 40% chips, 30% dairy, 10% beans, and 19% meat – with a scant 1% given over to a few tomatoes and onions. Adjust those

ratios and you can keep your favorite ingredient as a delicious flavor rather than the main event.

Ask your server to give you half the amount of cheese they normally use, and do the same with any particularly fattening ingredient that you’re craving. You’ll still get the flavor you crave – just less of it.


3. Pile on the Veggies

Ask for more veggies and you won’t even miss the sour cream. Lots of restaurants have fun options that aren’t included in the nacho ingredients but can be had if you ask for the substitution. Take a quick look at other Tex-Mex options to see if there are ingredients you could add to your nachos – maybe red peppers, sautéed onions, and lime-cilantro corn?

If you’re feeling really brave, you can do what I do and ask for veggies in place of your chips! I often ask for sliced tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, celery, or iceberg lettuce instead of chips. Sometimes I get laughs or compliments for creativity –but it’s never a problem and trust me: it’s really tasty.

Burgers and nachos and pizza are only the beginning – I’ve made hundreds of substitu-tions that make old indulgences into big contributors to my quest to burn fat. You’ll find hundreds of delicious, fat-burning recipes on the FITera community site!

It’s easy to say that we should eat healthy food. Of course we should eat healthy food. I’ve never yet heard a fast-food devotee who wouldn’t admit that healthy food is better for you. It’s easy to say. But you know what? It’s not very easy to do.

Healthy food is expensive to buy, time-consuming to make, and it never seems to be anywhere near as satisfying as the junk food you’re trying to give up. It’s often bland and boring, expensive and exhausting. Healthy food might be better for your body, but it doesn’t really fit into your lifestyle. It just doesn’t add up.

Fast food, on the other hand, is easy. It’s convenient. It’s cheap. It gives you a quick hit of all the satisfying salt and sugar and fatty tastes you crave. In short, fast food makes a lot more sense than healthy food. Or does it?

Following the Program on the GoFast Food That Actually Burns Fat



We’re about to show you that fast food bought at a drive-thru isn’t actually any faster, more convenient, or cheaper than healthier meals you can make at home. And when you check out the recipes we have for fast-food meals made with fat-burning ingredients? You’ll be thinking twice about whether that greasy drive-thru fare tastes any better.

Fast Food Isn’t really Easy

It seems easy. It’s certainly quicker in the short term, isn’t it? It only takes a few minutes to whisk through the drive thru – unless, of course, you’re going at dinner or lunch or breakfast time, where there’s sure to be a significant line.

If you’ve been eating fast food for a standard meal, there’s a pretty good bet you’re spending at least 5-8 minutes waiting to get your food. That’s not counting the time you’ve taken to get to and from the drive-thru, which usually brings your total up to more like 15 minutes.

Not really as easy as you thought, is it?

Fast Food Isn’t really Convenient

What about when you don’t have time to go home and prepare something? Or you don’t have the money to go to the expensive health-food supermarket and pick up a healthy option? Fast food’s still more convenient than that, isn’t it?

Not according to a survey conducted by the University of Minnesota. They sur-veyed 530 adults about their attitudes toward fast food, and the participants noticed the following changes once they’d started eating fast food regularly:

● They gained weight and their clothes no longer fit properly.

● They felt lethargic and didn’t feel like doing anything much after eating.

● They were ill more often and they were less productive at work.

To tally all that up: Fast food means buying new clothes, giving up an hour or two of productivity every time you go through the drive-thru, and giving up your vacation days to get knocked out by a flu bug because your immune system is impaired. Doesn’t seem as convenient anymore, does it?


Fast Food Isn’t really Cheap

A Big Mac Meal at McDonald’s –- a burger, fries, and a soft drink – costs $5.69 plus tax. A Subway sandwich with a drink and a bag of chips will run you about $8 even with the $5 footlong deal. The average trip to a fast food joint will run you at least $5 and that’s just the average, not necessarily your favorite meal.

Doesn’t seem like much. Still seems pretty cheap. But consider this: You can make that burger, fries, and a drink at home for less than $3 a serving.

If you tally up the cost of making four burgers and fries with all the fixings at home – even using all-organic, healthy ingredients – you’re still paying less than the cost of four McDonald’s meals.

Fast food isn’t cheaper. It just seems like it is, because you’re only paying for one serving at a time.

oh, and Healthy Food? It Makes More Sense Than You Think

The three supposed virtues of fast food are that it’s cheap, it’s convenient, and it’s easy. We’ve debunked all three of those myths but the fact that fast food doesn’t make much sense doesn’t mean that healthy food is suddenly better, does it?

Well, actually, it kind of does. At least, it does when we’re making the recipes.

I’ve got four great recipes here that you can make for less than $5 – a lot less, in some cases – and that you can prepare in less than 10 minutes. You can even make several servings at the same time for no additional time prepping, which means you can just pop one serving in your bag on the way to work. That’s way more convenient than fast food.

These healthy options won’t make you gain weight (quite the opposite, in fact),


they’ll keep you sharp and focused throughout your day, and they cost less and are quicker to get your hands on than your average fast-food run.

Healthy food is starting to make a lot more sense, isn’t it?

When I first started out on my journey to get healthier and fitter, I struggled with cravings all the time. It took me a long time to figure out how to create meals that satisfy those cravings for salt and sugar and fat without compromising my body’s ability to burn fat.

With a lot of trial and error – and even-tually, a lot of clients willing to try out my recipes and methods – I came up with recipes that were fast, cheap, convenient, AND that satisfied my cravings. I made those recipes a huge part of the program I created based on this research: the Fast Track to Fat Loss program.

Fast Track to Fat Loss is based on making healthy choices that fit into your lifestyle. They have to be cheaper than fast food, they have to be more convenient, they have to be easier – and they have to taste amazing.

The four recipes below are just the tip of the iceberg. We can show you countless ways to make healthier choices that make the most sense for your life.

Four “Fast Food” recipes for Fat Loss

The three supposed virtues of fast food are that it’s cheap, it’s convenient, and it’s easy. We’ve debunked all three of those myths - but the fact that fast food doesn’t make much sense doesn’t mean that healthy food is suddenly better, does it?

Well, actually, it kind of does. At least, it does when we’re making the recipes.

Breakfast idea: Chocolate Peanut Butter oatmeal

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cost: Approx. $1.05

Ingredients: ● 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats ● 1 cup water or low/nonfat milk ● 1/2 of a very ripe banana, mashed ● 1 tablespoon chocolate protein powder ● 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter


Directions: 1. Combine oats and water in micro-

wavable bowl. Microwave 2-3 min-utes.

2. Stir in mashed banana and micro-wave for another 30 seconds.

3. Stir in protein powder and peanut butter and enjoy!

Variations:Instead of water or milk try almond milk. For additional fiber, add a teaspoon of flax or chia seeds before microwaving. In place of peanut butter, try almond or cashew nut butter. For additional flavor and crunch, top with crushed almonds or walnuts.

Lunch idea: Spicy Black Beans & Veggies

Preparation time: 3-5 minutes

Cost: Approx. $2 per serving (2 servings)

Ingredients: ● 1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed ● 1 bell pepper, chopped ● 1/2 onion, diced ● 1/2 avocado, sliced ● 1 cup salsa ● 1/4 cup cilantro ● 1/2 cup Greek yogurt

Directions:1. Just one step: combine first 6 ingredients and top with Greek yogurt – that’s it!

Variations:You could substitute chickpeas for the black beans and use whatever veggies you like. Other great additions are cooked diced chicken, extra lean ground beef, turkey, quinoa, couscous, and/or corn. It’s also great with multi-grain chips or wrapped in lettuce or a whole-wheat tortilla.


Snack/Dessert: Chocolate Truffles

Dinner Idea: Shrimp & Veggies on the Gril

Preparation time: 10 minutes (then they’re ready for the week)

Cost: Approx. $0.85 per serving (2 truffles)

Ingredients: ● 2 1/2 cups dates, pitted ● 1 cup almonds, crushed ● 1/2 cup warm water ● 1 cup chocolate protein powder ● 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter ● 1 1/2 cup rolled oats ● 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips ● 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder ● 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (optional)

Directions:1. Combine dates, almonds, and water in a food processor or blender and mix well.2. Add the remainder of the ingredients and continue to mix.3. Break into about 30 portions and roll into little balls.4. Roll each ball through the coconut flakes and then store in the freezer.

Bam! All of a sudden, you have a convenient on-the-go snack or dessert that won’t knock years off your life and tastes great! And you’ll have enough ready to go for the next week or two (they’re soft and delicious right out of the freezer).

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cost: Approx. $4.70 per serving (2 servings)

Ingredients: ● 2 cups mixed veggies (fresh or frozen, chopped) ● 10 large uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined ● 1 cup marinade (e.g., Italian dressing mixed with vinegar and/or lemon juice)


Directions:1. Combine ingredients for marinade.2. Pour marinade over shrimp and

veggies in a large bowl or dish and mix well.

3. Scoop shrimp and veggie mixture on a 12” length of heavy-duty aluminum foil and wrap tightly.

4. Place it on BBQ over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Variations:Instead of shrimp, you can use tofu or lean meats. Reduced-sodium soy sauce helps make a good marinade as well.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read this on blogs or forum posts in the FITera community site:

One of the most difficult challenges is that so many weekend gatherings revolve around food. There’s nothing else to occupy your mind, and eventually you give in to the temptation to join the crowd. If you’re going to stick to your fitness goals, you need a little forward thinking and a few ideas for how to change up your usual weekend routine.

I’m pretty good about my diet and exercise program during the week. But when the

weekend comes, all of that hard work goes out the window! I constantly find myself

‘starting over’ every Monday morning. How do I break out of this sabotaging cycle?

staying on track over the Weekend

““




The following 7 tips are designed to help your healthy eating plan survive the weekend:

1. Plan family activities like bike rides or outdoor games. This helps you spend time with your family and burn calories at the same time! You can also plan activities for your friend group – instead of going out for drinks, go for a hike together.

2. Carry a water bottle with you to your weekend activities. This will help you get your water for the day and resist the temptation to grab a soda or other high-calorie beverage.

3. Set some weekend-specific goals for yourself based on the realities of what you’ll be doing. For example, if you’re camping over the weekend, you could set a goal of taking at least a 30-minute hike each day and drinking at least 90 oz. of water.

4. If you are going to be out all day, pack some healthy snacks in case you get hungry. There is nothing more challenging than being hungry at the mall, where the only options are junk food.

5. Set Monday as your progress day. You are more likely to resist temptation if you have to face the fat caliper or tape measure first thing Monday morning.

6. Plan ahead! If you are going out to eat, go to the restaurant’s website in advance and review the menu. You’ll have plenty of time to make a healthy choice before you get there.

7. Don’t save all of your splurging for the weekends. Allowing yourself a few small treats throughout the week will help you avoid the mindset that the weekend is an excuse to go crazy and lose control. And by spacing your treats evenly, you’re less likely to get sudden, irresistible cravings.

With a little extra effort and planning, you can turn weekends into an enjoyable experience and an opportunity to keep your program moving in the right direc-tion! It’s all about striking that perfect balance between fun and effectiveness for the best possible results.


When you sit down to dinner with your family and you’re eating something different than everyone else, you’ll feel very isolated… and deprived.

But by getting the family involved, you’ll find that success will come much more easily (and much more quickly). As a bonus, you’ll help your family improve their eating habits as well.

Getting the Family Involved

● Prepare your meals together, so they understand the basic principles of the program:

• natural carbs instead of processed ones

• a protein and healthy fat at each meal

• starchy and simple carbs earlier in the day, fibrous later… and so on

● Work with your children to pack healthy lunches, rather than eating cafeteria food

When you take the time to make your entire family a part of the program, you’ll set a great example for your kids, you’ll improve your family’s health, and you’ll greatly increase your own chance for long-term success. Plus, when you prepare meals and have fun playing together, you grow closer as a family. Your family will be both healthier and happier!

Here are a few tips for getting the entire family involved in both healthy eating and physical activity:

● Don’t make your child clean their plate – encourage them to listen to their body and stop eating when comfortably full and satisfied

● If your kids are “starving” before dinner, give them a healthy snack so that they don’t lose control and overeat

● Have a family activity night – go to the park, play tag, go biking, etc., rather than watching TV.


On the FITera community site, there are more than 500 recipes that follow these 4 criteria:

1. Effective for fat loss2. Quick and easy to make3. No expensive or hard-to-find

ingredients4. Absolutely delicious

I’m talking about healthier versions of all the most popular family favorites, including:

● Burgers ● Fries ● Onion rings ● Pizza ● Nachos ● Chicken strips ● Lasagna ● Cookies ● Cake

...just to name a few. You’ll find healthy recipes for all of these meals on the FITera community site. In the unlikely event you can’t find a healthier version of your family’s favorite, please submit this request in a blog or forum post on the FITera community site and I’ll personally transform it from fattening to Fast Track-Approved within 24 hours!

When your family isn’t following the Fast Track program, I think there are two good approaches: 1) making healthier versions of their favorite foods … and if they resist, 2) modifying the family meal for yourself.

Let’s talk about option 1 first, as this would be ideal since it will help your loved ones eat healthier too.

Following the Program When Your Family’s not on Board




Now, what if your family isn’t ready to have healthier versions of their favorites? No, you won’t have to create two different recipes. Instead, you can make simple modifications for yourself, so you can enjoy the same meal with them, without sabotaging your success. For example:

Fajitas, burritos, or tacos:

● Use extra lean beef (7% fat or less) or if using chicken, use white meat and remove all skin and visible fat.

● Instead of tortillas, try wrapping all the ingredients in romaine or iceberg lettuce.

● Either skip or go very light on the cheese.

● Use black beans or low-fat refried beans.

● Load up on the veggies and salsa.

● Use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.

Your family can still enjoy their favorites and make it how they want, and you can use these tips to make a much healthier, Fast Track-Approved version that strikes the perfect balance between delicious and effective for fat loss.

But it’s not just about making quick and easy substitutes; it’s also about the ratios of the foods that make up the meal. For example, let’s say you’re having pizza and salad for dinner. My best suggestion

would be to fill your plate with the salad and then instead of your normal 2-3 pieces of pizza, have just one slice. There’s nothing wrong with having a small piece of pizza if the majority of your meal is fibrous carbs (salad) and protein (Greek yogurt dressing and/or a side of cottage cheese).

If you want to take it a step further, you could remove the not-so-healthy toppings (e.g., pepperoni or sausage) from your slice and replace them with healthier toppings, such as mushrooms, peppers, onions, pineapple, grilled chicken, etc. Also, most pizzas have way more cheese than you really need for it to be enjoyable, so you might also consider taking off some of the cheese.

Enjoying Mexican food or pizza with your family – after making simple healthier changes that don’t at all affect your family – is far more enjoyable than having to eat something different from the family, as if you’re being punished. And when you’re able to enjoy meals like this with your family, you’ll be much more likely to


stick with the program, especially when you start seeing and feeling the results. And who knows, maybe these healthier changes will rub off on other family members once they witness all the many benefits of a healthier lifestyle!

Note: If you need suggestions for modi-fying your family’s favorite meal into one that allows you to follow the Fast Track program, please create a blog or forum post on the FITera community site and expect suggestions from me and others!

Dealing with temptation from Friends and Family

So how do you deal with the challenge of a family member offering you a fresh baked brownie right out of the oven? Or a good friend handing you a fork and begging you to share a large piece of cake at your favorite restaurant?

It’s not easy sticking to a healthy eating plan when friends and family around you are indulging. It’s even more difficult when they’re determined to make sure you indulge with them.

Not to worry – the following 7 tricks will help you stay on track without putting off the not-so-healthy eaters around you. You may even inspire them to join your cause once they notice your progress!

1. Take a bite: “Misery loves company”. . . but so does indulgence. Expect a guilt-trip if you pass on a temptation that your friends gave in to. But if you’re stuffed or not feeling well, they won’t likely give you a hard time. Simply say, I am absolutely stuffed, but it looks so good, I just have to try a bite.

This way, your friends won’t feel bad and they won’t pressure you to eat more. Besides, you’ll likely want to try a bite – and in the long run, one bite won’t make a dent in your progress.



2. Bring a sweet alternative: There will likely be times when you want more than just one bite of dessert. I try to always keep a piece of hard candy and 2 pieces of gum with me, so that when everyone else is enjoying dessert, I can at least enjoy something sweet to take my mind off the temptation.

3. Serve yourself: You can still stick to your healthy eating plan while enjoying the same foods others are having – IF you just adjust your portions. Try to load up on low-calorie nutritious foods like lean protein and vegetables . . . and then include a small portion of other foods you’re craving.

If you can’t prepare your own plate, there’s nothing wrong with asking for smaller or half-portions of particular items. It’s all about balance and portion control.

4. Arrive under control: In group settings, it’s really easy to get caught up in an eating frenzy. You can pre-vent losing control by having a small

low-calorie snack before the meal. This way, you won’t arrive ready to devour everything in sight. A few baby carrots or a half an apple with a little peanut butter and a large glass of water does the trick.

5. Praise healthy dishes: Your hosts will likely feel bad if they’ve prepared foods that their guests can’t eat, so don’t even bring up your wish that you could have something that isn’t on your plan. Instead, shift your focus to the healthier options they’ve provided and compliment them on how amazing they look and taste. By praising healthier items, the host will be more inclined to force those on you – or at least let you off the hook when it’s time for dessert.

6. Share details respectfully: Naturally you’ll want to share your progress with others. But if your friends aren’t ready to assess their eating habits, encouraging them to avoid foods loaded with fat, sugar, and calories could feel like an ambush. Making comments like Do you know what’s in that? might actually encourage their efforts to sway you. If you don’t want to be hassled about your eating choices, don’t put your friends on the spot either. If they express interest in your healthy eating plan, then humbly share the details.


7. BYOHO (bring your own healthy option): If you’re going to a dinner party, bring a healthy appetizer, side dish, or dessert option to share. Don’t mention that you wanted to be sure there was something you could eat but rather that you wanted to contribute to all their hard work. This will appear as a nice gesture rather than as an insult.

The same goes for alcoholic beverages. You could arrive with a pitcher of lower-calorie margaritas, for example: Crystal Lite Pure lemonade, fresh squeezed limes and oranges, and light on the tequila. This way, you can enjoy drinks with everyone else without feeling awkward or sabotaging your progress.

Just remember, nothing tastes as good as being lean and fit feels. When faced with temptation, ask yourself, Would I rather enjoy a piece of cake for a couple minutes or look and feel great 24 hours a day?

The choice is easy if you put this in perspective and follow the 7 tips above. If you’ve got any questions or tips of your own, please post them in our forum on the FITera online community!





1. When you want to enjoy a night out, which of the following is not a part of the 4-step process for enjoying your favorite food and drinks?

a.) Be a little more active throughout the day

b.) Consume fewer calories by focusing on lean protein and fibrous carbs

c.) Make simple, healthy changes to the foods and drinks you want to enjoy

d.) Start over on Monday no matter what

e.) They’re all part of the 4-step process

2. Which of the following is false?

a.) Alcohol contains 7 calories per gram

b.) The body tends to burn alcohol first, sparing the fat

c.) Alcohol lowers your inhibitions, so you make unwise food choices

d.) If you drink alcohol regularly, you won’t be able to lose fat

3. Which of the following are healthy strategies for limiting alcohol’s adverse effects?

a.) Drink one glass of water in between drinks

b.) Choose low-calorie mixers, such as club soda and fresh squeezed juices

c.) Have a healthy snack before you go out for drinks


4. Be careful with black coffee because it’s high in fat, sugar, and calories – true or false?

a.) Trueb.) False

5. What are some simple requests you can make at the coffee shop to decrease the fat, sugar, and calories in your beverage?

a.) Ask for extra foamb.) Order a tall or mini instead of a

grande or venti c.) Ask for nonfat milk and no

whipped creamd.) All of the above




a.) 100-calorie snack packs are a good alternative to desserts

b.) Greek yogurt cream cheese isn’t any healthier than low-fat cream cheese

c.) Pumpkin is a good substitute for butter in baked goods

d.) Coconut milk, Greek yogurt, and Splenda can make a healthy whipped cream

7. Which of the following are healthy changes you can make to a nacho?

a.) Choose black beans over refried beans

b.) Ask for light on the cheese and meat and ask for extra veggies

c.) Ask for cucumber slices instead of chips


8. Which of the following is always true?

a.) Fast food restaurants are quickerb.) Fast foods restaurants are

cheaperc.) Fast foods restaurants are

healthierd.) You can make your own “fast

food” that’s quicker, healthier, and less expensive

9. Which of the following are great strategies for following the program with your family?

a.) Make healthier versions of their favorite meals

b.) Make your family’s favorite meals and then modify them for yourself

c.) Have a small healthy snack together an hour prior to your meal






nutRItIon suMMARYKey Points to Remember

1. You must create a caloric deficit to lose fat, but you don’t have to count calories to do so. By following the 5 Simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss, you’ll naturally create a caloric deficit.

2. Carbs are critical to your success and you should include the right kind at each snack and meal. Choose natural carbs (those picked from the ground or a tree: fruits, veggies, beans, oats, potatoes, etc) over processed ones (those that are man-made: crackers, pasta, bread, etc).

3. Choose natural starchy and simple carbs earlier in the day, and then transition to fibrous carbs later in the day. Our Meal Guidelines Chart makes this super simple to follow.

4. Include a protein and a small portion of healthy fat at each snack or meal.

5. Ideal proteins are those that are both low in fat and complete. Complete proteins are those from animal sources, such as meats, fish, eggs, and dairy. You can combine two or more incomplete proteins (e.g., beans or quinoa) to make a complete protein source.

6. Choose healthy unsaturated fats (nuts, olives, avocados) over

unhealthy saturated fats, especially artificial trans fats.

7. Water is critical to your fat loss success, as it helps you metabolize fat more efficiently and it serves as a natural appetite suppressant. The amount of water you should drink is based on your weight (in pounds x 67%) and activity level (4 additional ounces per 10 minutes of exercise).

8. We recommend eating 5 smaller meals a day, about 3 hours apart. However, you should do what works best for you and if 3 or 4 meals a day fits best with your schedule, simply follow the specific meal guidelines for each.

9. Knowing how much to eat is a simple 2-step process: 1) dish up your portions based on the fist/palm/thumb rule… and 2) listen to your body and stop eating when comfortably full.

10. Planning and preparing the right types of foods in advance will make following the program so much easier and increase your chances of success.

11. You can enjoy your favorite meals, desserts, and drinks with family and friends, and still lose fat, if you follow our simple 4-step process.


That said, there’s no reason you can’t also start getting more active right away. Just as it’s important to consume fewer calories, it’s also important that you’re active to burn more calories. Whether you’re working out now or not, the more active you are in every way, the more calories you’ll burn, and the easier it’ll be to create a caloric deficit for maximum fat loss.To repeat, you can help create a caloric deficit both by eating small portions of the right types of foods and by being more active throughout the day.

So take every opportunity to be as active as possible during your day. Exercise doesn’t have to be limited to the track or the gym. You can greatly increase the amount of physical activity your body gets (and the total calories you burn) by making small lifestyle changes to be up and moving more.

E X E r C I S EThe second key component to long-term, healthy fat loss is exercise. I’m eager to teach you how to improve your health and accelerate your results with an effective workout plan. However, it’s been my experience over the years that many people just starting the program aren’t quite ready to begin working out because they feel pretty overwhelmed by all the nutrition information and meal planning.

That’s fine. Because nutrition is so critical to your success, I think the best first step is to plan your meals and really understand the nutrition portion of the program. Once you’re crystal clear on the meal guidelines and the steps to follow, you can then focus on your workout plan.

Get Active!


Here’s a few simple ways to get more active:

● Get in the habit of taking the stairs instead of the elevator.

● Keep your sport shoes in the car so you’re always prepared to get out and be active when you have some extra time. You could take a brisk walk or shoot some baskets after lunch before returning to work.

● Choose a hike or a bike ride with friends or family instead of a movie.

● Play with your kids in the backyard rather than dropping them off at the video arcade.

● Instead of catching up with friends over a few drinks, play racquetball or tennis.

● Do yard work, clean the garage, or wash the car.

● Dance at home or arrange to take lessons with friends.

● Celebrate a birthday at a bowling alley or roller rink instead of a restaurant.

It’s not Just About Burning Calories:Frequent Activity Also stimulates Your Hormones

Any extra bit of activity adds up, and over the long run, it makes a big difference in how much fat you lose. In fact, it’s not just about burning calories, it’s also about stimulating your hormones, which have a role in fat-burning.

Throughout the day, your hormones are either increasing or decreasing energy production, stimulating or decreasing your appetite, and promoting fat breakdown or fat storage – depending how active you


are. By ignoring your hormones’ need for physical activity throughout the day, you’re basically telling your body one thing: store fat. So how can you keep your hormones functioning AND get your work done?

It’s simple: If you sit at a desk for hours at a time, take regular, quick breaks every hour or so and move. (You may need to take breaks more often; your body will let you know). Here are the signs to watch for:

● You feel compelled to stretch or move.

● You’re yawning or sighing. ● You’re slumping at your desk.

● You’re unable to concentrate. ● You feel tense or anxious. ● You make simple errors. ● You can’t focus or pay attention.

When you notice these signs – or at least every 60-90 minutes, get up and move – even for just 3-5 minutes. Here are some quick, simple activities you can do to stimulate your hormones into burning fat that don’t require changing your clothes or even your shoes.

● Walk up and down stairs. ● Do jumping jacks. ● Alternate a few sets of pushups and

crunches. ● Do one or two yoga poses. ● Walk or jog the parking lot. ● Walk around the block. ● If you’re at home, put away the

dishes from the dishwasher, fold and put away clothes, sweep the kitchen.

You get the picture. When you stay active throughout the day like this, your body will continually metabolize fat – just as it’s designed to – and as a bonus, you burn more calories towards your caloric deficit.

Below are some examples of both recreational and common daily living activities (like chores and sports), along with how many calories each activity burns on average. Next time you realize you’ve been sitting for an hour or more, pick an activity and get active!


Common weekend chores that burn 150 calories:

● Washing and waxing a car for 45 minutes

● Washing windows or floors for 45 minutes

● Pushing a stroller 1.5 miles in 30 minutes

● Gardening for 45 minutes ● Raking leaves for 30 minutes ● Shoveling snow for 15 minutes ● Mowing the lawn for 30 minutes ● Chopping wood for 15 minutes

Sporting activities that burn 150 calories:

● Playing volleyball for 45-60 minutes ● Walking 1.5 miles/30 minutes ● Basketball/shooting baskets for 30

minutes ● Bicycling 4 miles in 20 minutes ● Dancing for 30 minutes ● Swimming laps for 20 minutes ● Water aerobics for 30 minutes

● Jumping rope for 15 minutes ● Racquetball for 20 minutes ● Hiking gradual hills for 15 minutes ● Playing tag with kids for 20 minutes ● Tennis for 30 minutes ● Soccer for 15 minutes ● Walking stairs for 15 minutes

Bottom line: the more active you are – even just around the house or office – the more calories you’ll burn and the easier it will be to lose fat.


Ready to Workout?Focus on these 2 types of exercise

Cardiovascular exercise

Two types of exercise play a very important role in effective fat loss: cardiovascular exercise (also known as cardio) and resistance training (also known as weightlifting). We’ll first discuss cardiovascular exercise.

Cardio exercise is any movement that gets your heart rate up and increases blood circulation for an extended period of time. It is the most effective way of burning calories and since fat loss depends on that caloric deficit, it’s a critical component to your long-term fat loss success.

But there are many more benefits besides losing fat:

● Increased productivity ● Improved endurance and stamina ● Reduction in blood pressure ● Improved metabolism ● Reduced “bad “(LDL and total)

cholesterol ● Increased “good” (HDL) cholesterol ● Increased insulin sensitivity and

better control of blood sugar ● Improved immune system for

warding off illness

● A cleaner, stronger heart and arteries ● Boosted mood and decreased risk of

depression ● Decreased stress and anxiety ● Improved mental alertness and

memory ● Increased quality and length of life ● These are just a few of the benefits

that you’ll enjoy by doing regular cardiovascular exercise.

If you are just getting started, first focus on finding an activity that gets you moving and gets your heart rate up. Any form of exercise will do, whether it is going for a walk, biking, swimming, using the elliptical machine, or participating in an organized sport. The important thing is to keep your body moving.


Resistance trainingResistance training is defined by the American College of Sports Medicine as any exercise that causes the muscles to contract against an external resistance (e.g., dumbbells, resistance bands, exercise machines, etc.) with the expectation of increases in muscle strength, tone, size, and/or endurance.

As you just learned, cardio offers many health benefits and is the most effective form of exercise for burning calories. But what if you get sick or go on vacation or are too busy to do cardio? You’ll likely gain the fat back… unless there’s a way to burn fat around the clock. There is and it’s through resistance training!

When you are on a consistent resistance training program, your body changes in a way that cannot be obtained through cardio. Simply put, resistance training adds lean muscle to your body and this muscle increases your metabolism.

Your metabolism is the amount of energy (calories) your body burns to maintain itself at rest. Whether you are eating, relaxing, watching TV, or even sleeping, your body is continually burning calories. So, to become efficient at burning fat, it’s very important that you add muscle to your body so that you can burn more calories 24/7.

There are 3 main components to cardiovascular exercise:

1. Frequency: Even just 2 days a week is far better than none at all. You can gradually work up to 3-6 times a week.

2. Duration: If you’ve been sedentary, even just 5 minutes at a light inten-sity will be beneficial and you can gradually work up to 20 minutes or more.

3. Intensity: This is measured by your heart rate and I’ll show you how to vary your intensity for better results. For now, just focus on getting your heart rate up at a comfortably level where your heart is beating moderately fast and you’re breathing harder but still able to talk.


A good goal is to work to gain 5 lbs of muscles within the next 10 weeks. On average, it takes most people about 2 weeks to gain a pound of muscle, so 10 weeks to gain 5 lbs is very realistic and would make a significant difference in how your body burns fat, even while at rest. And with just one more pound of muscle, your metabolism will be burning an extra 50 calories a day at rest.

Once you have the 5 pounds of lean muscle, your body will be burning a total of 250 calories extra a day at rest. Now, consider creating a caloric deficit of just 250 calories a day. This caloric deficit, along with 5 lbs of muscle gain, means you’ll be burning 500 calories a day, or 3500 calories a week, which is the equivalent of one lb of fat.

People who follow the Fast Track to Fat Loss meal plan guidelines average a caloric deficit of about 500 calories a day, which is both safe and realistic. So once you’ve added 5 lbs of muscle to your body, you’ll be in a 750-calorie a day deficit, which is 1.5 lbs of fat loss per week. 1.5 lbs of FAT doesn’t sound like a lot but consider this…

Make a fist with your left hand. For an average-sized women, this is about the size of one pound of muscle. Now make a fist with your right hand and put both hands together; this is one pound of fat. As you can see, even though they both weigh the same, one pound of fat takes up a lot more room than muscle – about twice as much.

Imagine replacing 10 lbs of fat on your body with 5 pounds of lean muscle. Although the scale says only a 5-lb loss, you’ll have lost several inches throughout your body, you’ll be thinner, you look and feel better, and you’ll be healthier and more fit. Plus, your body will be burning fat – around the clock – at a much faster rate.

The key thing to remember is that you’ll be losing this one pound of fat regularly when your body is at REST. This doesn’t even take into account the additional calories you burn while working out and eating healthy meals. So you see, resistance training is absolutely critical to your fat loss success.

the Power of Gaining Just 5 Pounds of Muscle


But resistance training offers a lot more health benefits than just fat loss. Resistance training also:

Trying to include both cardio and resistance training into your busy schedule can be tough, I understand. But since both forms of exercise are so critical to your success, I wanted to come up with a strategy that combined both into one very efficient, super-effective workout that you can easily fit into your busy day. I call this strategy the E2 Method. It’s DOUBLE the effectiveness and DOUBLE the efficiency of a traditional workout when they’re done separately. Here’s how it works:

Normally, people rest between resistance training sets. Instead, the E2 method has you doing a round of cardio to keep your heart rate elevated the entire workout. That means by the time you’ve completed your resistance training routine, you’ve done a full session of cardio exercise as well. The E2 Method has an additional fat-burning benefit: it keeps your metabolism revved up longer, making your body more efficient at burning fat around the clock.

● Improves athletic performance

● Makes activities of daily living easier

● Reduces “bad” (LDL and total) cholesterol

● Increases “good” (HDL) cholesterol

● Reduces risk of diabetes and insulin needs

● Lowers risk of cardiovascular disease

● Reduces high estrogen levels linked to breast cancer

● Lowers high blood pressure

● Helps decrease symptoms of arthritis

● Builds bone strength and decreases risk of osteoporosis

● Reduces stress and anxiety and improves your mood

● Strengthens your immunity

● Reduces risk of injury and back pain

● Improves posture

● Improves self-esteem and confidence

Combining Cardiovascular exercise with Resistance training Is the Best Way to Lose Fat


The one minute of cardio could be the treadmill, stationary bike, elliptical machine, jumping rope, bench step-ups, jumping-jacks, boxing, jogging/marching in place – whatever keeps your heart rate elevated for 1 minute and is convenient for you to perform between your resistance training sets.

If you’d like a quick video summary, please click here. I shot this video with one of our Fast Track to Fat Loss success stories, Eric Post. As you’ll see, this technique really works!


1. I can contribute to my fat loss by:

a.) Being more active around thehouse

b.) Taking the stairs rather than the elevator

c.) Playing with my kids rather than watching TV

d.) Any of the abovee.) None of the above


a.) Cardio is the most effective form ofexercise for fat loss

b.) Resistance training is the most effective form of exercise for fat loss

c.) They’re both very effective and when you do them both regularly, you have a much greater chance of rapid results and long-term success


3. You can use the E2 Method to combine cardio exercise and resistance traininginto one effective, time-efficient workout.

a.) Trueb.) False

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYq6-7ht6Z0



Ready to try the E2 Method in the comfort, convenience, and privacy of your home? Click here for workout videos to get started. All you need is one resistance band and the willingness to follow along with Dave, our workout expert.

These workouts are simple to follow and extremely effective, and you can easily modify them to your fitness level. Even just doing the first 5 minutes twice a week is a great start. You can gradually work up to three or four times a week, for the full 20-minute workout. Dave will continually add new workouts like this, so you’ll always have a new, effective workout routine waiting for you.

Depending on your experience and current condition, I’d recommend starting your exercise/activity at one of these 4 levels:

1 Beginner who has been mostly sedentary for 60 days or longer:

● Start with workout 1 for 5 minutes. If you feel good and want to go longer, continue following along but stop if you feel pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, or nausea. As a beginner who’s been sedentary, it’s important to start cautiously and progress gradually. So don’t go overboard at the beginning or risk getting injured. We have plenty of time to get you up to the intermediate level.

● Allow two days of rest before doing workout 2 this first week. Do workout 2 for 5 minutes or a little longer if you’re feeling good.

● In addition to these 2 workouts, get active! Do fun activities that you enjoy, such as hiking, biking, tennis, or playing with your kids. Also try to be more active in your normal everyday activities, such as taking the stairs, doing yard work, or walking on your lunch break.

A Workout that’s Right for You

http://fasttracktofatloss.com/acecoachingresources/workout.php#


workout 2


2 Beginner who has been exercising consistently for the last 60 days:

● Do workouts 1, 2, and 3 the first week for the full 20 minutes, with a day of rest in between. If at any time you feel pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, or nausea, stop the routine and cool down for a few minutes.

● If you’d like to do more exercise in addition to these 3 workouts, I suggest some other form of cardio exercise for 15-20 minutes. For example, let’s say you plan on doing workout 1 on Monday, workout 2 on Wednesday, and workout 3 on Friday. On Tuesday, Thursday, and/or Saturday you could do 15-20 minutes of some form of cardio exercise, such as biking, swimming, walking/jogging, the elliptical machine, etc.

● In addition to these workouts, get active doing activities you enjoy and also try to be more active in your everyday routine, such as biking to work, doing chores, walking the mall before shopping, or playing with your kids rather than or while you’re watching TV.

3 Intermediate who has been exercising consistently for the last 60 days:

● You can either follow the recommendations in #2 above and gradually increase the duration of the additional cardio workouts to 20-30 minutes, or if you’d like to do something different from resistance bands at home, you can use our Workout Planner on the FITera community site to create workouts designed for your fitness level and the time and equipment you have available. I’d suggest resistance training with cardio (using the E2 Method) 3 or 4 times a week at 20-30 minutes each.

● If you’d like to do more exercise in addition to these 3-4 workouts per week, I suggest some other form of cardio exercise for 20-30 minutes on your days off from resistance training. During these additional cardio workouts, try doing interval training (see #4 below).

● Make a conscious effort to be active in your everyday life (chores, etc.) and participate in fun activities you enjoy (hiking, tennis, etc.).






4 Advanced who exercises consistently:

● Use our Workout Planner on the FITera community site to create workouts that are designed for your fitness level and the time and equipment you have available. I’d suggest resistance training with cardio (using the E2 Method) 4 times a week at 30 minutes each. Included in your advanced workouts will be techniques like supersets and breakdowns, which are explained below; these will help prevent plateaus and ensure you continually take your fitness to the next level.

● On your days off from resistance training, work up to 20-30 minutes of cardio exercise using interval training at higher intensities to burn the most number of calories and continually improve your cardiorespiratory fitness.

● Also make a conscious effort to be active in your everyday normal life and participate in fun activities you enjoy.

Get your doctor’s clearance

If you have any injuries, illnesses, or conditions or are on any medications, talk to your doctor before getting started to make sure you are cleared to take on an exercise program.

Warm up and stretch

Before Getting started,understand these Basics

It’s important to stretch after your muscles are warm from light activity. You should do a warmup for at least 5-10 minutes at low intensity. For example, if you are going to jog, a good warmup is power-walking for 5 minutes first. It’s then safe to stretch to both increase performance and decrease the risk of injury. The cooldown is similar to the warmup; do a light version of the activity you’ve just completed for about 5 minutes.



The benefits of stretching and good flexibility include: • Decrease risk of pain, soreness, and injury • Improved posture and circulation • Increased energy and endurance • Better athletic performanceSo get in the habit of stretching regularly after your muscles are warm.

Pay attention to good technique when you’re doing resistance training

The most common and critical training mistakes may be those of exercise technique. The tendency to use too much weight typically results in poor form, which decreases your ability to get results and increases the risk of injury. Examples of poor form or technique include bouncing the bar off the chest in the Bench Press; using hip and back extension to initiate Bicep Curls; arching the back or bending backward under Shoulder Presses; using any sort of momentum in any exercise; and training at fast speeds. These mistakes will only work counter to your goals.

Lifting speed

One of the most important elements in resistance training is lifting speed. Speed plays a major role in the incidence of injury as well as strength and muscle development. Fast lifting creates momentum and doesn’t promote blood flow to the muscle, which is critical for muscle development. Slow movement, on the other hand, not only has a much lower risk of injury but also has a greater influence on rapid results.

In every resistance training exercise, there are two parts to each repetition. One, the concentric contraction – called the positive phase of the repetition – is where the muscle is actually doing the work, such as the lifting motion of the bicep curl: from the beginning where the arms are hanging straight down to the point where the weight is lifted up.

http://fitera.com/resources/Ultimate-Guide-to-Stretching-Flexibility.pdf

http://stretchcoach.com/


The second part is the eccentric contraction – called the negative phase of the repetition – the part with resistance, because you are returning the weight from the end of thepositive phase back to the beginning. In the bicep curl, this is where we let the weightcome back slowly to the beginning position, with the arms extended straight down again.

It is more important to let the weight come back slowly on the negative phase than on the positive phase. Coming back slowly with resistance on every exercise is very important because this is the phase that promotes blood flow to your muscles and causes the muscle tissue to break down so it can build back up even stronger when resting. I recommend one to two seconds for each lift (the positive phase), and three to four seconds for each lowering (the negative phase). Just remember, always come back slower with resistance during the negative phase of each lifting repetition.

If you find that the resistance (that is, the weight of a dumbbell or the strength of the resistance band) is so much that you cannot come back slowly and in full control of the movement, you should lessen the resistance (i.e., decrease the weight) until you can. Many people pay far too much attention to the quantity or weight of the lift and not the quality of the movement performed. Your muscles cannot know how much weight is on the bar or machine or the strength of the resistance band, but they will respond very well when you are using good, controlled form and come back slowly with resistance.

an important principle to remember: progressive resistanceAs your muscles adapt to the resistance of a given exercise, that resistance must be gradually increased to stimulate further improvement. The key to strength and muscle development is progressive resistance, which is also called exercise progression. This is the gradual and continual addition of resistance to the exercise over time, as the previous resistance becomes too easy to lift, so that your muscles are continually forced to work harder and thus increase muscle strength, size, and tone.

Note: Don’t worry. I’m not talking about getting big and bulky; I’m talking about replacing fat with lean, fat-burning muscle.

For example, in the Front Shoulder Press, you might start out pressing (lifting) 20 pounds. After two weeks you may find that pressing 20 pounds has become too easy, and that you can do more than the recommended number of repetitions with little difficulty. The progression principle says that as soon as the weight you are using is no longer a challenge, raise it. You progressively increase the resistance so that you continue to make gains in muscle tone, size, and strength, therefore conditioning your body to be a 24-hour fat-burning machine.


Whether you’re using free weights, exercise machines, or resistance bands, you can easily increase the resistance. For example, with resistance bands, you simply hold it closer to the center of the band, so that there’s more resistance. It is important that you increase the resistance only if the previous resistance is too light; increasing the weight of dumbbells, for example, just to push yourself harder can result in poor form and increase the risk of injury.

Also note that an increase in repetitions is an increase in strength and therefore a good indication of progress as well. Many people think improvement is only obtained when they increase the weight. But if you have increased the number of repetitions you can do with good form, you have increased your strength and, more than likely, your muscle size and tone (and metabolism) as well.

Use your heart rate to monitor the intensity of your cardio exercise

There are two reasons you should check your heart rate while exercising. One is if you have a specific health condition and are not supposed to exceed a specific heart rate range; this is something to partner with your doctor on. The second is to implement an intermediate to advanced cardio exercise technique called interval training (see below).

There are two ways to check your heart rate during exercise. The most accurate is to purchase a heart-rate monitor that you strap around your chest. It will give you feedback on a digital watch that tells you exactly what your heart rate is at a specific time in the exercise session. The other way is by using your index finger to gently press on the carotid artery on your neck, between the middle of your collarbone and jaw line.


When you’re taking your heart rate, measure it in beats per minute (counting the number of beats for 60 seconds). For convenience, many people take their pulse for 6 seconds and multiply that number by 10, or simply add a 0 behind the number just obtained. So, if in 6 seconds you counted 12 beats, that would mean your heart rate was 120 beats per minute (bpm). Although counting for 6 seconds is most convenient, keep in mind that the longer the time interval used, the more accurate the results will be. For example, counting your heart rate for 30 seconds and then multiplying that number by 2 will give a slightly more accurate reading than counting your heart rate for 15 seconds and multiplying by 4, or 10 seconds and multiplying by 6. Whatever time period you choose, use it consistently.

Interval training

Interval training is alternating bursts of intense activity with intervals of lighter activity. For example, if you walk for exercise and you’re in fairly good shape, you might incorporate 30 seconds of jogging with 1-3 minutes of walking, and continually repeat. If you haven’t worked up to jogging yet, you might alternate a moderate walking pace with 30-60 seconds of faster power-walking.

Whether you’re a beginner, intermediate, or advanced, interval training has a variety of benefits:

● You’ll burn more calories. The more intensely you exercise, the more caloriesyou’ll burn, even if you’re increasing the intensity just a few minutes at a time.

● You’ll burn more fat long after your workout is done. Simply put, your bodyisn’t able to bring in enough oxygen during periods of hard work. Therefore, youaccumulate a debt of oxygen that must be repaid after your workout in order toget back to normal. This results in your metabolism being revved for hours afteryou’re done exercising.

● You’ll improve your health and performance. By integrating bouts of intenseexercise, you’ll condition your heart to work more efficiently so that you can domore with less effort.


● You’ll prevent boredom. Increasing the intensity in short intervals can add varietyto your exercise routine.

● You can overcome plateaus. If you continually do the same routine over andover, your body will get used to this and become less responsive to improvement.Adding short moderate to intense intervals can “shock” your body into new levelsof progress.

● You don’t need special equipment. All you need is to increase the intensity ofyour favorite routine for 30-60 seconds at a time.

There are no hard and fast rules with interval training. If you simply want to vary your exercise routine, you can determine the length and speed of each high-intensity interval based on how you feel that day.

You might increase the intensity for 30 seconds for the first interval and then resume your normal pace. The next interval might only last 20 seconds, but at an even higher intensity. How intense you go, how long the interval lasts, and how often you alternate intervals is totally up to you.


1. If you’re a beginner who’s been sedentary,it’s best to start cautiously and progressgradually. Working out at 5 minutes twicea week is a good place to start, as well asgetting more active throughout the day.

a.) Trueb.) False

2. It’s best to stretch:

a.) After warming upb.) Before warming upc.) After your workoutd.) Both a and c



3. When resistance training:

a.) You should always use good, slow technique.

b.) Increase the resistance as soon as it becomes too easy.

c.) Recognize that an increase in the number of reps you can do is an increase in strength.


4. Interval training is alternating intensities at one-minute intervals.

a.) Trueb.) False



There may come a time when your results come to a halt and you need to add in new resistance training techniques to shock your muscles again to the next level. The following techniques will help you get past a plateau and prevent you from becoming bored with your routine.

Slow trainingOne means of enhancing the training stimulus is a slower speed that reduces movement momentum and thus increases muscle tension. This is typically referred to as slow training and there are two types. In the first kind, slow positive-emphasis training, the lifting movement is performed more slowly than the lowering movement. For instance, in a biceps curl, you might take 10 seconds to lift the weight and 4 seconds to lower it. As you might guess, slow negative-emphasis training is just the opposite: You take 4 seconds to lift and 10 seconds to lower.

Intermediate & Advanced Resistance training techniques



assisted trainingWith this technique, you lift until you reach fatigue, and then you have a partner help you perform a few more reps only during the lift. Since you can lower more weight than you can lift, you really don’t need help in the lowering. Because properly performed assisted training produces greater stress positively and negatively, it provides an excellent muscle-building stimulus.

Superset trainingSuperset training is a versatile method of high-intensity training with a number of applications. The most productive application is to perform two or more sets of lifts for the same muscle group with very little rest in between. For example, you might perform a set of lateral raises immediately followed by a set of shoulder presses. You fatigue your shoulders with the lateral raises (e.g., 10 reps for that set), and then you immediately do a set of shoulder presses to further fatigue your shoulders. In our Workout Planner on the FITera community site, for intermediate and advanced routines, you’ll see this technique indicated by an (Ss) note next to the exercise.

Breakdown trainingAnother way to enhance the training stimulus is to complete a few post-fatigue repetitions with slightly less resistance. You may perform 12 barbell bicep curls with 40 pounds and reach fatigue. At that point, you find you can’t do any more curls with proper form. Instead of stopping, however, you quickly grab a 30-pound barbell and do a few more reps to fatigue. This is a very effective technique because you’re reaching fatigue twice in one set. In our Workout Planner, for intermediate and advanced routines, you’ll see this technique indicated by a (Bd) note next to the exercise.


exeRCIse suMMARYKey Points to Remember

1. Even if you’re not ready to begin astructured workout routine, you’llbenefit greatly simply by being moreactive – both with everyday activitiesof normal living (e.g., chores, walkingstairs instead of the elevator, etc.) andfun sports and activities you enjoy(e.g., hiking, tennis, etc.). This additionalactivity will burn calories and stimulateyour hormones to help burn more fat.

2. There are two forms of exercisethat you should integrate into yourregular workout routine. The first iscardiovascular exercise (cardio) andit is responsible for burning the mostcalories during the workout, along witha variety of other health benefits. Thesecond, resistance training, not onlystrengthens and tones your muscles, itwill condition your metabolism to burnfat around the clock, even at rest.

3. Consider using our E2 Method tocombine cardio with resistancetraining for one super-effective, time-efficient workout.

4. Depending on your experience withexercise and your current fitness level,choose the Beginner, Intermediate,or Advanced guidelines to follow.

5. If you have any injuries, illnesses, orconditions or are on any medications,talk to your doctor first to makesure you are cleared to exercise.

6. It’s a good idea to including warmingup, stretching, and cooling downin your workout routine to improveperformance and decrease the risk ofinjury.

7. Using good resistance trainingtechnique is important for notonly decreasing the risk of injury butalso achieving the best results in theshortest amount of time.

8. Slow lifting speed is important,especially on the negative phase of therepetition.

9. Progressive resistance is importantto your long-term success. It’s thegradual and continual addition ofresistance to the exercise over time,as the previous resistance become tooeasy.

10. Interval training is an effectivecardio exercise technique thatalternates bursts of intense activitywith intervals of lighter activity. Thereare a variety of benefits, includingburning more calories during theexercise session, as well as burningcalories long after the workout is over.

11. There are a variety of intermediateand advanced resistance trainingtechniques you can use to preventboredom and get past any frustratingplateaus.


You are going to find the support and encouragement from the FITera community site invaluable and it’s one of the aspects of the program that I’m most proud of. We seem to attract good people, men and women who want to improve their health and who are eager to help others do the same.

I’m in the community daily posting new content, answering questions, and working on new features, but I think you’ll get the most value from people like you – who are going through the same program and experiencing the same challenges – offering their support and encouragement, sharing new ideas and what’s worked well for them, and congratulating you each time you succeed.

MoTIVaTIoNNow that you understand the right way to eat and exercise to lose fat, it’s very important that you incorporate strategies for staying motivated. Many people complain: “I now know what to do, I just can’t stick with it.” I don’t want you to be one of these folks. So I’m continually coming up with new ways to help people on the Fast Track to Fat Loss program to stay focused, motivated, and on track to reach their goals. I strongly encourage you to take advantage of the following 7 tools and resources:

1 Support and encouragement from the FITera online community website



People who engage in our online community develop friendships and support systems greater than they could have ever imagined. In fact, the bond is so strong, many of them host Fast Track to Fat Loss retreats each year and people come from all over the world to attend. Here are just a couple of videos of those retreats that you might enjoy: Chicago and San Diego.

There are two ways to get great support in the FITera online community:

● Posting a blog: once logged on, put your cursor over the “Community” tab and click the “My Blogs” link. Next click the blue “New Blog Entry” button and then enter the blog title and content of the blog - and then submit.

● Posting a comment in the forums: put your cursor over the “Community” tab and click the “Community Forum” link. On the right, you’ll find several “Channel” categories to start a new topic.

When you post a blog or comment in a forum, I think you’ll be amazed at all the encouraging helpful replies you’ll receive, and as a result, you’ll naturally develop some good friendships that will help make sticking to the program much easier. You can even submit friend requests and keep updated on their activity and any support and encouragement they offer you. I just can’t recommend being active in our FITera online community enough – you’ll benefit greatly in a variety of ways.

Setting goals is, weirdly enough, one of those things that DE-motivates people more often than it motivates them. That’s not because setting goals is bad. Quite the opposite. Nearly every weight-loss program guru in the world will tell you goal setting is ESSENTIAL for success. The problem is the way most people set goals.

Well-planned goals can help you convert your thoughts into action. They keep you focused and motivated. They provide a plan for change as you transition to a healthier lifestyle. But not all fat loss goals are helpful. Unrealistic and overly aggressive goals

2 Goal-setting and the FITera Goal Planner website

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTyRpm5CBDg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2p0Ia-S8I8



can undermine your efforts. When you fail to meet an impossible goal, it’s easy to think, “That’s it. I’m awful. I shouldn’t even try.” And that won’t help you at all. Those goals are toxic; they undermine your belief in yourself.

You need goals that make you feel that you’re great. You’re constantly getting things done. You’re always achieving new heights. You are AWESOME.

Here’s how you set those kinds of goals.

Make the goal measurable

Give yourself some guiding lights

Set both short-term and long-term goals. Short-term goals keep you engaged every day, but long-term goals motivate you over the long haul. Your short-term goals are the stepping stones to your long-term goal.

Your short-term goals are those you have full control over, as I mentioned above, and you can achieve them today. So many reps of exercise, so many minutes on the elliptical, so many calories in each meal.

Long-term goals are guiding lights. They’re navigation to help you guide yourself. You

● Create a measurable goal, usually one with a number in it. For exam-ple, how far are you going to walk? For how long? How many days each week are you going to walk? This helps you track your progress.

● Review your progress each week. Were you able to successfully meet your goals last week? Think about what worked and what didn’t. Then plan for how you will reach your goals next week.

● Make sure it’s a measurement that you have full control over. You can do your best to lose 10 pounds of fat this month, but you can’t actually control what the scale will say (if you’re retaining water, for example). You can control how many calories you burned, what foods you ate, how often you exercised, etc. It’s okay to have a number in your head that you’re shooting for – but that’s not the goal. The goal is a number you have full control over achieving.


might have a long-term goal of losing 75 pounds, for example. You can’t achieve that goal tomorrow – but having that goal reminds you to stay on track.

You need BOTH short-term and long-term goals. Short-term goals tell you what you’re going to work on today. Long-term goals remind you why you’re doing it. Together, those goals will get you to the finish line.

Focus on what’s attainable and relevant to you

Tailoring your expectations to your personal situation helps you set achievable goals. Set goals that are within your capabilities and that take into account your limitations.

Consider your personal fitness level, health concerns, available time, and motivation. If you’re more than 50 lbs overweight and you haven’t exercised at all in the last year, it’s not realistic to think you’re going to start powering through a 10-mile run. Write down a goal you think you can achieve – and then make it just a little bit harder.

For example, maybe you think you could go for a 10-minute run right now. That feels doable to you. You’re really confident that you can achieve 10 minutes.

Okay, great. Then make it 12 minutes. Or 15 minutes. Something that makes you think, “Whew, that’ll be hard... but I think I can do it.”

The same goes for setting goals for your calorie intake and healthy food changes. You can set challenges for yourself – but do them by manageable increments. Don’t go from zero to 100 all at once. You might manage to keep up your new superhuman achievement for one day, but the next? You’ll crash and might even slide back into your previous unhealthy habits. That’s no good for the short- or long-term.

Set goals that are just a little outside your comfort zone. Soon that new level of achievement will be easy for you – and then you can push the envelope a bit more.


Adjust your goals as you go

You can and should adjust both your short-term and long-term goals as necessary. Don’t let yourself cop out of a short-term goal right before you’re about to achieve it – for example, don’t decide right before your workout that you’re only going to exercise for 15 minutes instead of 20 – but if you find that you’re constantly struggling, make a conscious decision to dial back that goal for a week and see how it goes.

Adjusting goes the other way too! If things are going better than expected, ramp up your short-term goals! If you hit your long-term goal to lose 20 pounds faster than you thought, set another long-term goal to get to the next benchmark!

Here’s a good rule of thumb: If you start to get bored, you need to set a harder goal. If you start to feel anxious, you need to give yourself a break.

Think ahead and make a plan

Setbacks are a natural part of behavior change. Everyone who successfully makes changes in life has experienced setbacks. Identifying potential roadblocks – a big holiday meal or office party, for example – and brainstorming specific strategies to overcome them can help you stay on course or get back on course.

Be sure to do this not only for predictable setbacks, like scheduled events, but also for unknown ones. What will you do if you get injured? What will you do if you get the flu? What will you do if there’s a family crisis you need to attend to?

I hope none of these things happen to you, but I know this: You are unlikely to make a plan while you’re going through something like illness or emergency.However, if you already have a plan, you’ll be relieved that this is one thing you don’t have to think about while you deal with the problem at hand. You already know exactly what to do – you thought about it beforehand and you have the plan. It will make you feel in control, and that will help both with the crisis at hand and the long-term goal of losing weight and getting fit.


How to track your goals

If you want, you can use good old-fashioned pen and paper, but I’ve got a really fantastic tool for you over on the FITera community site: our Goal Planner.

To get there, log into the FITera community site, mouse over the Motivation tab and click the Launch Goal Planner button.

Here you can set a 1-week goal, 30-day goal, and 12-week goal. You’ll also see where you can set daily tasks to follow to achieve your goals.

Now that you know how to set goals, it’s important to find the best way to measure your progress. Use the right methods and it can be incredibly motivating. On the other hand, solely judging your progress by the pounds on the scale can be both discouraging and inaccurate.

You see, the scale doesn’t differentiate between fat and muscle. You need more muscle to burn more fat and calories throughout the day – but you often put on muscle weight before you start losing fat weight.

Why’s that? Well, you need to change your body makeup before you start burning off the fat that’s stored in your body. Until your body needs more calories than you’re consuming every day in food, it won’t touch that stored fat. And your body won’t need more calories to keep it running until you build that muscle. That means you’ll usually build muscle first – making the scale go up – before you start burning off the stored fat that makes the scale go down.

Once you’ve made that transition to burning off the stored fat, the scale becomes a more accurate indicator of your health. But until then, you’ll have the frustration of faithfully being more healthy in your habits but not seeing the payoff you want on the scale. So what should you do instead of stepping on the scale?

3 Measuring your progress



In the first few months of your program, you’ll get a much better indicator of your progress if you track your muscle-to-fat ratio. Three basic techniques can measure the ratio of your muscle to fat.

a. Hydrostatic weighing

Under supervision of an expert in a clinic, you expel all the air from your lungs and submerge yourself in a tank of water. Because fat is more buoyant than muscle tissue, the weight that is recorded during this process is of the denser body tissue. Your wet weight is then compared to your dry weight to determine what percentage of the overall weight is fat.

To find a location to have this test done, google search this keyword phrase: Hydrostatic Weighing in [your city, state]. It usually costs around $30-$60 and takes just 5 minutes.

B. Bioelectrical Impedance analysis (BIa)

This is the next best means for measuring fat. In this procedure, a low-level electrical current is run through the body. Water is a conductor of electricity and the more water in the body, the quicker the current will travel through. Since muscle is composed mostly of water, this reading gives a fairly accurate measure of fat-to-muscle ratio.

The best place to have this test taken is in a doctor’s office. You can also get this done at your local gym by a personal trainer. However, the accuracy of this test can be affected by the skills of the person giving it and by the amount of water retained by the body, which can fluctuate.

C. Caliper Pinch Test

This is also known as the skinfold pinch test, and it involves using a caliper to measure body fat by pinching the skin at various areas on the body. People store fat in different places, so multiple pinches are needed to get an accurate reading.

This is the least accurate of the three methods, but it can be good way to track month-to-month changes in body composition. Again, you can get this done at your local gym or fitness center.


There are also several methods that don’t require an expert or an official test. These can be done at home any time you want, and they can give you that boost you were looking for with the scale – the exuberance of seeing real progress.

Taking your measurements

This is as simple as breaking out the old measuring tape and measuring your bust, waist, hips, upper arm, thigh, calf, and ankle. These are the areas where the body tends to store fat. You’ll probably see more encouraging changes in these measurements as you progress in your program than you will by standing on a scale.

One really important measurement is the waist-to-hip ratio, taken by dividing your hip measurement into your waist measurement. Studies have shown that people with a higher percentage of fat in their waists than their hips are at a higher risk for developing heart disease, diabetes, and strokes. You can use our Waist-to-Hip Ratio Calculator on the main exercise page of the FITera community site as a guide.

Changes in clothing size and fit

According to fitness expert and columnist Carol Krucoff, “Your clothes don’t lie!” Krucoff, an ACE-certified fitness instructor and author of the book Healing Moves, believes the best indicators for weight loss can be found right in your own closet. The clothes test is her personal choice for monitoring her weight.

“I have a pair of old jeans from high school that I periodically try on,” she says. When the jeans feel a little snug in places they didn’t before, she knows that it’s time to put in a little extra workout time and focus on better nutrition. The satisfaction of seeing your clothes become less snug, or shopping for smaller sizes, is far more rewarding than any number on a scale.

Increased stamina and strength

How do you feel? Chances are, if you’ve taken off weight and added muscle, you’ll have more energy for your daily activities. And you’ll definitely notice changes at the gym,


where you’ll have more stamina and strength. If you’ve added another step in step class, can lift progressively more weight or do more reps, or have doubled your walking mileage, take it as proof positive that you’re making progress.

Compliments from family and friends

It’s easy to lose objectivity around your weight loss, especially when looking at yourself every day. But compliments are proof that people around you notice how different you look in your clothes and that you have more pep in your step.

Improvements in your quality of life

This is probably the best measure of your progress. When tasks like taking care of the kids or tending to the house no longer leave you winded, or you find you can function without always being tired, you know you’re making strides to a healthier you. And you don’t need a scale to help you measure that!

Every weight-loss and healthy eating publication will tell you that motivation is the most important part of making healthy changes in your life. You have to stay motivated. Stay on track. Stay on target.The thing is, few of these publications offer any useful information on how to stay motivated.

Have you ever noticed that on Day One of a new program is always the easiest? You’re pumped to get started. You feel good about your choice to make some changes and you’re excited to see the end result of your hard work.

Day Two, you might still put in the work, but somehow you’re less psyched than you were yesterday.

And Day Three? Well, Day Three is where almost everyone falls off the wagon. Why is that?

What motivates us

As a general rule, human beings are not great at long-term goals. We’re motivated by stories and ideas – we love the idea of being in great shape, looking fantastic, and being able to tackle any physical challenge. When you start out on a new program, you’ve

4 A 3-minute trick to stay focused and motivated


got that story of the brand-new you in your head. Your imagination is alive with it. You believe in that brand-new you, and you believe that what you’re doing today will get you to that person.

Where most people go wrong is that they stop telling themselves this story. They start to rely on the memory of the story they were once told. They kind of remember it – something about a new life, right? Something about feeling better and looking great. But as day after day goes by, that story fades in their mind. All they can see is the struggle immediately ahead. They forget why they’re exercising, why they decided to stop eating junk food. The story’s gone. It’s not a motivator anymore.

If you’re having trouble picturing this, think about the last time you went to see a great movie in the theatre. Odds are that by the time you walked out, you were motivated to make a change in your life. You’ll start making a difference, just like the hero in that story! That motivation usually lasts until... you guessed it... the next day.

To keep up the motivation, you have to keep immersing yourself in the story. Which means you have to tell it to yourself, over and over again.

Which brings us to the 3-minute trick

Every day, you’re going to tell yourself the story of why you want to lose fat. With the help of 6 simple questions, you’ll construct a simple narrative that will bring the story back to life and power you through yet another day, excited and ready to play the hero in real life.

Here are the 6 questions:

1. Why do you want to lose weight?2. What can you learn from yesterday’s mistakes and successes?3. How can you make different choices today?4. What would make today an ideal day?5. What obstacles might get in your way today?6. How can you overcome those obstacles?


Together, these 6 questions help you construct a powerful story about your fat-loss journey and why you need to come out triumphant. Here’s how it works in practice with sample answers to the questions.

1. Why do you want to lose weight?“I want to be able to play with my daughter, Kate. I know that when kids see their parents being sedentary, they tend to imitate them. She’s young and she loves running around, but I know that if I don’t become more active, she’s going to start acting like me. I want her to grow up to be healthy and fit and active – and I want those things for me too. I want to look better, feel better, and be healthier in my choices and in my life as a whole.”

2. What can you learn from yesterday’s mistakes and successes? “Yesterday was my 7th day on the program, and I cheated a little bit – I had a Snickers bar that one of the other moms offered me at playgroup. I did it without even thinking about it. On the other hand, when I went for a walk/jog that day, I managed to keep jogging for a whole extra minute, and I was really proud of myself.”

3. How can you make different choices today?“I can take 10 seconds before I put anything in my mouth and ask myself if this is going to help me reach my goals. And I can tell my husband and my friends when I pushed myself beyond my goals and ask them to cheerlead for me – even if it’s a really small victory.”

4. What would make today an ideal day?I’d like to:

● Get in a workout before I go to work

● Drink 3 full bottles of water throughout the day

● Stock the fridge with healthy foods for next week


5. What obstacles might get in your way today?“I have to drop Kate off at daycare early if I want time to work out in the morning, and she always kicks up a fuss, which makes me feel guilty about taking this time for myself. I’m also going to need to do the grocery shopping on my lunch break, and I worry I’ll be so strapped for time I’ll eat something I shouldn’t.”

6. How can you overcome those obstacles?“I can tell Kate a story about how I’m going to get stronger and faster so she and I can run races together. I can ask her what she thinks I should do to get stronger and faster, which will make her feel like she’s in charge of my workout and not feel left out. When I get the groceries, I can buy a healthy lunch that I can bring back to the office with me – that way I won’t need to stop again for food. I’ll plan out what I want before I go, so I won’t have to be tempted by other options.”

Your story

Your answers to these questions may well be very different. Maybe you want to lose weight because you want to look great in a swimsuit, or because your health is starting to worry you, or because you want to have more energy. Maybe your challenges are physical rather than time-based. Maybe you’ll have different daily goals.

No matter what your story is, though, these questions give you a chance to tell yourself that story out loud, every day. You’ll always have a fresh look at why you’re committed to this journey and what you need to do today to execute it successfully.

If you’re strapped for time, you can use a computer or tablet or send yourself a voicemail or use a voice recorder, but I definitely recommend writing your answers down by hand at least once a week, and certainly the first time you do this exercise. Studies have shown that writing them down by hand is the most effective way to get results from this exercise.


Don’t rely on just thinking them. Studies have shown you need the tangible reinforce-ment of writing the story down or saying it out loud to get the motivational effects.

I do recommend that you always write down your daily goals in a journal – or even just a scrap of paper – and carry them around with you throughout the day. That way, you can cross them off or put check-marks next to them as you accomplish them, which gives you that little moment of victory you crave to stay motivated.

Make your story even more powerful

A recent study from the Dominican University showed that people who write down their goals, share them with a friend, and update them weekly are on average 33% more likely to achieve them than those who merely thought out their goals.

Now, the 3-Minute Trick already has you writing down your goals every day, and that by itself will be a very helpful tool you can use to keep you on track. But if you want to up the ante, you can find a community of friends to share with – making that process all the more effective.

The blogs in the FITera online community site are perfect for this, as they’ll not only serve as an online journal, but you’ll also receive prompt support, encouragement, and accountability from others who care about your success.

Every Sunday morning I announce a new weekly challenge in the FITera online community site. The purpose is to get you focused on one simple fat loss strategy per week. I list all the benefits of that strategy and how to best implement it, and I provide additional relevant content (e.g., recipes or videos) to assist you.

All you need to do is focus on that strategy and then blog about how you did – either at the end of the week, or daily if you want feedback, support, and encouragement from me and others. At the end of each week, I’ll give you FITera Points depending on how well you did on the challenge. These points serve as credits in our online store. For example, 10,000 FITera Points = $10.00 off in our store.

5 Weekly challenges



The idea is to make each strategy in our weekly challenges a new habit that becomes a normal part of your healthy lifestyle. So as you progress through the program, you’re continually getting healthier and better results, week after week. Here are examples of some of our challenge:

● Including 30-second high intensity intervals in your cardio workouts. ● Drink at least 100 oz. of water per day. ● Do 15 minutes of additional activity above and beyond your normal workouts. ● Consume at least 25 grams of fiber a day. ● Sneak in at least one serving of veggies to each of your meals. ● Strategies for conquering your sugar cravings. ● The Plank Challenge (increasing the time you can hold the plank position each day). ● Reducing stress with simple daily stress-relievers. ● Include a very small, well-balanced snack and water one hour before each meal. ● Getting rid of self-sabotaging beliefs for a positive mindset. ● Transforming your favorite meals into a healthier version.

We announce each of these challenges on Sunday via email, Twitter, and on the FITera community site. I hope you’ll join us!

Right now, you have the opportunity to achieve the dream body you’ve always wanted and be rewarded with a dream vacation to beautiful Loreto, Mexico! This opportunity is called The FITera Challenge, our 12-week contest for the person who makes the most improvement..

It’s as simple as taking front, side, and rear view photos of yourself now, along with a brief video of what and why you want to change… and then in 12 weeks, take your photos and video again. We then put all competitors before photos and videos and

6 12-week contest for a chance to win a dream vacation in Loreto, Mexico

https://twitter.com/fitera




after photos and videos on a page for the FITera community to vote. This voting period lasts about a month, and then the winner – whoever makes the most improvement – is announced shortly after.

Everyone who enters has an equal chance of winning, regardless of their age, gender, or fitness level. Just the same, no matter how fit or how out of shape, everyone can make significant improvements in how they look and feel. Click here to learn more!

Do you ever turn to food when you feel stressed, anxious, or upset – and then get even more upset with yourself because you caved in?

Do you sometimes “accidentally” overeat when you’re dining out or celebrating – and then feel terrible about it later?

Do you ever find yourself eating for no particular reason – and then have a guilt attack?

If so, you’re not alone. The following three roadblocks are very common among those trying to lose fat:

7 Improving your mindset

Roadblock #1: Emotional Eating – You find yourself eating when you feel stressed, depressed, anxious, worried, etc.

Roadblock #2: Compensatory Eating – You find yourself eating when you feel a lack of love, joy, peace, companionship, etc.

Roadblock #3: Mindless Eating – You find yourself eating even when you don’t know why.

These three roadblocks can sabotage your success… UNLESS you create the right mindset to overcome them.

http://community.fitera.com/contests/view/36


More and more research has made it clear that what goes on between your ears (your thinking) can be as important for losing fat as what goes on your plate. Put another way, WHY you eat can have just as much of an effect on your health as WHAT you eat.

Healthy nutrition and exercise will always be effective for long-term fat loss. Unfortunately, even the very best meal and workout plan won’t get you to your goals if you can’t stick with it.

The good news is, we have a powerful and effective solution. Thanks to extensive clinical research, we now know exactly how to get those three sabotaging roadblocks out of your life… by removing them from your thinking.

How is this done? It involves these three steps:

1. Identify the specific self-sabotaging thoughts that are at the root of your roadblocks.

2. Replace your toxic, self-sabotaging thoughts with powerful, self-supportive thoughts that will stop your unhealthy eating in its tracks.

3. Make your new thinking just as automatic, just as unconscious, and just habitual as your unhealthy thinking used to be!

When you take these three steps, the result is what we call Autopilot Fat Loss. When your fat loss is on autopilot, healthy eating literally becomes just as automatic – and just as effortless – as excessive, unhealthy eating used to be.

And where you just couldn’t find the motivation or energy to exercise before, now you are eager to get out there and be active! Is it a miracle? Nope, not even a mystery. It’s just the natural result of trading in your old, self-sabotaging thinking for healthy, new self-supportive thinking. And one thing I can tell you for sure – it becomes a heck of a lot easier to achieve the results you really want.

So how do you get this fat loss mindset? That’s where Dr. Frank Smoot comes in. You’ll find dozens of articles on the FITera community site – written specifically for our Fast Track to Fat Loss study participants – about eliminating the mental roadblocks that sabotage our success and creating a fat loss mindset.

http://community.fitera.com/mindset


For the last 14 years, Dr. Smoot, a psychotherapist and professional weight loss coach, has been showing overweight people exactly how to get rid of their excess pounds – permanently. He and I have been working together for more than a decade and we make a powerful team. I show people how to eat right and exercise, and he shows people how to stick with it with his Fat Loss Mindset Program. If you’d like to learn more, click here. I can’t recommend it highly enough, and as a Fast Track to Fat Loss study participant, you’ll receive unlimited personal mindset coaching from Dr. Smoot as a free bonus.

Whether you choose to purchase his program or not, I strongly recommend reading Dr. Smoot’s articles on the FITera community site. I think you’ll find them very helpful in creating a positive mindset for long-term healthy fat loss.

http://fasttracktofatloss.com/fbg/mindset-autopilot.php


MotIVAtIon suMMARYKey Points to Remember

1. By posting blogs and comments in the forums of the FITera community site, you’ll receive support, encouragement, and new ideas from others who are eager to help you succeed.

2. Setting short-term and long-term goals that are realistic, measurable, and relevant to what you truly want to achieve is an important step to your success. Our Goal Planner on the FITera community site can help you with these goals.

3. Using the scale as an indicator of progress can be both inaccurate and discouraging. There are a variety of much better ways to measure your progress, such as hydrostatic weighing, the waist-to-hip ratio, measuring your waist, and how your clothes fit.

4. Use our 3-Minute Trick each day is a quick and easy way to stay focused and motivated.

5. Our weekly challenges are designed to teach you a new fat loss strategy that you can focus on each week so you can make these strategies regular, long-term habits.

6. Enter our 12-week contest to get and stay motivated for a chance at a 7-night dream vacation in beautiful Loreto, Mexico.

7. Just as it’s important to improve your nutrition and increase your activity, it’s also very important to create the right mindset as well.


Make sure you have a good understanding of the Nutrition component:

G E T T I N G S T a r T E D

Now that you’ve read the entire Fast Track to Fat Loss program… Congratulations! For many people, taking action and committing to learn how to be healthier is the hardest part. But as I’m sure you realize, just knowing the information won’t get you the results you’re after. You have to actually execute the program. Here’s how I’d suggest getting started:

● The 5 Simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss.

● How to choose the right foods (refer to our Recommended Food List), at the right times (refer to our Meal Guidelines Chart), in the right amounts (use the Fist/Palm/Thumb Rule).

● How to prepare your favorite recommended foods for the week and combine them to create each snack/meal.

● How to strike a balance between fun and effective so you get great results and can stick with it long term.


Now implement what you just learned:• Create a grocery list from our Recommended Food List.• Prepare your foods for the week (e.g., bake chicken and sweet potatoes, etc).• Refer to our Meal Guidelines Chart to create each snack and meal.• Use the fist/palm/thumb rule and listen to your body to know how much to

eat.

Make sure you have a clear understanding of the Exercise component:

● The importance of being active to contribute to your caloric deficit and stimulate your fat-burning hormones.

● The two types of exercise and how to combine them into one effective, efficient workout that’s right for you.

● The basics of exercise, including warming up and stretching, proper technique, and monitoring your heart rate.

Now implement what you just learned:• Get more active both around the house/office (e.g., chores, yardwork) and

doing activities you enjoy (e.g., biking, tennis).• When you’re ready, start doing the 2 forms of exercise: cardio exercise and

resistance training.

Start using the 7 Motivation resources we provide you:

● Get involved in the FITera community site

● Set short-term and long-term goals

● Understand the best way to measure your progress

● Try the 3-minute trick

● Participate in the weekly challenges

● Enter our 12-week contest

● Read the mindset articles on the FITera community site


I know this is a lot to digest and if you’re feeling overwhelmed, here’s what I’d suggest: Focus on nutrition first and make sure you have a clear understanding of the first 4 checkboxes above and how to implement them. Start putting them into practice!

While you’re focussing on your nutrition, go ahead and get started with the first checkbox above under Exercise. That is, go ahead and start getting active – both around the house/office (chores, yardwork, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, etc.) and doing activities you enjoy (hiking, biking, tennis, etc.). Once you’ve got the nutrition component down, and as soon as you’re ready, you can begin a structured workout plan.

I also recommend getting started with the first checkbox under Motivation now, as you’ll find the personal support and encouragement of the people in our FITera community site very helpful, especially in the beginning. You’ll always find good people there who are eager to assist you!

If at any time you have questions or concerns as you read through the Nutrition, Exercise, and Motivation components, log into the FITera community site to create a blog or post in the forum for prompt feedback from me and others.

take It one Day at a time – Focus on the noW

The best approach for getting started is to simply take it one day at a time. Continually remind yourself: each time you accomplish a daily task and then reach a short-term goal that you are one step closer to achieving what you really want: a healthier, more fit body. Focus on the NOW. Thinking only about the future reminds you of how far you still have to go rather than focusing on what you should do today.



If you happen to indulge in junk food, enjoy it; don’t worry about it ruining your program or your future. Shift instead to living healthy the rest of the day; in other words, get right back on track.

By taking it one day at a time, you can do a better job of concentrating on what’s working for you and what’s not, how you’re feeling and what you are thinking. For example, perhaps you’ve just enjoyed a healthy pizza recipe that you found on the FITera community site. You can’t believe how great it tasted and how quick and easy and inexpensive it was to prepare. Focusing on this present moment, when you’re feeling satisfied, energized, and confident, helps you stay more balanced in your decision-making about food and exercise.

Setting small goals, completing daily tasks, and acknowledging all the small achievements on your path are essential to successful change. Remember, successful programs are for life – take it one day at a time!

You Got this – I Believe in YouThousands of our Fast Track to Fat Loss customers have successfully made the change to a healthier lifestyle. Once you truly believe that you have the ability to find a comfortable balance of food, activity, and positive mindset, you can break free from fad diets forever.

Action creates motivation. And once you start achieving great results, the excitement and fun you’ll experience will make the change well worth the effort. In fact, enjoying the many great benefits of a healthy lifestyle will help provide the impetus to stay on the healthy road you’ve taken.

Embrace change, stay positive, and believe in yourself… because I believe in you and want nothing more than to help make you our next great success story! Chad Tackett, BS, CPT

P.S. I am fully committed to improving the Fast Track to Fat Loss program and would love any honest feedback or suggestions you might have. Please post your comments here. Thank you!



ReFeRenCe GuIDesSince nutrition is absolutely critical to your success, the following is a quick overview and reference guide for choosing the right foods, at the right times, in the right amounts.

The 5 Simple Keys to Guaranteed Fat Loss

Key # 1: You must create a caloric deficit to lose fat, but you don’t have to count calories to do so.

Key # 2: Carbs are critical to your success and you should include the right kind at each snack and meal.

Key # 3: It’s important that you include a protein and healthy fat at each snack and meal.

Key # 4: Water is critical to your fat loss success and should be consumed throughout the day.

Key # 5: Planning and preparing the right types of foods in advance will make following the program so much easier.

recommended Food List





oats, steel cut) • porridge • potato • pumpkin • quinoa

• apple • apricot • banana • blackberries • blueberries • cantaloupe • cherries• cranberries • dates• grapefruit • figs • grapes • honeydew melon • kiwi • lemon • limes • mango • nectarine

• alfalfa • asparagus • beets • bell peppers • broccoli • brussel sprouts • cabbage • carrot • cauliflower • celery • collard greens • cucumber • eggplant • fennel • garlic • green beans • green peas • jicama





(lowfat)• milk (lowfat)• ostrich • pork (extra lean)• protein powder


supplements• flaxseed• flaxseed oil• hazelnuts• herring

Ideal Ideal



Meal Guidelines

We recommend following the 5 meals a day guidelines below. If this doesn’t fit into your current schedule (or personal preference), do what’s right for you now and try to eventually work up to 5 smaller meals/snacks a day.


AnD/oR


AnD/oR





• squash • sweet potato • yam

• orange • papaya • peaches• pear • pineapple • plum • pomegranate • prunes • raisin • raspberries • strawberries • watermelon

• kale • leeks • mushrooms • okra • onion • parsnips • radish • romaine lettuce • snow peas • spinach • swiss chard • tomato• turnip • watercress • water chestnut • zucchini

• shellfish (lobster, shrimp, clams)

• turkey (skinless white meat)

• venison • yogurt (low-fat)

• mackerel• macadamia nuts• olives • olive oil• peanut butter• peanut oil• peanuts• pecans• pistachios• pumpkin seeds• nuts • salmon• sardines• sesame seeds• sunflower seed





wheat)







Acceptable

Acceptable



AnD/oR


AnD/oR


Meal 4

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 3


AnD/oR


AnD/oR

AnD/oR

AnD/oR

AnD/oR

SIMPLE CARB

SIMPLE CARB

STARCHY CARB

STARCHY CARB

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

PROTEIN

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

FIBROUS CARB

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

HEALTHY FAT

Meal 2

Meal 4

Meal 5

PROTEINMeal 3


Portions

Knowing how much to eat is a simple 2-step process:

Step 1: Dish up your portions based on the fist/palm/thumb rule:

● should be approximately the size of your fist.

● should be approximately the size of your palm.

● should be about the size of your thumb.

Step 2: Listen to your body and stop eating when you’re comfortably full.

Carbs

Fat

Protein

Process for Eating the right Foods at the right Times in the right amounts:

Step 1 and 2: Choose the foods you’d like to eat from our Recommended Food List and create a grocery list.

Step 3 and 4: Plan and prepare your meals for the day.

Step 5: Dish up your portions based on the fist/palm/thumb rule, but then listen to your body for signs of fullness to know when to stop eating.

Striking a Balance between Fun and Effective

Here’s a simple 4-step process when there’s a special event coming up and you want to indulge on your favorite food and/or drinks:

Step 1: be a little more active that day.

Step 2: be a little more strict with your meals and really focus on veggies and protein.

Step 3: make simple, healthier changes to the foods and drinks you want to enjoy at the event.

Step 4: get right back on track after the event.

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fast track to fat loss