If you want to build muscle, lose fat, and look and feel years younger, then this article is for you. Immersed in a bubble of marketing hype and lies, with conflicting advice all over the Web, not to mention the many fad diets trying to get our attention it is very easy to go around in circles, never achieving your health and fitness goals.

We are often told that it is impossible to lose fat and build muscle at the same time, but what no-one tells you is that you CAN lose fat by building muscle. In fact, if youa are a beginner to strength/resistance training you may find you can develop stronger and bigger muscles WHILE losing fat, if you follow the right approach, that is!

Before I get ahead of myself, the first question to answer is, how lose the fat in the first place? You start by improving your diet and making the switch from 2 or 3 meals to eating 4-6 small meals every day and have the day's earlier meals supply the bulk of your calories. Instead of counting calories and reducing them, just make a decision to eat frequent but small meals and only eat until you're just about satisfied.

What should your meals consist of? You want lean protein such as chicken breast, tuna steaks or lean cuts of beef, with complex carbs like brown rice or whole-wheat pasta, as well as lots of green vegetables, which are high in fiber. Good sources of healthy fats such as nuts, olive/canola oil, and fatty fish are also important.

White rice and white bread are examples of processed and high GI carbs, which should be avoided. High GI carbs can only be eaten after a good strength training workout such as weight lifting, to help your muscles develop. Also give up all starches several hours before you sleep. The reason you gain fat is by eating both sugary and fatty foods, so cut these out too. Fresh fruits and sugar-free yogurts are great alternatives.

Keeping your body hydrated is essential so drink at least 12 glasses of spring or filtered water daily. Water flushes out toxins from your body, helps maintain proper functioning, lessens your appetite and helps burn fat. Known for its countless health benefits, one of which is increasing metabolism, helping you lose fat easier, green tea is very beneficial too. Drink 3-5 cups a day for best results.

Now your diet is up to shape, your next focus should starting a strength training program. Weight lifting is the obvious choice but bodyweight exercises also work well. Strength training will increase your fat loss results since more muscle means a faster metabolism, allowing you to burn more calories even while resting. Strength training is also necessary for fat loss because it prevents muscle loss, which occurs when you lose weight by lowering calories too much or only performing aerobic exercise. It also burns calories in itself, and helps you achieve that muscular look for men, and a sexy, toned look for women.

Regular fat-burning aerobic exercise should be added to your routine too. However, if you just focus on aerobic activity without strength training, and you may burn your muscle tissue, and muscle uses up a lot of caloric energy. So losing muscle means your metabolism will slow down, and it is very possible you will easily put the fat back on shortly after you reduce your exercise and dieting!

After you are satisfied with your fat loss results, your time and energy can then be focused on building muscle, preferably with heavy weights. To achieve this, increase your intake of complex carbs, to help fuel your training and help strengthen and build muscle, and do not forget to get a lot of protein in your diet. Scale back your aerobic exercise, unless you find you gain fat easily, which would be hard to do if you follow my advice. While it may seem very simple, this fool-proof approach is how you can build muscle and lose fat fast without any drugs or steroids.