CB: And finally Mike, a couple of your best diet strategies for etching out those 6 pack abs. Give us your best info!
MG: No problem Craig. I think you'd agree that there has never been a more confusing time regarding proper nutrition and diet for consumers. Every so called "nutrition expert" out there seems to disagree and contradict each other on what's the best way to eat for fat loss and overall good health.
One of the most important messages I try to teach my readers in this world of heavy confusion is that your diet does not need to conform to any of the fad diets... you don't need to go "low carb" or "low fat", or high or low anything for that matter to be successful in losing enough body fat to get lean enough to be able to see your abs. I like to try to simplify things for my readers. I think that balance is the key to success along with eating a diet that is made up of nutrient dense foods in their natural state (as unprocessed as possible).
In general, it is the heavy processing of foods that makes it wreak havoc inside our bodies. Most foods in their natural unprocessed state are inherently good for us. Of course there are always exceptions... a salad of poison ivy leaves is "natural and unprocessed" but certainly wouldn't be good for us!
I will summarize here with a couple of the most important aspects of nutrition that help to get you lean for life and showing off a six pack...
1. Get enough quality protein in the daily diet - not only does it have a higher thermic effect than carbs and fat (so you burn more calories digesting it), but it also creates satiety so your hunger is satisfied longer. Plus it is a building block for maintaining and building lean muscle... And remember that the amount of lean muscle you carry is one of the main factors for controlling your metabolism.
2. Think fiber! When it comes to carbs, make sure that almost all of your carbohydrate intake is from higher fiber sources like vegetables, fruits, and high fiber unrefined grains. Try to avoid refined sugars and refined grains as that is one of the main reasons so many people struggle with body fat. I personally do not eat many grains as I prefer to get most of my carbs from veggies and fruits, but I am a bit of a fan of sprouted grains. I generally recommend looking for carbohydrate sources that have at least 2-3 grams of fiber per each 10 grams of total carbs. Remember that fiber helps fill you up and also slows down the glycemic response of the foods you eat, all beneficial for losing body fat.
3. Don't be afraid to eat dietary fat! Many people try to go way too low on their fat intake and this can negatively affect hormone levels in your body as well as causing more cravings. Try to eat enough healthy fats daily. Good sources are all nuts and seeds, nut butters, avocados, olive oil, organic meats and eggs, coconuts and virgin coconut oil. On that note, saturated fats from tropical oils are VERY misunderstood, even by many nutritionists and other health professionals. Yes they are composed highly of saturated fats, but are actually beneficial (but that's way beyond the scope of this article).
4. Avoid the two worst things in our food supply at ALL COSTS:
*artificial trans fats from margarines, shortening, and hydrogenated oils that are in most processed foods
*high fructose corn syrup, which is in almost all sweetened products on the market
Again, if you avoid processed foods, it becomes easy to avoid these two worst offenders in our food supply.
I always contend that once you get a handle on these 4 main points of your diet detailed above, the rest starts to take care of itself as you gain control over your appetite, blood sugar levels, hormone levels, etc. It all falls into place, and you eventually gain total control over how lean you want to get.
CB: Thanks Mike!
Let's face it; no one likes rigid dieting and doing endless hours of exercise, only to step back a few months later and notice no changes whatsoever. However, most people with a weight-loss goal end up doing exactly that.
Are you curious about how to finally lose the bloat, lower the fat, and have shapely muscles? The truth is there is no magic potion. Your success lies in the steps below and following them accordingly.
If you can eat natural foods, drink water, do some light weight training and cardio you will lose fat and boost energy.
Eat natural foods ? This may seem elementary, but most people don't realize the profound effect that natural food has on the human body.
When I say natural food, I mean whole food that which you can hunt, pick, gather, and harvest, not the processed so-called "healthy" prepackaged dinners you can buy in the supermarket. When selecting meats, eggs, and vegetables organic would be the wiser choice because organic food is more useable by the body.
Natural food is full of enzymes, vitamins, and minerals, the bare essentials our bodies thrive on. If you fail to eat such nutrients, your body will have a difficult time letting go of fat and you will feel drained.
When you begin eating natural foods, your metabolism begins to function as it should and your body becomes better nourished, allowing your body to function as it was meant to and you will find yourself less bloated, feeling more energetic, and weight loss is able to occur.
Drink enough water ? More people are drinking water these days, but most people are still not drinking enough. Water is necessary for toning the muscles, the absorbing food, removing waste, and cooling the body.
Other advantages of water are that is serves as a natural appetite suppressant, metabolizes stored fat, and flushes toxins and excess sodium out of the body.
An easy way to ensure you get enough water each day is to drink water with your meals and drink a pint of water between meals.
Eat balanced meals - For best fat-loss success, each meal should be balanced. A lot of people eat a piece of fruit and call that a meal. It's not a meal unless protein is grouped with it. Be sure that every meal has a form of protein for balance and to prevent sugar spikes, which causes fat gain.
Eat meals on time ? We discussed the importance of the quality of food and balanced meals, so now we going to discuss the time of each meal.
One of the most important factors in fat loss success is eating your scheduled meal on time.
Ideally, you should eat a small and balanced meal every three hours. While most people may know this, few follow this rule and end up skipping meals or eating haphazardly.
Weight train ? Weight training will build lean muscle mass, and muscle and bone density. The more lean muscle you add to your body, the more calories your body will burn at play and at rest.
Adding lean muscle to your frame will improve your metabolism, body shape, and put the perfect curves in all the right places.
Do cardio ? The human body was designed to move, and therefore cardio is essential. Now, this doesn't mean you have to sprint every day for hours. Simply getting out and walking around the block is enough to get things moving.
Conclusion If you are serious about fat loss then all 6 of these steps should be followed. You simply cannot select one or two parts of the equation; you have to include all to get fat-loss results. These 6 proven ways to ensure fat loss is the recipe for success and you must add all the ingredients in the proper amounts as noted, otherwise, you won't get the expected outcome.
Both Mike Geary & Karen Sessions are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Mike Geary has sinced written about articles on various topics from Abdominal, Family Concerns and Fitness. Learn the top secrets flat sexy abs at For the best butt workouts, be sure to grab instructions at. Mike Geary's top article generates over 14800 views. to your Favourites.
Karen Sessions has sinced written about articles on various topics from Fitness, Fat Loss and Build Muscle. Karen Sessions has been in the fitness industry since 1988. She is a nationally qualified bodybuilder and holds two personal training certifications. She has written 6 ebooks on fitness and has helped hundreds of clients transform their bodies.. Karen Sessions's top article generates over 40500 views. to your Favourites.