Tips for controlling body fat
Give yourself a chance - increase your metabolic rate
Irrespective of whether you change your diet or not, an exercise-focused lifestyle will increase your metabolic rate, and will inherently burn more kilojoules than a sedentary lifestyle. Conversely, it’s believed that markedly reducing the amount of kilojoules you eat will make your boy feel starved – it adjust to this by slowing down your metabolism and trying to conserve fat.
Tone your muscles to burn more kilojoules
Using strength training exercise to increase your percentage of muscle tissue compared to fatty tissue, shifts your body composition in favour of energy-hungry muscle cells. Muscle cells consume many times more calories than do fat cells, at rest. A kilogram of muscle will burn 210 to 420 kilojoules a day compared to 21 to 29 kilojoules a day for a kilogram of fat. One of the best ways to increase your percentage of muscle tissue, and hence your metabolic rate, is to do a strength training routine 2 or 3 times every week - a hand-weights circuit is ideal, in addition to your regular aerobic exercise.
Burn more energy than you consume - but don't focus on kJ restriction
To reduce total body fat, focus on increasing your physical activity rather than drastically decreasing the energy you consume as food. As fatty foods are energy dense, selecting low-fat options is a sensible way to limit unnecessary kilojoules in your food. Don’t cut out fat altogether: moderate total fat intake but limit saturated fats. As a guide, a recommended rate of weight reduction is around 0.5 to 1kg per month. Losing more than 0.5 to 1kg a week can mean you are losing muscle rather than body fat. If you are overweight or obese and are considering a restricted-kilojoule diet, speak to a dietitian for individual advice.
Continue exercising regularly and keep a check on your daily energy balance
Continuing regular exercise is important in maintaining a high metabolic rate. In fact, studies have shown that athletes who suddenly stop training lose 50% of their maximum exercise capacity within 10 days, and significant reductions in metabolism can also be measured at this time. So, regular exercise to control body fat is best seen as a lifelong commitment. In addition, always keep the amount of kilojoules you eat balanced by the amount of exercise that you do. This approach will give you the best chance of maintaining the new body you have gained through an active lifestyle that includes strength training and aerobic exercise, and healthy eating.
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