5 Scientifically Proven Weight Loss Tips For Men

  

Tip 1 – Screw Diets; Start a Lifestyle Eating Plan

Here's some “real talk” – man to man.

We both know there are a million and one types of “diets” out there. Low carb. Keto. Paleo. Vegan. The list goes on and on.

The problem is that the mentality behind “dieting” is a short-term quick fix.

If you're like me, you want to lose weight and keep it all off long-term with a healthy eating plan you'll actually enjoy sticking to.

That's why we want you to focus on starting a healthy lifestyle eating plan – one that is not overly restrictive or complicated – so that you can succeed long-term with weight loss.

To make this first tip incredibly valuable, we are going to take a bit of time to break down exactly how you should be eating to lose weight as a man.

Here are a couple of simple “lifestyle eating” weight loss rules to follow:

Rule 1: Eat roughly every 4 hours to control your hunger and blood sugar.

Skipping meals will leave you starving and more likely to over-eat.

Eating too many small meals is very difficult on a busy schedule and will actually make you more likely to slip up and over-eat as well.

Here’s a good example of how to time your eating for weight loss:

• Breakfast – 8 am
• Lunch – 12 pm
• Healthy Snack – 3 pm
• Dinner – 6:30 pm

Rule 2: Each of your meals should contain a balanced mix of Proteins (40%), Carbs (35%), and Healthy Fats (25%).

Here at the Fit Father Project, we call these portion guidelines “building perfect plates.”

To make a perfect plate for weight loss, here’s exactly what you should do.

Fill ¼ of your plate with lean protein.

Protein is the cornerstone of any good weight loss diet, because it suppresses appetite, increases your metabolism, and also helps in building and maintaining lean muscle tissue.

Good protein sources include chicken, turkey, eggs, extra-lean beef, certain fish, and protein powders (whey or plant-based).

Fill the next ¼ of your plate with healthy carbs.

Contrary to popular belief, carbs won’t make you fat!

Too many of the wrong types of carbs (especially sugar) will make you fat.

Good carbs are needed to provide our bodies with energy in addition to adding good “bulk” to our meals to keep us full.

Good carb sources include sweet potatoes, brown rice, oatmeal, quinoa, and lower-sugar fruits (grapefruit, organic berries, pears).

Add a small serving of some healthy fats.

Healthy fats are essential for many functions in the body – from controlling hunger to producing key hormones and reducing inflammation.

We want you to include healthy, low-processed fats from fish, oils, nuts, and seeds to your diet in moderation.

Good fat sources include ¼ avocado, 1 tbsp olive oil, ¼ cup nuts, 6-8 ounces of fish.

Important: Even though consuming healthy fats can be your weight loss friend, we want to be very conscious of the proper serving size.

Fat has a lot of calories and eating too much fat (and consequently calories), no matter how “healthy” the fat source, will set back your weight loss efforts.

An average fat serving per meal should be around 15-20 grams for most guys.

For exact recipes to follow, check out the Fit Father Meal Plan inside our Fit Father 30X program.

Lastly, fill the remaining ½ of your plate with veggies.

Veggies help improve your digestion, lower cholesterol, improve your blood sugar control, and provide your body with the vitamins and minerals you need.

Add any kind of vegetables to your meals.

Tip 2 – Drink 100 Ounces of Water to Control Your Hunger and Increase Your Energy

Ah, good old H20.

It is said that water is the life-source of all living things, and for our bodies to function optimally, this statement could not be more true – especially when it comes to weight loss.

Dehydration causes all sorts of issues within our body, including headaches, tiredness, lethargy, confusion, changes in mood, and lowered concentration.

And the problem is that so many of us are chronically dehydrated because we often get so busy we simply forget to drink enough.

When it comes to helping with weight loss, we absolutely want to increase our water consumption.

Water can act directly as an appetite suppressor and make you feel fuller for longer.

Water also plays a key role in helping our cells burn fat and helping us feel energized.

In fact, a study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism states that drinking 500 ml of water increases metabolic rate by 30%.

The studies were first carried out on ‘normal weight’ men and women and then a crossover trial was later conducted with ‘overweight and obese’ subjects.

The results of both studies showed the same results.

So how much water should you be drinking to lose weight?

Your hydration goal should slot in somewhere around the 85-100 oz of water each day (approximately 3/4 gallon).

Following the example above, you could increase your metabolism for 5 hours each day if you drank to the higher end of 3 liters.

Tip 3 – Make 30 Minutes of Daily Activity Your Priority

There is a huge misconception about weight loss that we need to do complicated workouts to see results.

In truth, research shows that a good meal plan coupled with 30 minutes of daily activity is enough to seriously kickstart weight loss results.

Your 30-minutes of daily activity can be a structured workout like we advocate in our FF30X program, but it doesn’t have to be formal exercise!

You could do some gardening or housework, walk the kids to school, walk the dog, ride your bike, or simply get frisky with the spouse.

There is a huge number of activities that can help you lose weight.

The “secret” is to find a daily activity that you enjoy, so you are more likely to actually sustain it.

Pro Tip: One thing we advise AGAINST is rushing headlong into an intense exercise plan (like five sessions of CrossFit each week or running five miles each day) when you're starting out.

Intense exercise when your body is not yet accustomed to training will almost certainly cause debilitating soreness, lack of motivation, or worse still … serious injury.

If any of these things happen, you will give up on your program, and set yourself back a good few months!

The key point here: A healthy diet is the No. 1 most important part of losing weight.

Pair a healthy diet with 30-minutes of daily (enjoyable) activity, and you will be on the sustainable path to losing weight, staying motivated, and actually keeping it all off for good.

To help you see faster weight loss results from the most time-efficient activity, click the box below for our FREE 24-minute no-nonsense fat-burning workout that you can do at home or the gym.

Tip 4 – Build Muscle Mass to Lose More Weight

Many guys don't realize that your muscle mass is a key foundation for your metabolism.

The more muscle you have (or build), the more calories your body burns every day on autopilot.

That's why here at the Fit Father Project, we show you how to build muscle and burn fat with short, metabolism-boosting workouts.

We're not talking about becoming Arnold here, but just increasing your muscle mass in order to make you more efficient at burning calories.

Doing an activity that will increase muscle tissue will put you on the right path when it comes to shedding pounds of body fat.

To increase muscle tissue, you will need:

• An exercise that works your muscles (weights or bodyweight)
• To progressively increase the resistance (weight) you use over time

If you are just beginning or returning to exercise, start with a good bodyweight circuit three times per week.

Studies show that resistance activities help to maintain or increase muscle mass, which in turn increases resting energy expenditure (metabolic rate), aids in increased fat loss, and improves your body’s overall strength and efficiency.

Cardio is fine for becoming a bit more fit, but if you really want to lose weight and transform your metabolism into a fat-burning machine, resistance and strength training is the best option by far!

Tip 5 – Sleep More (a Minimum of 7 Hours)

Most guys don't realize that getting quality sleep is one of the most important aspects of losing weight.

During sleep, your body burns fat and regulates all your key metabolism hormones – including growth hormone, cortisol, insulin, etc.

Without getting too “sciency,” if you miss out on sleep, your body will not lose weight effectively.

And the weight you do lose will come from muscle.

A study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that the resting energy expenditure of those that slept more than 8 hours per night was 5% higher than those who slept less.

They also burned 20% more calories after a meal than sleep-deprived people.

Also, sleep can help make sure that what weight you do lose from healthy eating and daily activity is mostly fat – not muscle.

A study from the University of Chicago compared the weight-loss results of people that slept 8.5 hours per night versus those sleeping only 5.5 hours.

Although both groups ate the same number of calories (1,450 calories per day) and both groups lost about 6.5 lbs, more than 50% of that weight was fat for those sleeping 8.5 hours compared to only 25% for those sleeping 5.5 hours.

Based on this research, you should get an absolute minimum of 7-8 hours of sleep per night, or 8.5 if you can get it.