It’s getting hot. Beach season is just around the corner. There’s one problem.
Tummy bulge has grown in the last few months. You’ve eased up on the workouts and snacked more the usual.
Hope isn’t lost.
You can lose weight without extensive, overly ambitious routine. Here are the things I’m doing to drop quarantine 15 pounds, and get my body beach-ready fast.
For more tips, check out the Outliyr Fat Loss Blueprint.
1. It All Starts Here
Fear comes from all angles.
Living in fear makes you store more fat.
Give it a label. Labeling fear strips it of its power. Notice how it makes you feel, and remind yourself that you’re safe.
Focus on all things going well. However small. Maybe just the warmth of the sun. Or the flavor of your food. Or the fact that you have the ability to browse the internet. You’ll sleep better, keep your immune system strong, and burn fat.
2. Everyone Can Do This
Before you scoff.
Fasted walking is a weight loss secret. It’s easier than it sounds. Walk for a few minutes then eat.
But walking does more.
Moving around throughout the day circulates lymph, boosts your brain, and burns far more calories than sitting around. The more you walk the better.
One hiker shared his transformation. He cut his body fat by 260 percent (from 13 percent to five) with a month of hiking.
You don’t need to be a backpacker to benefit from walking more.
3. Better Than Stretching
How much do you think about your posture?
You’re meant to move. Every time you change your posture you move around your lymph, helping drain cellular debris and moving immune cells to necessary spots.
Changing your posture drives hydration throughout the body better than drinking water alone. It keeps your tissues saturated with water and nutrients.
Tight backs and sore necks go away.
You become a supple leopard, ready for any occasion.
4. Quick & Effective Brain Booster
Grueling workouts don’t always appeal.
A quick micro-workout can take less than a minute. Do it a few times throughout the day and the effect compounds.
There are all kinds of HIIT routines out there, but breaking up a long period of stationary work kills two-birds with one stone:
- Improves weight loss
- Sharpens brain power by circulating fresh blood.
5. Exhale Stress
Do you know how to breathe properly? No, seriously.
You do it automatically, but proper breathing takes deliberate practice.
Breathing right will keep your energy high, lower anxiety, and reduce stress.
The nose performs 30+ functions. Mouth breathers miss every single one.
6. Stick to the Grocery Shopping List (With this Trick)
We all go to the grocery store with good intentions. Then we come across our favorite snacks.
Enough said.
Our will stands no chance to irresistible sweet and salty treats. There’s a trick that no one told you.
After all, do you think bodybuilders really enjoy unsalted white rice, plain chicken breasts and steamed broccoli three meals per day?
No. That’s why they shop differently. They never give temptations a chance.
Grocery shop immediately after a meal when you’re completely full. You’ll have an easier time passing by snacks when the thought of another bite makes you sick.
Your healthy groceries don’t have quite the same bingeing appeal.
7. Skip a Meal or Two
Zero calories.
The thought of fasting scared me to death. I finally gave it a try after months of research. I didn’t feel terrible nor did I lose all my muscle.
On the contrary.
Once you get used to it, fasting upgrades your energy, focus, productivity and more.
People do best working their way up to a full day fast. To make the transition easier, start by pushing breakfast back and then eventually skip it. When you’re ready, start after dinner one night. Skip breakfast and lunch, and then you’re back to normal.
Note: consult your doctor before fasting to make sure it is safe for any of your conditions or medication.
8. The Silent Willpower Killer
Shocker: sleep matters. A lot.
You cannot lose fat while sleep deprived. Here’s why:
Your body will burn muscle before body fat (emphasis mine):
“When given just five and a half hours of sleep opportunity, more than 70 percent of the pounds lost came from lean body mass—muscle, not fat.”
Matthew Walker
Sleep deprived hormones favor fat gain.
Hunger and appetite go through the roof, and you’re left hungry again shortly after eating. None help the waistline.
There’s something else.
It’s not all about the time your sleep. Quality of that sleep matters. Don’t let these common habits derail you sleep quality:
- Snacking within an hour or two of bed.
- Exercising within two to three hours of bed.
- Using technology within an hour or two of bed.
Pro tip: I use technology well into the evening. I use special blue light filtering software called IrisTech to keep my sleep on track. Late-night emails, journal entries, or the occasional movie no longer ruin my sleep.
9. A Useful Skill to Keep Weight Down
Takeout and delivery meals may surprise you.
You know how you can’t quite replicate restaurant meals at home? They have a dirty secret.
Sugar hides in everything. Even the most innocent, healthy salads. To make it more delicious they add fat, and sometimes addictive chemicals. Great for the occasional treat, but also an effective way to completely stall weight loss.
Making your own food has advantages over takeout:
- You know every ingredient inside the meal
- It’s budget-friendly
- It can be faster
- Creating a dish is satisfying
Google, Youtube, and the countless recipe sites have plenty of beginner-friendly recipes.
The time and cost?
When I cook I usually make two meals in about twenty minutes, depending on the recipe. And at four to five dollars each, they don’t break the bank. Soon enough you’ll be whipping up Instagram-worthy meals.
10. Save Time & Prevent Temptation
Cooking takes time and effort.
That’s why I batch it, often cooking in bulk. I season and lightly cook meats, veggies, and side dishes. I use the oven, pans, and instant pot simultaneously. I reproduce several of my favorite sauces (the secret to delicious food).
I let it all cool, and then fill my fridge with multiple days worth of food.
Hunger strikes, I open the fridge, grab a little from the different pre-cooked dishes, heat them up, and dig in. An antidote to temptations.
11. The Habit Equivalent to Smoking
Social isolation takes its toll.
Not just on your mental health, but physically too. It’s one reason that people living in “Blue Zones”— areas with a high average lifespan—outlive everyone else.
Former US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy wrote (emphasis mine):
“Loneliness and weak social connections are associated with a reduction in lifespan similar to that caused by smoking 15 cigarettes a day”. Share on XIn-person or over Zoom, anything you can do to stay connected helps.
Be the one to reach out.
You’re healing yourself, but at the same time, you’re also healing the other person.
12. Level-Up Your Social Life
Bear with me.
Human touch might seem minor, but it has huge biological effects.
According to Dr. Zach Bush, patients who had physical content with their nurses required less painkillers.
Research is investigating oxytocin, the hormone of physical touch, as an alternative treatment for depression.
You know that intense wave of love, compassion, joy, wholeness, and empathy?
That comes from the physical touch hormone, oxytocin. It’s also a natural painkiller. Oxytocin also reduces stress, and improves social bonding.
A simple hug suffices.
13. Do The Unthinkable
Cold showers.
I can imagine your reaction.
NOPE. Not in a million years.
Like fasting, the cold seems worse than it is.
You’ll discover the dozens of benefits of cold showers. Your mood will improve, you’ll get more energy than a double espresso, you’ll torch fat, and your body will shift into another gear.
Start slow. Add a moment of cold to the end of a normal shower. Then increase that by five to ten seconds each time. Soon you’ll become a resilient human.
Start Reversing The Quarantine 15 Now
Today is the day to change.
Choose one or more of the above.
You can stack them together.
To really take advantage, walk to a nearby park, get your sun, and crank out a workout using your portable workout gear. Connect with the people that matter.
Weight loss takes time. Dedicate a few minutes to staying healthy every day and you’ll emerge better, and feeling lighter than before.
