5 Things That Make Losing Fat Infinitely Easier

Fat loss is simple, but it’s not easy. Here’s the complete list of everything you need to do to lose body fat:

👉 Eat in a calorie deficit (eat less food than you burn)

👉 Eat enough protein (generally 0.7-1 gram per pound of bodyweight each day)

That’s it. That’s the list. It’s not the WHAT that’s the challenge with fat loss - most of us know what we need to do. It’s the HOW. How do we actually do these things consistently enough and long enough to see results? That’s the challenge. And, honestly, it’s hard.

We can make fat loss much easier by doing these 5 things:

1. Eat more fiber

Fiber is not only incredibly important for your gut health, it also makes you feel more full. Feeling more full is essential when you’re in a deficit because hunger is a real challenge. If you’re less hungry, you’ll eat less food. Great sources of fiber are fruits & vegetables (and no, fruit is not bad for you because of the sugar - show me one person who got fat eating strawberries). This is also really about eating more whole/less-processed foods. When foods have less stuff added to them, you can eat more volume for less calories (500 calories of sweet potatoes is WAY more food than 500 calories of brownies).

2. Get more/better sleep

When we’re tired, we don’t make conscious choices. We’re in survival mode. I don’t know about you, but when I’m exhausted, I have no desire whatsoever to workout, walk, cook, or really do anything. All I want to do is veg out on the couch and eat takeout. Sleep makes it way easier to make quality choices. Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep (sorry parents of newborns). There are certainly things outside your control, but take care of the things in your control:

• Set a bedtime for yourself (work backward from your alarm)

• Develop a bedtime routine (read, journal, meditate, etc.)

• Turn off screens 30+ minutes before sleep

• Make sure the room is cool & dark

So turn off Netflix, stop scrolling Instagram, and go to sleep.

​3. Manage stress

The same is true for stress as it is for sleep. When we’re stressed, even doing things that will help with our stress (like exercises, walk outside, eat a good meal, etc.) feel like too much. We stress eat for comfort and we skip workouts because there’s too much happening. Managing stress is both proactive & reactive. Proactive means doing things so that your stressometer (patent pending) starts the day at a 2 or 3 instead of a 6 or 7. In other words, do things regularly that relieve stress: get a massage, get together with a friend, see a therapist, go for a hike, journal, read a book - have some fun!

Reactive means dealing with stress as it comes up. Develop some coping skills for when stress comes up so you don’t jump from a 3 right to a 10. It’s like I tell my toddler all the time: it’s ok to have feelings, but we need to let them out so we don’t get too full. Do some deep breathing, make a to-do list, punch a punching bag - I don’t really care, but don’t let yourself boil over to the point where you overflow.​

4. Walk more

From a strictly physiological perspective, walking increases your metabolism, so you burn more calories. If you burn more calories, it’s easier to be in a calorie deficit (because half of the equation is how many calories you burn). But, even better, walking helps with all of three of the above. It aids in digestion, helps us sleep better (particularly if we do it outside so we get sunlight), and helps relieve stress. If you want to lose body fat, you need to be walking. Seriously - it’s the low hanging fruit.​

5. Connect with people who build you up

This one is incredibly underrated. We’re the product of the people we spend our time with. If we’re surrounded by people who encourage & support us, we’ll be way more likely to continue. If we’re surrounded by people who think that it’s “weird” that we’re “obsessed” with being healthy by doing things like not drinking all the time, choosing to eat whole foods, and going to the gym, then it’s going to be a lot harder to keep doing those things.

You’re not weird for trying to be healthy; they’re weird for thinking you are. Surround yourself with positive people who are optimistic and watch your results soar. Fat loss is a slow, challenging process. That’s not sexy marketing, but it’s the truth. If we can accept that, then we can start to have realistic expectations.

Expectations drive perception and perception drives reality. If we think that we should lose 30 lbs in 12 weeks, we’ll quit when we don’t.

Be realistic, expect this to be slow, but make it easier on yourself by prioritizing these 5 things. Then, be patient enough to let it happen.

To really understand the tactics that make fat loss infinitely easier, check out my podcast series The 4 S’s Of Fat Loss (parts 1 - 4). And for a refresher on the tactics for sustainable fat loss, checkout The Building Blocks Of Fat Loss series (parts 1 - 7).