The #1 Secret to Getting Leaner

As coaches, we've seen this not-so-secret, secret get our clients leaner, healthier, and happier.

It's free, easy to implement, and it's not going to leave you on the floor gasping for air.

What is it?

Walking!

When it comes to weight loss, you may have heard that the only thing that matters is focusing on your “calories in vs. calories out,” and more specifically, keeping your calories “in” less than calories “out.” While CICO (calories in vs. calories out) isn’t wrong, making progress is much more complicated than this one equation, and many things can affect either end of this.

Today, we’re going to touch base on calories out.

Calories out = RMR, Resting metabolic rate (how many calories you burn at rest) + TEF, Thermic effect of food (how many calories you burn absorbing and digesting food) + PA, Physical activity (working out or strenuous activity) + NEAT or Non-exercise activity thermogenesis.

Calories out = RMR + TEF + PA + NEAT

When you change ONE of those factors, you can change the rate at which you lose weight. That is why just eating less is not always the answer! And remember, when you lose weight, your RMR decreases, and when you eat less, your TEF decreases. It can also be harder to push yourself in physical activity like working out, so your PA may also decrease. So this is why it is so important (and often overlooked) to focus on your NEAT!

And that is where a solid step goal and walking more can come into play. NEAT can be everything from you fidgeting when you sit down, you walking around the house when you’re on a phone call, you parking further away from the mall, or you playing with your dogs or children.

The beauty of getting in more steps is that it is not an intense activity, so it isn’t a stressor to your body like intense workouts can be. There’s only so much HIIT, CrossFit, and resistance training your body can handle until it cannot repair and recover from the stressors you are putting on your body.

By getting in more steps, you can adjust your ‘calories out’ of the CICO equation… putting you further into a deficit, again, WITHOUT adding stress to your body.

And want to know one of the BEST times to get up and get in some steps?

During a stressful event!

During a stressful event such as a fight with a significant other or when your boss drops a huge workload onto your lap, your body is going to try to mobilize this energy you have (your stress is energy), IF you are sedentary and consistently stay this way after stressful events, this can create insulin resistance issues (making it harder for you to lose weight).

So if we have one piece of advice for you moving forward, it is to continue with your walks and get in as close to 10k steps as possible, every damn day.