4 Simple Rules That Will Burn Fat Fast
From only sitting down to eat to keeping a kettlebell handy, these 4 easy-to-follow rules from Get-Fit-Guy can give you a helping hand when it comes to burning fat fast, keeping your metabolism elevated, and maintaining lean muscle.
Ben Greenfield
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4 Simple Rules That Will Burn Fat Fast
I was recently speaking to a friend who asked me if I had any “rules” that I follow in my life, particularly when it comes to health, diet and exercise – rules such as only eating “slow carbs,” or going gluten free, or doing X minutes of exercise per day.
And while I have to admit that I’ve never really fancied myself as much of a rule guy (since I feel that excessive dietary or physical activity restrictions can lead to eventual burnout or boredom), I was actually able to come up with 4 rules that I follow nearly every day.
These are rules that can really give you a helping hand when it comes to burning fat fast, keeping your metabolism elevated, and maintaining lean muscle. So without further ado, here are 4 rules that I follow just about 365 days a year!
Rule #1: Only Sit To Eat
With the exception of car drives and airplane rides, I try to follow the simple rule of only “sitting to eat” during the day. This means that unless it’s time to scarf down a meal, I don’t plant my butt on a chair.
While working, talking on the phone, visiting with family, exercising, or waiting at the DMV or doctor’s office, I can be in any position except slumped over in a seat. Alternates to sitting can include lunging, kneeling, standing, laying on my stomach, pacing, standing with one foot up on a stool or chair, etc.
Best Resource for This Rule: 7 Ways To Burn Calories By Standing More
Rule #2: No Hot Water Handle
Whether for my morning pre-work shower or my post-workout shower, I don’t allow myself to use the hot water handle. This means every shower that I take is mildly cold to teeth-grittingly cold, depending on how cold it happens to be outside.
This not only maintains very high mental focus, but also bumps up metabolism as the body tries to warm itself, increases blood flow to muscles, increases production of fat burning hormones, and increases activity of brown adipose tissue (BAT), which burns calories to generate heat.
Sure, I occasionally will hop in the hot tub for a nice, relaxing soak, or soothe my muscles and mind with a bathful of Epsom salts and lavender oil – but each and every shower is a cold one.
Best Resource for This Rule: How To Use Cold Weather To Lose Weight
Rule #3: Lift Something Heavy
Doing this sends a consistent stimulation message to the muscles to maintain lean body mass – something that is very easy to lose as you age.
Every day, I have to lift one heavy thing. For example, I keep a barbell in my basement that always has a bit of challenging weight on it. When I have a quick break, such as 5 minutes to kill before dinner, I’ll slip into the basement and lift that heavy weight from the ground a total of ten times. I also have a heavy rock in my backyard and a pull-up bar on the door of my office.
By keeping these items handy, it’s easy to never let a day go by without lifting something heavy at least once. Doing this sends a consistent stimulation message to the muscles to maintain lean body mass – something that is very easy to lose as you age, if you don’t expose your muscles to a load.
Sure, it’s still a good idea to do a formal weight training workout at least a couple times a week, but there’s no need to wait for a trip to the gym or for your “official” workout to lift something heavy.
Make this easy by placing a few heavy things in your environment, like a kettlebell under your desk, a dumbbell in your car’s trunk, or a weighted vest in your garage.
Best Resource for This Rule: How To Build Muscle As Quickly As Possible
Rule #4: Fast Every Day
Intermittent fasting has been shown to have an anti-aging, fat loss, muscle building, and appetite stabilizing effect, so every day of the year, I go 12 hours without eating.
This means that if I finish dinner at, say, 8pm, then I don’t have breakfast until 8am. Or if I have an early dinner than ends at 6pm, I’ll fast until 6am. And if I get up at midnight to snack on that coconut ice cream in the freezer? That’s right: I don’t eat until noon the next day.
Once you get the hang of it, having a 12 hour “compressed feeding window” is actually pretty easy. As a competitive guy, I often simply start my stopwatch when it’s time to stop eating at night, and just don’t eat again until it registers at 12 hours. Of course, if you’re reading this at a crucial point in the day for you, let me put you at ease – coffee or tea is just fine during the fasting period.
And let’s face it: consistently avoiding a midnight snack or an early morning breakfast is far easier than trying to pull off a 1, 3, or 7 day water fast at the beginning of year, or a 24-hour fast once a month. There really won’t be a need for those other options if you engage in mild calorie restriction or intermittent fasting as a general rule in your life.
Best Resource for This Rule: What Are The Health Benefits of Fasting?
What are the Health Benefits of Fasting?
Immediately beginning to follow all 4 of these rules may be a bit too drastic of a lifestyle switch for you, so try this: choose just one rule, such as only sitting when you eat, and try to follow that rule for the next week.
See what happens. Note how you look, feel and perform, and pay attention to your energy levels. Then pipe in on the Facebook.com/GetFitGuy and let me know how it goes!
Image of man stretching leg at computer courtesy of Shutterstock.
About the Author
Ben Greenfield received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from University of Idaho in sports science and exercise physiology; personal training and strength and conditioning certifications from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA); a sports nutrition certification from the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), an advanced bicycle fitting certification from Serotta. He has over 11 years’ experience in coaching professional, collegiate, and recreational athletes from all sports, and as helped hundreds of clients achieve weight loss and fitness success.