The Best Bicep Workout Strategy for Hypertrophy

 

While I’m here to bring you the best bicep workout for hypertrophy, we need to get one thing straight. Nothing in fitness is a guarantee. We at IIFYM want to keep it real. What works for me, might not work for you—and vice versa.

There is no one size fits all approach when it comes to fitness. Yet, one thing is for certain, and that is you need to put in the time and effort in order to see any change with your body.

Without exerting yourself, making your health and fitness a priority, and being consistent, you’ll never achieve the results you desire.

*It should be noted that we at IIFYM.com, as well as the author, would advise you to consult with your doctor before engaging in any new diet plan or exercise program, including the best bicep workout, found here on IIFYM.com

As always, I like to drop some knowledge for my IIFYM friends and give you a better understanding of the muscles involved so you can visualize each muscle working while completing the best bicep workout for hypertrophy provided in this article.

Anatomy of the Biceps

 

Biceps Brachii

The biceps brachii is given the name biceps because it has two heads, and brachii comes from the Latin word for arm.

The short head of the biceps attaches to the coracoid process of the scapula. The tendon of the long head passes into the joint capsule at the head of the humerus and attaches on the scapula at the supraglenoid tubercle.

Distally, the biceps attaches to the radial tuberosity. The biceps also connect with the fascia of the medial side of the arm, at the bicipital aponeurosis.

Brachialis

It arises from the distal, anterior half of the humerus and the intermuscular septa. It inserts into the coronoid process and tuberosity of the ulna over the elbow joint.

Pronator Teres

It arises from the distal end of the medial humerus and the medial part of the ulna. From there it inserts into the lateral side of the radius.

The secret to insane biceps growth

In all honesty, this section is like click bait on a YouTube video. There really isn’t any secret that I can tell you which will make your arms grow. However, there is one method that many have been using for years and found it to have given them the best results—and it’s called progressive overload.

One thing that you need to understand is that your body will not change unless you force it to. Even then, there could be some resistance before you start to see progress. The body is very finicky in that it likes to maintain in the same state.

Progressive overload is where you recruit a greater demand from the muscles with each workout.

It doesn’t want you to lose weight and on the flip side, it doesn’t want to add muscle mass either. It’s a well-oiled machine that seems to run in the background like your computer as you go on with your daily life.

When you want to experience growth, you need to force your muscles to adapt to the changes you need to take place by staying consistent and constantly pushing your muscles. When you do any type of resistance training, you are ultimately tearing down your muscle fibers.

 

 

Then, what you do is feed those muscles and give them proper rest in order for them to rebuild bigger and stronger.

When you do any type of resistance training, you are ultimately tearing down your muscle fibers. Then, what you do is feed those muscles and give them proper rest in order for them to rebuild bigger and stronger.

If you are unsure how to properly feed your muscles, the coaches at IIFYM.com can help you find a diet plan to match your goals. Another great tool found on IIFYM.com is the IIFYM macro calculator.

This quick and easy IIFYM macro calculator will lay out how many calories you need per day to achieve your goal—whether it be weight loss, increase muscle mass, or performance driven. From there you can even get a breakdown of your macros if you wish.

Demanding More Out of Your Muscles

As you challenge yourself through resistance training and the constant breaking down and rebuilding of muscle fibers, you’re going to need to apply more stimulus to the muscle in order for it to continually make a change. This is where progressive overload comes into play.

If you use the same weight, same reps, the same amount of sets each week, you are eventually going to hit a plateau where you won’t see any changes in muscle size or strength at all. With progressive overload, this can be achieved.

Progressive overload is where you recruit a greater demand from the muscles with each workout. Over time, this method will allow you to become stronger, build more lean mass, and improve your overall muscular endurance.

Utilizing progressive overload strategies

 

1. Increase the weight

It seems like such a simple concept, but you wouldn’t believe the number of people who go to the gym every day and do the same weights thinking that their body will change. It’s not.

When you do the same routine day in and day out your body will adapt and get used to the stimulus and no longer be forced to change.

Adding in an extra day of training for a body part can overload the muscle enough to aid in increasing size and strength.

You could have the best bicep workout in the world and see no results if you don’t switch up the stimulus.

To combat this, you can simply add 5-10 pounds to your exercises and push for the same amount of reps. You’ll feel a difference and will probably struggle, but eventually, the muscle fibers will get stronger and again you’ll be able to increase the weight to continually overload the muscle.

2. Increase the total number of sets completed

Another way to overload the muscle is by increasing the volume. Through adding an additional set to each exercise, you’ll increase the demand put on the working muscle and therefore will create an overload to force change.

If you didn’t want to add more sets to a particular exercise, you could always add an additional exercise to your workout routine and complete a few sets of the new movement.

3. Increase the total number repetitions completed

Similarly to the above, you can achieve overload without increasing the weight of an exercise. Sometimes the best bicep workout comes from utilizing a reasonable weight where you can get a great squeeze with each rep versus using a weight that you almost need to throw around and create momentum.

If you are completing sets of eight reps on all exercises, push for 10-12 reps instead. Maybe you’ll only be able to complete 10 reps this week.

 

 

Therefore, next week you can push for 11 or 12. The key is to keep pushing yourself to better a previous workout.

You can apply this principle before you ever have to increase the weight. Then when you hit 12 reps, you can bump up the weight and push for 8 reps of the new weight—eventually working your way up to 12 reps before again increasing the resistance.

4. Increase your training frequency

A technique often used for lagging body parts is to train a muscle group more often. Meaning, if you’re only training your arms once a week, twice a week might be just what is needed to force new growth.

Adding in an extra day of training for a body part can overload the muscle enough to aid in increasing size and strength.

Could this be the best bicep workout for you, personally? It very well could be. It’s just another option that you can add to your bag of tricks to promote growth.

5. Decrease how much time you rest between sets and exercises

You don’t need to change your sets, reps, weights, or how often you train if you don’t want to. A simple overload principle is to cut your rest periods. If you are resting 45-60 seconds between sets, cut it down to 15-30.

If you’re currently at 15-30 seconds, try super-setting exercises where you do a movement such as a dumbbell curl followed immediately by a dumbbell hammer curl. Then rest.

Simply cutting your rest periods short will allow you to do the same amount of total work per session, only in less time. This principle is also great if you need to get in and out of the gym quickly and are pressed for time.

The best bicep workout for hypertrophy

 

 

Below please find an IIFYM 4-week plan to put you in the best position for muscle growth. The best bicep workout for hypertrophy can be used by anyone. Simply use weights you can perform each exercise with using perfect form.

Each week utilizes the same exercises but has progressive overload techniques applied to constantly hit your muscles differently and force them to grow. Just because an overload technique is applied, that doesn’t mean you can’t add another.

For instance, if you can increase the weight, do so, regardless of if you’re cutting rest periods or increasing sets.

Week 1

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Rest
Standing Barbell Curl	8	3	30-45 seconds
Dumbbell Hammer Curl	8	3	30-45 seconds
Incline Dumbbell Curl	8	3	30-45 seconds

Week 2

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Rest
Standing Barbell Curl	10	3	30-45 seconds
Dumbbell Hammer Curl	10	3	30-45 seconds
Incline Dumbbell Curl	10	3	30-45 seconds

Week 3

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Rest
Standing Barbell Curl	10	3	15-30 seconds
Dumbbell Hammer Curl	10	3	15-30 seconds
Incline Dumbbell Curl	10	3	15-30 seconds

Week 4

Exercise	Reps	Sets	Rest
Standing Barbell Curl	10	4	30-45 seconds
Dumbbell Hammer Curl	10	4	30-45 seconds
Incline Dumbbell Curl	10	4	30-45 seconds

 

 

If you want to see these your biceps grow, you’ll need a good diet plan to help build lean muscle.

IIFYM.com has everything from IIFYM meal plans, to online coaching, to IIFYM Macro Blueprints and even recipes that you can utilize.

If you haven’t checked out the IIFYM.com programs, I highly recommend you take a few minutes to see how they can take your health and fitness to the next level. By utilizing the IIFYM plan (such as a Custom Macro Blueprint) and the best bicep workout, you’re setting yourself up for success.

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Tracking Macros for Bulk and Complex Meals

 

If you’re familiar and comfortable with flexible dieting, logging and tracking your meals then counting macronutrients is a breeze by now.

If you’re newer, and still unsure where to begin, check out our IIFYM macro calculator to get started, or talk to one of our coaches and they can get you on the right path.

Yet, what about those instances where the macronutrients aren’t so easy to track?

It’s not always reasonable to make each meal independently from our families or to cook each portion individually rather than saving time and cooking in bulk.

So, for those meal prep Sundays and family dinners, here’s how to partake without messing up your daily macronutrients.

Spaghetti and Meatballs

 

 

You don’t have to be Italian to love some good old fashioned spaghetti and meatballs. Plus, now that you follow IIFYM you don’t have to fear pasta anymore! This is a favorite among our clients, they love being able to lose fat while eating pasta once again!

Yet, what happens when you want to make a massive serving? Have no fear, your macronutrients can remain intact and tracked.

You’ll need:

• 2lbs lean ground turkey (93/7)
• ¼ tsp pepper
• ¼ cup parsley
• 1lb whole wheat spaghetti noodles
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 (30oz) jar spaghetti sauce

Instructions:

1. Put sauce in a pan and simmer on medium heat
2. In a large bowl mix turkey, pepper, salt, and parsley. Shape into 18 meatballs
3. Place meatballs in sauce. Cover and cook 30-35 minutes or until cooked thoroughly
4. Cook pasta according to instructions on box

Now that the IIFYM Gods have graced you with this impeccable meal, it’s time to track those macronutrients.

• 1lb of pasta = 454 grams
• 1 jar of sauce = 30 oz
• 2lbs turkey = 908g/18 meatballs = 50 grams

So, if you want to portion it out into 6 servings, for example, you would simply divide:

• 454/6= 76 grams
• 30/6= 5 oz
• 18 meatballs/6= 3 meatballs

Or, if there’s a specific amount you’re hoping for, simply weigh your pasta, sauce, and meatballs, and plug them in independently.

Macronutrients for 1 serving:

• Protein: 40 grams
• Carbs: 82 grams
• Fiber: 14 grams
• Fat: 15 grams

Beef and Vegetable Stew

 

 

You’ll need:

• 2lbs 90/10 beef
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 1 ½ cups beef broth
• 200g diced potatoes
• 4 medium carrots
• 1 stalk celery (chopped)

Instructions:

1. Place meat in a slow cooker
2. Stir in beef broth, vegetables, and spices
3. Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours, or high for 4-6 hours

What’s difficult about soup is not getting exact portions every time. Yet, eyeballing portions is probably the best way to get as close to your macronutrients as possible. With that said, weighing out each ingredient will give you the most accurate calculation.

With that said, weighing out each ingredient will give you the most accurate calculation. We stress this with our clients so they understand where mistakes may be occurring.

Total the macronutrients for all ingredients. I came up with:

• Protein: 192 grams
• Carbs: 75 grams
• Fiber: 14 grams
• Fat: 92 grams

If you want to split the soup into equal portions, weigh the total batch (ex. 500g), and divide by the number of servings you’d like (ex. 500/4=125g).

So with our numbers, the macronutrients for each serving of soup if divided into 4 would total:

• Protein: 48 grams
• Carbs: 18 grams
• Fiber: 3.5 grams
• Fat: 23 grams

*For lower fat options, sub in chicken, or lean ground turkey.

Tacos

 

 

This recipe is simple to track! Every ingredient will be individually weighed, so being spot on with your macronutrients will be a breeze.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb 93/7 lean ground turkey
• Lettuce
• Reduced fat Mexican cheese
• Fat-free sour cream
• Tortillas
• Hot sauce

Depending on how many people you’re serving will obviously affect how much of each ingredient you prepare. For our example, we’ll assume we’re making 2 tacos.

Our macronutrients for:

• 2 tortillas (Carlita Whole Wheat Tortillas)
• 5 oz lean ground turkey
• Lettuce (as much as you’d like)
• 28 grams cheese
• 2 tbsp fat-free sour cream
• 2 tbsp hot sauce

Macronutrients:

• Protein: 42 grams
• Carbs: 43 grams
• Fiber: 6 grams
• Fat: 19 grams

For a lower fat option, swap out 93/7 turkey for 99/1, or chicken. Or instead of reduced fat cheese, use fat-free.

 

Kabobs

 

 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken
• 1 container of whole mushrooms
• 1 green pepper
• 1 sweet onion
• 2 tbsp Lawry’s marinade

Instructions:

1. Chop green pepper, onion, and mushrooms into large chunks
2. Cut chicken into large chunks and place in a baggie with marinade (for best results refrigerate for several hours)
3. Alternate veggies and chicken on wooden kabob skewers
4. Grill for about 10 minutes, turning every few minutes

For our example, let’s say with our portions we prepared, we were left with 6 kabobs.

Totaling everything our macronutrients would work out to:

• Protein: 103 grams
• Carbs: 25 grams
• Fiber: 5 grams
• Fat: 9 grams

Macronutrients per 2 kabobs:

• Protein: 35 grams
• Carbs: 8 grams
• Fiber: 1.5 grams
• Fat: 3 grams

Chili

 

 

Similar to soup in portioning, chili can be divided into portions. Our recipe:

• 2 lbs 93/7 lean ground turkey
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 8oz can of tomato sauce
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground oregano
• 1 tsp salt
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 15 oz can kidney beans
• 1 15 oz can pinto beans

Instructions:

1. Cook meat in a large pot along with the garlic
2. Drain the excess fat and add tomato sauce, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and cayenne
3. Stir ingredients well, cover, and reduce to low heat
4. Simmer for 1 hour stirring occasionally
5. Add water if necessary for desired consistency

Macronutrients for this total chili recipe:

• Protein: 183 grams
• Carbs: 47 grams
• Fiber: 18 grams
• Fat: 65 grams

If you want to split the chili into equal portions, weigh the total batch (ex. 500g), and divide by the number of servings you’d like (ex. 500/4=125g).

So with our numbers, the macronutrients for each serving of chili if divided into 4 would total:

• Protein: 46 grams
• Carbs: 12 grams
• Fiber: 4.5 grams
• Fat: 16 grams

As stated in previous recipes, for lower fat options, opt for chicken or extra lean turkey. This is especially suggested if you’re eating too much fat and aren’t hitting your protein intake.

This is a common occurrence with our clients starting out. Going over on fat intake means an adjustment is necessary.

Sloppy Joes

 

 

• 1lb 90/10 ground beef
• ¼ cup chopped onion
• ¼ cup chopped green pepper
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp mustard
• ¾ cup ketchup
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of pepper
• Brownberry Whole Wheat Buns

Instructions:

1. In a medium skillet cook ground beef, onion, and pepper. Drain liquid after cooking
2. Stir in the garlic powder, mustard, ketchup and mix thoroughly. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Macronutrients for an entire serving of sloppy joes (excluding buns):

• Protein: 92 grams
• Carbs: 64 grams
• Fiber: 0
• Fat: 44 grams

If you want to split the sloppy joes into equal portions, weigh the total batch (ex. 500g), and divide by the number of servings you’d like (ex. 500/4=125g).

So with our numbers, macronutrients total for each serving of sloppy joes if divided into 4 would total:

• Protein: 23 grams
• Carbs: 16 grams
• Fiber: 0 grams
• Fat: 11 grams

Let’s say we wanted to split this portion into 2 buns. Then our total macronutrients would be:

• Protein: 37 grams
• Carbs: 62 grams
• Fiber: 6 grams
• Fat: 15 grams

**For lower fat option sub in lean ground turkey

Lo Mein

 

 

Asian dishes can be made pretty macro friendly considering for many, it involves chicken, rice, vegetables, and lots of spices and sauces! Let’s talk lo mein.

Ingredients:

Sauce:

• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp sweetener

Lo Mein:

• 10 oz uncooked lo mein egg noodles (for our recipe I’m using Wel-Pac)
• 1 lb chicken
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3 green onion stalks
• 3 cups mixed vegetables (for our recipe I’m using Westpac Stir Fry Vegetables)
• 2 tbsp mirin

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for sauce and whisk
2. In a large pot, boil water, and cook noodles according to directions on package. Drain well
3. Cook frozen veggies as directed on package
4. Bake or cook chicken until finished to your liking
5. Spray large skillet well with non-stick cooking spray
6. Combine veggies, chicken, mirin, olive oil and sauce mixture
7. Add noodles and toss to combine

For this recipe, if you wanted to split it into equal portions, you would weigh the batch and divide. So let’s say our batch weighs 500g and we want 4 servings (500/4=125g).

Macronutrients for this entire batch:

• Protein: 140 grams
• Carbs: 223 grams
• Fiber: 14 grams
• Fat: 39 grams

Macronutrients per serving (125g)

• Protein: 35 grams
• Carbs: 56 grams
• Fiber: 3.5 grams
• Fat: 10 grams

 

As you can see, flexible dieting isn’t only reserved for those specific, precise instances. The whole point of using IIFYM is to be able to utilize it in your everyday life. Our clients enjoy a variety of foods and dishes but it can get complicated, which is why we have coaching and custom programs to help you.

That means participating in family events and enjoying meals with friends. So yes, you can still hit your macronutrients without missing out on life. Have your cake and eat it too!

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“Everyone is different”: The Lazy Person’s Excuse for Not Making Progress While Dieting

 

How many of you at one time or another gave an excuse as to why you weren’t making progress with your fat loss diet? I couldn’t tell you how many times I heard people say “everyone is different, Matt.” While I agree, that excuse doesn’t hold up when it comes to your health and fat loss diet.

For starters, it all begins with how many calories you take in each day. If you aren’t sure what that number should be, check out the IIFYM macro calculator and it will get you all squared away so you can check that initial piece off of your checklist.

*It should be noted that we at IIFYM.com, as well as the author, would advise you to consult with your doctor before engaging in any new nutrition or exercise program, including the ones found here on IIFYM.com.

You need to begin with A before you proceed to B

When it comes to a fat loss diet, you can exercise until you’re blue in the face, but if you are eating junk all the time, you’ll never reach your fat loss diet goals.

The nice aspect of an IIFYM diet plan, it allows you some flexibility so you aren’t consuming chicken and brown rice or tilapia with asparagus at every meal like some of these “gurus” out there are recommending.

That’s no way to live your life and you aren’t going to be able to maintain that lifestyle long-term.

For that reason, IIFYM has put together some amazing programs that you should definitely check out if you are interested in reaching your fat loss diet goals quickly and without losing your sanity.

 

 

Another great resource you can find over on IIFYM.com is all the free content up for grabs. I might be biased since I write for them, but there’s a ton of great content over there ranging from a wide array of topics from IIFYM articles, to exercise, supplementation, and many other topics to help you reach your fat loss diet goals.

Utilize the free content on IIFYM and not only will you learn something new, but you’ll get a better understanding of some topics that can help you through your health and fitness journey.

Macro Tracking For a Fat Loss Diet

In my opinion, a great place to start is through tracking your calories and macronutrients. In order to do this, I highly recommend a tracking app or website such Macrotracker.com or MyFitnessPal. This app allows you to track all of your meals in a nice, easy to read format, right on your phone (which if you’re like me, never leaves your side).

It will give you the breakdown of how many calories you ate, where you are with your macros for the day and how many you have left, as well as a diary where you can record your weight to check your fat loss diet progress.

Macrotracker and MyFitnessPal put everything in a nice graph to show you a visual. You can also change your macros around to suit the nutrition plan you are following whether it’s an IIFYM plan, Paleo plan, Ketogenic plan, etc.

If you wished to get a little more information out of the app, there’s also an option to upgrade to a paid version as well—however, for most people, you can get away with using the free version for all of your fat loss needs and tracking purposes.

Excuses are for the complacent and unwilling

When we see that our fat loss diet has stalled, we seem to be quick to put the blame everyone else other than on ourselves. Many times, we become complacent either with our diet or our exercise program and this, in turn, starts pumping the breaks when it comes to a fat loss diet. The fact of the matter is, you can’t out-train a poor diet.

The “everyone is different” excuse is completely played out. That’s like saying “I’m just big boned.” No, you aren’t, you’re just lazy. Some people just need some tough love in order to stick to their fat loss diet plan.

You don’t need to deprive yourself of many of the items you enjoy in order to attain fat loss.

You might be able to convince other people with your excuses as to why your fat loss diet progress has come to a halt, but it’s extremely difficult to pull one over on a true professional in the industry.

Exercise can be tiresome and demanding, but your diet shouldn’t be. Have one of our coaches build your easy to follow Custom Macro Blueprint.

 

 

You must WANT to better yourself and your health

Complacency breeds failure. When it comes down to your health, no one should want it more than you do. If you are exercising and following a fat loss diet such as the IIFYM Custom Macro Blueprint, you are setting yourself up for success.

But, you need to WANT to be improving your health and overall wellness. No one wants to get ill and sick at a young age and potentially lose their battle when they could have taken some preventative measures to bypass all the pain and suffering.

These illnesses don’t just affect the individual either. Rather, they affect everyone around them as well from their friends to family.

Too many people say it’s difficult to adhere to a program, yet many of them haven’t tried a flexible dieting lifestyle. You don’t need to deprive yourself of many of the items you enjoy in order to attain fat loss. When it comes down to it, flexible dieting is about the numbers.

Even clients who have found this difficult at first, love how seamlessly it melds into their current diet plan.

Follow the Numbers and Find Success In Your Fat Loss Diet

Are you hitting your numbers? Do your macros for the day align with your plan or are you over/under? You won’t know unless you write down what you’re eating, the serving size, and macros (or simply use the MyFitnessPal app I mentioned earlier).

I can’t stress the importance of this enough. You can’t tell me that you don’t know why your fat loss stopped when I ask you how many calories you’re eating each day and the answer is “I don’t know.”

When you get a common cold, you pay attention to the medicine dosage you need to take and when you can take your next dose, right? Why is that? Because you want to make sure you beat this cold by following the directions in order to do so.

It’s the same concept with a fat loss diet. There’s a plan in place for you to achieve success if you follow it, you win—if you don’t follow it, you lose. It’s pretty cut and dry.

How to progress to ensure success?

 

 

Let’s assume you have your nutrition plan in place (like a Custom Macro Blueprint), and you are exercising regularly. All of a sudden you see the scale not move for a week. Then the next week you notice again no change. You simply hit a plateau.

This doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong, or that you should throw in the towel, it simply means you need to make some adjustments. Don’t turn this into an excuse of why you decided to fall off the wagon and stop exercising while consuming everything in your pantry each night while parked in front of the television.

Break through your fat loss diet plateau

There’s a simple fix to breaking through that plateau—actually, two different fixes you can choose from. If you enjoy cardio, simply increase the amount of cardio you were doing. For instance, if you were doing 15 minutes of cardio, bump it up to 30. Or if you were doing 30, bump it up to 45 minutes.

On the flip side, if you hate every second of your cardio sessions during a fat loss diet, then adjust your caloric intake. A good place to start would be to eliminate 500 calories from your diet every day. At the end of the week (seven days), this would have saved you 3,500 calories—essentially, one pound of weight.

If you want something bad enough, you’ll make it happen. You simply need to make it a priority.

If cardio isn’t your thing, you could always increase the intensity in the weight room. Rather than taking a 45-60 second rest between all of your sets, cut it shorter to 30 or less. This will keep your heart rate elevated and in turn, allow you to burn more calories.

You could also do quick bouts of cardio between your sets if you wanted. To do so, you could use a battle rope for 30 seconds between your sets, or do some type of calisthenics to keep your heart rate elevated.

Understanding is Vital

These concepts truly aren’t hard, but for many, they just aren’t educated on these types of concepts, so while many of them come as common sense to many of us, learning biochemistry could be extremely hard for us, yet easy for chemists.

We need to have an understanding and not put people down for not understanding the different methods to use. That’s why I feel the content here on IIFYM is a great resource, especially when you are trying to achieve fat loss.

They also provide a ton of free resources for their clients that don’t require extra purchases.

The take-home box and message

 

 

To tie all of this together so you can hit your fat loss diet goals, you need to stop making excuses and start having some accountability for yourself. On your IIFYM plan, you have the ability to eat meals away from home without dreading your next weigh in.

Your fat loss diet can continue even though you don’t eat at home and are enjoying yourself at a nice restaurant.

It should be noted, that just about every meal you eat at a restaurant is around double the normal portion size. So if fat loss is your goal, we at IIFYM recommend getting a take-home or to-go box immediately after getting your meal and then splitting everything in half so you basically have another meal to enjoy another day.

If you want something bad enough, you’ll make it happen. You simply need to make it a priority. If taking charge of your life and health is important to you, then you’ll find the time each day to be active and exercise as well as eating a sensible whole food diet. Fat loss does not happen overnight.

Be Patient With Your Fat Loss Diet

So, don’t expect to wake up looking like a fitness model after hitting the gym for a few days and cleaning up your nutrition. A fat loss diet takes time and your body will even want to fight you a little and resist any type of change. But, you need to stick with it and the results will soon follow.

I hope you found this IIFYM article on performing a fat loss diet plan helpful. If you have any further questions, feel free to reach out to the IIFYM staff and they would be glad to help you choose the perfect fat loss diet plan for you such as their Custom Macro Blueprint.

It doesn’t just end with nutrition, they also have a bunch of exercise programs you can follow as well. Turn your excuses into motivation and get after it. Before you know it, people will start asking what you’ve been doing because you’re looking fantastic. Keep pushing forward.

 

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The Benefits and Drawbacks of the Keto Diet

What is the Keto Diet?

A keto diet (ketogenic) is a very high-fat diet, moderate to low protein and very low in carbohydrate, which causes a shift in primary metabolic fuel source from carbohydrates to fats. It also alters fat metabolism so the body produces compounds known as ketone bodies in the liver.

These compounds include acetone, aceto-acetate & beta-hydroxy-buterate. These ketones can be used as energy in tissue like skeletal muscle and more importantly, brain. If you’re looking for a more flexible approach then start with the macro calculator to begin losing fat.

Under normal conditions, the brain exclusively uses glucose for energy, but in a ketogenic state, the brain will shift to using ketones as a fuel source in order to spare blood glucose for essential tasks such as red blood cell metabolism (red blood cells can only use glucose as fuel since they lack mitochondria).

Keep in mind that even with zero carbohydrate intake, the liver can produce about 120g of glucose per day in a process called gluconeogenesis (GNG) for essential tasks from substrates like amino acids and other gluconeogenic metabolites.

Where did the Keto Diet Start?

The keto diet gained most of its attention for its role in the nutritional management of epilepsy and Alzheimers. More recently, science has shown positive clinical outcomes for a number of types of cancers through its ability to minimize tumor growth. In the case of all three of these diseases, ketones are therapeutic through providing an alternative substrate to glucose.

Ketogenic diets have also recently moved into the fitness & bodybuilding industry as a dietary method to improve body composition and reduce body fat.

Why are Carbohydrates Viewed as the Bad Guys?

 

 

Carbohydrates are often viewed as bad for body composition due to the fact that they increase insulin secretion. Insulin is a hormone that is released when blood glucose rises and shuttles glucose into various tissues including muscle and fat.

Due to this, insulin is considered a storage hormone and thus many people have made recommendations to avoid carbohydrates at all costs.

Carbohydrates and Insulin: Primary Cause of Body Fat Gain?

Since carbohydrates do increase insulin and insulin is a storage hormone many people have made large leaps of logic to point the finger at carbohydrates as the primary cause of fat gain and obesity as opposed to overall caloric intake. They also point out that in a keto diet, carbohydrates are not being used as fuel hardly at all whereas fats become the primary fuel.

Their logic is, eat more fat, burn more fat. While that is true to a certain extent, it’s not quite that simple.

When calories and protein are equal, a keto diet does NOT seem to offer any additional fat loss benefit compared to an equal calorie, equal protein non-keto diet according to a study published in 2006 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition from Arizona State University.

These individuals miss the fact that by limiting carbohydrate to very low levels in the diet, you are typically going to restrict calories as well.

In fact, many people have become so passionate about low-carb lifestyles that they become keto-zealots rather than caring about the science of what actually makes a fat loss diet successful.

This debate is a major factor why the keto diet is such a hot topic right now, but are they really inherently superior for fat loss?

Why the Keto Diet isn’t Superior for Fat Loss

 

 

There are several studies that keto-zealots often point to in order to support claims of a keto diet being superior for loss. For example, a recent meta-analysis published in 2013, compared very low-calorie ketogenic diets (VLCKD) to low-fat diets with a minimum of 12 months of follow-up.

They found that individuals who were assigned to the VLCKD were able to achieve greater weight loss than participants in the low-fat groups.

What this study doesn’t consider is that the research studies selected for inclusion in this analysis did not equate for protein and in some cases even overall calorie intake.

So it’s likely greater weight loss was achieved in VLCKD by default since we know a keto diet can be more satiating and often people consume lower calories than in low-fat high carbohydrate diets. These studies also did not control for protein intake which is often higher for a keto diet vs. a low fat, high carbohydrate diet.

So what does the science say? When calories and protein are equal, a keto diet does NOT seem to offer any additional fat loss benefit compared to an equal calorie, equal protein non-keto diet according to a study published in 2006 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition from Arizona State University.

In this highly controlled study, both groups lost an almost identical amount of weight and body fat. This says that for fat loss, you can do whatever your preference is.

What About the Health Benefits of a Keto Diet?

There is data to support a benefit of a keto diet in a number of medical conditions such as epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, cancer, and type 2 diabetes.

In these conditions, providing an alternative fuel source instead of carbohydrate seems to have a therapeutic effect. In the case of type 2 diabetes, using ketones as fuel instead of glucose can help lower blood glucose levels.

It is important to point out however, that type 2 diabetes also improves during any form of caloric restriction and it is likely that a keto diet is not unique in that aspect, rather it is causing a caloric deficit by severely restricting carbohydrate intake. We have helped numerous clients lose fat while on a moderate carb intake in a caloric deficit.

Keto diets are also found to possibly be helpful for a number of types of cancers, specifically glucose obligate cancer types. Meaning they can only grow with glucose present as the tumors use it as exclusive fuel.

 

 

Thus by limiting carbohydrate intake and forcing our bodies to use fats and ketone bodies instead of carbohydrate, can have a therapeutic effect by essentially ‘starving’ these tumors.

Please keep in mind this is not a ‘cure’ for cancer and some cancers are not glucose obligate users. If you have cancer you should ALWAYS follow your oncologist’s recommendations for your specific disease.

Some studies have reported less hunger when following a keto diet and this is believed to be linked to fats being more satiating resulting from slower digestion and extended feelings of fullness.

Currently, the most popular form of keto is a modified keto diet…

A number of studies reported decreased triglycerides, diastolic blood pressure and greater increases in HDL in the keto diet groups compared to a low-fat diet.

However, we need to consider that most of these studies failed to equate for both calories and protein, and it is likely that if similar weight loss was achieved, these health outcomes would look similar regardless of the diet used. This is supported by the Johnston study from Arizona state which saw similar outcomes when calories and protein were equated.

Common Mistakes of Ketogenic Diets

The major mistake I see for people on a keto diet is they do not adhere to the correct ratios of macronutrients necessary to ensure ketone production. For example, adherence to low carbohydrate is usually met by most. However, the ratio of protein to fat is often too high.

If you feel your macro split is offer kilter then have one of our coaches create your Custom Macro Blueprint.

On a traditional keto diet, carbohydrate intake is usually about 5-10% of total caloric intake, protein is 10-15%, and fats are around 80%.

Currently, the most popular form of keto is a modified keto diet which puts carbohydrate intake around 5-10% of total caloric intake, protein at no more than 20-25% of total energy intake and fats should make up the majority of total calories at approximately 70% of calories.

Often we see clients that aren’t following either of these splits while attempting to be on a keto diet. This, of course, hinders their results.

Why is Having Too Much Protein a Problem?

 

 

In a carbohydrate restricted state, the body calls upon its secondary energy sources, namely fats and proteins in order to function. In a carbohydrate-restricted state, protein is converted to glucose through the process known as gluconeogenesis in the liver as described previously.

This is why it is important to ensure your protein is not providing greater than 20-25% of your total caloric intake while following a keto diet, as too much protein results in glucose production and remains the primary energy source, as opposed to fats or ketone bodies.

Summary

When it comes to overall body composition and fat loss, the keto diet isn’t better than carbohydrate containing dietary interventions when both calories and protein are equated.

Other Considerations

The idea of being able to eat plenty of high-fat foods at every meal may sound highly appealing to some but doesn’t come without nutritional consequences. Eliminating carbohydrates means like any diet plan that restricts whole food groups, makes it far more difficult to meet daily micronutrient requirements, in particular B- vitamins.

If you prefer high-fat foods in preference to carbohydrate containing food products, particularly during a phase of calorie deficit, and you find it easier to adhere to this way. Then, by all means, attempt a keto diet.

It’s important to make sure you consume a wide variety of fresh vegetables, as these are essential for their rich source of fiber, vitamins and minerals, antioxidants and other important micronutrients.

In any case, I strongly recommend taking a multivitamin as well as an iron supplement, specifically for women, or males on low caloric intakes, since it is difficult to consume a sufficient iron, and reasonable to ask without essentially all protein sources being provided by lean red meat.

My Recommendation

Any nutrition diet plan that sees you in a caloric deficit is going to result in fat loss. If you prefer high-fat foods in preference to carbohydrate containing food products, particularly during a phase of calorie deficit, and you find it easier to adhere to this way. Then, by all means, attempt a keto diet.

Yet, be sure that you can make it a lifestyle. There is little benefit to following a diet plan that is not maintainable long term. Many people lose weight on a keto diet, only to pile the pounds back on after carbohydrates are reintroduced.

If you feel as though you want to include carbohydrates within your diet, then have us build you a Custom Macro Blueprint. As outlined above, the most important factor while on a diet plan is restricting calories. This can be achieved with a proper split including carbs.

Need Help with Preparing a Keto Diet?

 

 

Foods High in Fat

Dairy

• Regular Cream Cheese
• Full Fat Tasty Cheese
• Camembert / Brie
• Cooking Cream
• Thickened Cream

Meat & Protein Sources

• Bacon (full fat)
• Chorizo sausage
• Salami
• Meat products with visible fats
• Lamb
• Pork Belly
• Salmon
• Egg Yolks
• Whole Eggs

Oils and Fats

• All varieties
• i.e. Coconut oil, canola, olive, peanut oil, sesame oil.
• Butter

Coconut Products

 

 

• Coconut cream
• Coconut milk
• Coconut flakes
• Desiccated coconut

Fruit & Nuts

• Avocado spread
• Guacamole
• Cashews
• Macadamia
• Brazil nuts

Other Foods

• Dark Chocolate Unsweetened
• Cacao (unsweetened chocolate)
• Natural Peanut Butter
• Cashew/Macadamia Spreads

Low Calorie

The following vegetables can be eaten relatively freely due to their low carbohydrate content, high fiber, and nutritional value.

 

 

• Cruciferous Vegetables such as Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage, and Brussels Sprout
• Leafy Greens such as Spinach, Chard, Lettuce
• Asparagus
• Eggplant
• Zucchini
• Cucumber
• Lemons and Limes

The Following Fruit & Vegetables can be Eaten in Moderation

(i.e. makeup about 50-100g per day as these are slightly higher in carbohydrate than the above but are important to include due to their equally valuable fiber content and high nutritional value.)

• Onion
• Capsicum/bell peppers
• Tomato
• Carrot
• Strawberries
• Mushrooms

Foods to Avoid When Following a Keto Diet

 

 

• Wheat and products of (i.e. bread, breakfast cereals, grains, crackers, biscuits)
• Potato and products of (i.e. potato chips, hot chips)
• Corn and products of (i.e. corn chips, corn cakes, corn tortillas, corn dips)
• Rice and products of (i.e. rice pudding, rice crackers, rice cakes)
• Oatmeal
• All baked products such as muffins, bread, slices, biscuits, pancakes, croissants etc.
• Fast Food such as Pizza, French Fries, and Ice Cream
• Regular flavored yogurt (natural yogurt is suitable but pay attention to portion size)
• Milk products (milk alternatives such as unsweetened soy, coconut milk, and almond milk are suitable)
• Fruit, in general, should be consumed with care, pay attention to portion size if you wish to adhere to your daily carbohydrate targets. For example, banana & mango, both high carbohydrate could very easily take you over in just one serve.
• Alcohol
• Sugar, Honey, Maple Syrup, Corn Syrup (natural & artificial sweeteners such as stevia, aspartame, and sucralose are suitable for sugar substitute)

Ultimately, we understand that there’s no magical diet and that some prefer to eat more fat while dieting. We have dealt with over 15k clients, many of which have medical restrictions and require different parameters while in a caloric restricted state. No matter what your limitations, preferences or needs are while on a diet plan. We can build you a Custom Macro Blueprint that will help you lose unwanted fat.

 

The post The Benefits and Drawbacks of the Keto Diet appeared first on IIFYM.

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5 Rules for a Powerful Upper Body Workout

 

Let’s face it, who doesn’t want a jacked upper body? There’s no shame in it, and by following the points in today’s IIFYM article you create both a powerful and sculpted upper body in no time!

While following the basic lifts and rules is important, if you truly want to optimize your upper body muscular adaptations you need the latest and great scientific techniques discussed in this article.

(Remember, your diet must also be optimal to get any noticeable muscle gains, you can use our IIFYM macro calculator right HERE to see exactly how much you should be eating!).

Here are 5 scientifically backed techniques we use at IIFYM to help you craft a powerful upper body workout along with practical examples to get you started!

1.) Focus on Mechanical Tension to Maximize Upper Body Power

While there is an ongoing debate within the fitness industry to decipher the exact mechanisms of muscle growth (hypertrophy), one factor that is not debated is mechanical tension.

Mechanical tension occurs when you move moderate-heavy loads with high levels of force output. Mechanical tension disrupts muscle integrity, this ‘shocks’ the body and causes several cellular mechanisms which activate MTOR, the key pathway that stimulates muscle protein synthesis and new muscle growth (1).

To optimize mechanical tension in your upper body workouts you’re going to want to perform heavy compound movements. These force your muscles to generate lots of force while also increasing training volume, another key factor in muscle growth!

Here are some great upper body exercises to maximize mechanical tension:

 

 

Chest

• Barbell Bench Press
• Bodyweight Dips
• Incline DB Press
• Weighted Push-ups

Shoulder

• Overhead Barbell Shoulder Press
• Seated DB Press

Back

• Bent over barbell row
• Pull-ups
• DB Single arm bent over Row
• Lat pulldown

 

All of our personalized programs here at IIFYM utilize strategic compound movements to optimize mechanical tension and muscular growth, you can learn more on these here: IIFYM.com

2.) Use Metabolic Stress to Stimulate New Upper Body Growth

Metabolic stress is another key factor in muscle growth and is the perfect addition post focusing on the compound mechanical tension based lifts.

High levels of metabolic stress may increase cell swelling, anabolic hormone production, and alter motor unit recruitment patterns. Combined, these can increase upper body power and growth (2,3)!

The easiest way to picture metabolic stress is to an intense ‘burn’ and ‘pump’. If you’ve ever done high rep training or used drop sets/supersets then you can be sure you’ve stimulated some metabolic stress.

…it is important to strategically manipulate your volume loads and allow for appropriate recovery.

Often people also have days where they typically focus on either mechanical tension (heavier loads) or metabolic stress (lighter loads).

However, if you’re going to add both into your workout I recommend focusing on the mechanical tension in the beginning of your workout and metabolic stress in the end!

Some great upper body exercises to maximize metabolic stress are listed below:

 

 

Chest (Reps 15-30)

• Pushups
• Cable fly
• DB Fly
• Machine chest press

Back (Reps 15-30)

• Reverse body weight rows
• Low cable row
• Straight arm pulldowns

3.) Volume

Another rule for a powerful upper body workout is ensuring proper amounts of Volume within a workout and within a week or month!

Training volume is essentially the amount of work your muscles perform. Training volume can be quantified by multiplying your Sets X Reps X Weight = Total Volume.

Recent research suggests that there is a dose response relationship between total volume load and muscle growth! In short, greater volume loads will result in increased upper body muscle growth and power.

One group of researchers found that 10 sets per muscle group per week was optimal. However, these loads may vary person to person. For example, greater volume loads have not been researched as extensively in a trained population.

If you are currently doing more than 10 sets per week for each muscle, try adding 20% more sets/reps next month and see how you benefit (4).

One way to increase the volume of your workouts is to provide sufficient rest periods between sets. Longer rest periods will allow you to sufficiently recover between upper body exercises and allow you to train with greater loads which will increase your overall training volume!

Increased Training Frequency

 

 

Another great way that we recommend here at IIFYM is an increased training frequency. For example, if you currently just train your chest once per week, adding in a second chest session (even if it’s short) will cause noticeable improvements in upper body muscle growth and power.

While volume is a key driver for muscular growth if not periodized properly chronic high volume loads may lead to cumulative fatigue and potentially even over reaching. Therefore, it is important to strategically manipulate your volume loads and allow for appropriate recovery.

In all of our plan here at IIFYM, we systematically vary volume to optimize both recovery and growth. Lastly, one final way to deal with the increased stress from training with high volume loads is to dial in on your nutrition.

One way to make sure you’re consuming and an efficient number of calories are by using one of our many personalized calculators that we offer on IIFYM.com. Yet, if you’re looking for a customized diet plan, one our coaches will build your Macro Blueprint!

4.) Vary Your Exercises

Another principle of training that we believe to be essential here at IIFYM is exercise selection, which basically promotes the use of multiple upper body exercises rather than the same 2-3 every week.

All our work out protocols from IIFYM provide sufficient exercise variation to maximize results, while also reducing overuse injuries, boredom and continually keep your body adapting to avoid plateaus or slow progress.

Several pieces of research have supported this method, showing that varying your upper body exercises may create different activation patterns and promote uniform muscle growth (1,5)!

…optimize your upper body training, make sure you vary your rep ranges within a workout or at least on a weekly or monthly basis (8).

In fact, one study examined the effects of different workout regimens with different levels of exercise variation. They compared the growth of the quad (front leg muscle) using just one exercise versus multiple exercises. Interestingly, they kept training volume (sets) the same to solely investigate the effects of exercise selection.

After the trial, these researchers discovered that increased exercised variation resulted in more overall muscle growth in all four heads of the quadriceps (6).

Based on this, switching up your upper body exercises may allow you to develop your upper, middle, and lower portions of your muscles, or, hit all the heads/muscle fibers within that muscle group. You can vary the exercises within a week along with total program re-designs every 4-8 weeks.

Below are some variations of upper body exercises that you can add into your routine:

 

 

Chest

• Incline push-ups
• Decline bench press
• Incline machine press with resistance bands
• DB fly’s
• Cable fly’s (Varying your stance, closer to the machine and stepping further away)

Back

• DB seal row
• Single arm cable row
• Barbell Deadlift
• Standing T-Bar Row
• Pull-ups (Vary your grips- wide, narrow, supinated)

5.) Vary Your Rep Ranges

If you’ve ever had a workout designed here at IIFYM you will see we vary the rep ranges within a session. As discussed, there are greater benefits by using both heavier and light loads into your upper body workouts. By combining the two, we can focus on both upper body power and growth.

While the common ‘8-12’ rep range is effective, research suggests that higher and lower rep ranges can still be beneficial, it also reduces boredom and works multiple aspects of performance (such as strength, power and muscular endurance) (7)!

On top of that, one study showed that varying your rep ranges within a given workout or given week may provide you with some added benefit for muscle growth. Therefore, here at

Therefore, here at IIFYM we believe in order to optimize your upper body training, make sure you vary your rep ranges within a workout or at least on a weekly or monthly basis (8). Yet, remember that without a dialed in diet, muscle growth (hypertrophy) is tough!

One of our coaches can create your Custom Macro Blueprint to help you put on slabs of muscle with minimal fat gain!

Here are some example rep ranges to implement each week:

• Day 1: 6-8RM
• Day 2: 12-14RM
• Day 3: 18-20RM

 

Example Workout Applying All 5 Power Rules!

Exercise	Pair	Sets	Reps	Rest
Barbell Bench Press* 1	1	4	8	2 min.
Barbell Bent Over Row *1	2	4	8	2 min.
Incline DB Press *2	3A	3	10	90 seconds
DB Seal Row*2	3B	3	10	90 seconds
DB Cable Fly’s *2	4	3	10	90 seconds
Single arm cable row *2	5	3	10	90 seconds
Pushups *3	6A	3	20-30	90 seconds
Bodyweight reverse rows *3	6B	3	20-30	60 seconds

*1 = Mechanical Tension
*2 = Exercise Variation/High Total Volume
*3 = Metabolic Stress / Varying Rep Ranges

Wrapping it all up

There you have 5 rules for a powerful upper body routine that can help you increase both upper body power and growth!

• • Start your upper body routine with compound lifts that use heavier loads and target mechanical tension!
  • Next, make sure you add in high rep metabolic days or burnout exercises/sets at the end of your workouts to maximize metabolic stress or the ‘pump’.
  • Volume is another primary driver of muscle hypertrophy. You can increase volume by taking longer rest and doing more reps per set, or, simply adding in more sets per workout or training days per week.
  • Exercise variation may alter muscle activation patterns and promote more overall muscle growth over the long-term. Try to alter your exercise selection within a workout or on a weekly/monthly basis.
  • Lastly, to optimize these adaptations it is essential you are consuming the right diet, specifically calorie intake and the correct amounts of protein. If you are unsure how much protein or total macros/calories you need in each day check out this article here: Protein Requirement, Macro Split, and IIFYM under a Microscope.

 

 

The post 5 Rules for a Powerful Upper Body Workout appeared first on IIFYM.

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7 Actions to Take When You Hit a Weight Loss Plateau

 

Your cutting diet plan has been going extremely well. Over the past few months, you have made significant strides towards your weight loss goal. Then everything changes and your results come to a screeching halt as you reach your first weight loss plateau.

What do you do next?

This is a common point of confusion for many. Should you eat more food, less food, do more cardio, change up your workouts or some combination?

The goal of this article is to provide tips to handle a weight loss plateau in order to break through them and continue progressing towards your weight loss goal.

If you haven’t even started on your journey towards your goal weight, start with our macro calculator!

1. Ensure you are tracking intake accurately

The first action most individuals take when a weight loss plateau occurs is to make drastic changes to their plan. However, prior to changing anything, it is important to confirm that you actually are eating the calories/macros you are targeting. If not, increasing consistency with your nutritional intake should be the first step prior to making adjustments to your plan.

Nutrition Under-Reporting

 

 

Nutrition under-reporting is extremely common. A review of self-reported nutrition data from large nutrition surveys found that intake is commonly under-reported by 18 to 54 percent with certain subgroups under-reporting intake by as much as 70 percent (1).

Similarly, significant under-reporting was observed in a study of overweight middle aged women who declared they had reached a weight loss plateau and could not lose weight on an intake of fewer than 1200 Calories daily (2).

Over the 14 days studied, the women reported an average daily intake of 1053 Calories, but measured intake was actually 2081 Calories on average. This means these women were not accounting for over 1000 Calories daily! They reached a weight loss plateau because they were eating over 2000 calories daily, not because they were a unique case.

I know what you are thinking. The data I’ve presented are from surveys of the general population and obese women, not someone who is experienced in tracking intake accurately like you. However, there is evidence that even well-educated individuals under-report intake.

In a recent study, dietitians did not account for 223 Calories on average (3). However, non-dietitians in this study under-reported intake by around twice as much (429 Calories per day on average).

What this means is that even well-trained, highly educated individuals regularly under report intake. Therefore, it is a good idea for even the most experienced individual to double check tracking accuracy when weight loss plateaus occur.

Where do under-reported calories come from?

Non-tracked calories commonly come from a number of different places including:

• Condiments
• Fruit/Vegetables
• Extra Bits
• Snacks
• Beverages
• Gum
• Vitamins/Supplements
• Any other unaccounted food/beverage providing calories

 

 

It is important that you are measuring portions accurately. One common source of untracked calories is measuring in weight versus volume. For example, the nutrition information on the side of an oatmeal container is listed based upon a weight measurement (e.g. 40g). The label also says this is approximately 1/2 cup.

If you were to measure out ½ cup, it may weigh 60g and provide you with an extra ½ serving of untracked calories.

Along the same lines, ½ serving of peanut butter (16g) is around 1 tablespoon. If you make that tablespoon a heaping tablespoon you could easily have 30g peanut butter or more. That is another 50-100 calories unaccounted for.

Although these small differences do not seem like much, if you are doing them multiple times daily they can add up to the large numbers of under-reported calories observed in the scientific literature. This level of under reporting could definitely contribute to a weight loss plateau.

Cross Checking Macro Entries

Additionally, many people currently track intake using a tracking app. Many of these apps allow individuals to input nutrition information for a food. As a result, some of these entries have errors and some may even have calories listed, but nothing listed for macronutrient content.

Therefore, it is important to double check that what you are entering for the nutrition value of a food is accurate. This can be done by double checking the food label of packaged food or by consulting the USDA Food Composition Database for foods that do not have a nutrition label: http://ift.tt/1T0ZWZM.

If you find that you have been consuming more calories than you thought, the first step is to accurately track intake prior to changing anything. In many cases, tightening up tracking accuracy will be enough to break your weight loss plateau. If it is not and all calories are accurately accounted for then you truly have hit a weight loss plateau and adjustments will be necessary.

2. Double check that you have hit a weight loss plateau

Prior to making any adjustments, it is important to check that you really have hit a weight loss plateau. At first glance, it may seem obvious. If you aren’t losing weight you have hit a weight loss plateau. However, there are a few other details to keep in mind.

How often are you weighing?

 

 

Body weight commonly fluctuates a few pounds daily. This due to a combination of factors such as sleep patterns, hormones, stress, salt intake, water intake, bowel movements, sweat and a number of other factors. However, the daily changes in weight from these factors come primarily from water and intestinal food mass weight, not real tissue weight.

Therefore, it is important to look at averages and trends over time rather than an individual weigh-in when assessing progress. If you weigh-in on Wednesday each week and your weight doesn’t change, it could be due to random daily fluctuation. In this situation, it is entirely possible your weight is trending down on average and you have not hit a weight loss plateau.

However, if you weighed daily and don’t see any loss when comparing weekly averages that is much more indicative of a weight loss plateau.

When are you weighing?

Body weight fluctuates throughout the course of the day. Most individuals find they weigh more at night when they go to bed than when they wake up in the morning. Similarly, I could drink a significant amount of water during a workout and weigh more post-workout than when I arrived at the gym. However, this doesn’t mean I’ve gained body fat as a result of working out.

The rate at which weight is lost should be a balance between quickly enough to keep progress moving so that you don’t drag your cut out indefinitely, but not too fast that you are dieting away excess muscle mass.

For these reasons, it is important that you weigh-in under the same conditions each time you weigh. The easiest way to do this is to weigh-in first thing in the morning before eating or drinking anything on the same scale.

Females – where are you in your cycle?

It is common for a woman’s body weight to fluctuate throughout the course of their monthly cycle. Some women see an increase in body weight due to fluid retention the week prior to their monthly cycle, others see it the week of their cycle and some see no large fluctuation throughout the month. Oftentimes this increase is mistaken as a weight loss plateau.

However, if you are someone who sees an increase in scale weight due to fluid retention at a certain time each month it is important to keep that in mind when assessing progress. For example, if your weight is up on average, but it is the week of your cycle where you typically see an increase you likely have not hit a weight loss plateau.

It will be important to wait until after your monthly cycle to assess progress rather than jumping to potentially unnecessary adjustments since you likely have not reached a weight loss plateau.

Have you consistently hit your nutrition targets?

 

 

This is something I discussed in detail above; however, it is important enough I felt it should be mentioned again. If you are eating above your calorie/macro numbers on a regular basis and not losing weight, it is not because you have hit a weight loss plateau on your current plan.

Prior to making any adjustments, it will be key that you accurately account for everything you are consuming and hit your numbers consistently. In many cases, increasing consistency will be enough to get a break through your weight loss plateau and get weight loss moving again.

Are you adding muscle?

When starting a weight loss journey, it is common to begin incorporating resistance training. If an individual is new to resistance training, it may be possible to add a meaningful amount of muscle while decreasing a meaningful amount of body fat at the same time (4). As an individual becomes a more advanced weightlifter, this may still occur, but not to the same extent as in a beginner.

For those who are lifting weights (especially those new to lifting weights), it is important to use the scale in combination with progress pictures, strength in the gym and how clothes are fitting when evaluating progress.

If you are someone who is new to lifting who is seeing increases in strength, visual change and notice your clothes are fitting differently you likely are seeing changes in body composition due to added muscle. We see this often with our clients and make it apparent that this may be what’s causing their weight to remain constant.

3. Reduce calorie intake

You have ensured you are tracking accurately and your morning weight is not trending down on average. This means you have hit a weight loss plateau and adjustments will be needed in order to get your weight trending down again.

Since energy balance is the difference between the calories you eat and the calories you are expending, one easy way to create a negative energy balance is to reduce calorie intake.

Size of Calorie Adjustment

 

 

A calorie adjustment typically does not have to be extremely large to break through a weight loss plateau. Oftentimes, a reduction of 50 – 150 Calories daily may be enough to get loss moving again. If you’re still having trouble with your diet plan, our coaches will dial in your approach with a Custom Macro Blueprint.

For those tracking macros, this will primarily be achieved through a reduction in carbohydrate and fat because an adequate protein intake is important to prevent muscle loss in a fat loss phase (5). Ideally, adjustments should be made until the target rate of weight loss is achieved once again.

Target Rate of Weight Loss

The rate at which weight is lost should be a balance between quickly enough to keep progress moving so that you don’t drag your cut out indefinitely, but not too fast that you are dieting away excess muscle mass. Even if you are not lifting weights, your goal during a fat loss phase should be to retain muscle mass because this will result in the greatest change in body composition.

The maximum average weekly rate of loss to minimize muscle loss will depend upon an individual’s body composition:

• Overweight – Up to 1.5% of body weight weekly
• Average Body Composition – Up to 1.0% of body weight weekly
• Extremely Lean – Up to 0.5% of body weight weekly

In addition to increasing muscle loss, large adjustments may also reduce dietary compliance if intake is adjusted too low. Ultimately, you want to achieve your target rate of loss with an energy deficit that you can sustain consistently.

As discussed above, without consistency, you likely will not see progress towards your weight loss goal.

4. Increase NEAT

Energy expenditure makes up the other side of the energy balance equation. However, energy expenditure is not as simple as energy intake.

An individual’s total daily energy expenditure is a combination of their basal metabolic rate (the energy required for basic bodily functions to stay alive), exercise activity, the thermic effect of food (roughly 10 percent of energy consumed is used to digest and absorb the food you eat) and non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) (6).

What is NEAT?

 

 

NEAT is all of the movement done outside of the gym. This includes voluntary movements such as those done at work or around the house and involuntary movements such as fidgeting. The amount of energy expended from NEAT can vary by up to 2000 Calories between individuals of a similar size due to differences in occupation and daily activity (7).

Much like reductions in calorie intake, increases in cardio when a weight loss plateau occurs often times do not need to be large in order to see weight loss.

Based on these results, it is clear that staying active during daily life is key to keeping energy expenditure high.

What happens to NEAT during weight loss?

During dieting, NEAT is reduced and contributes to weight loss plateaus (8). Some of this reduction is voluntary. Oftentimes individuals feel more sluggish while dieting and in response move less; however, this reduces NEAT contributing to weight loss plateaus.

On the other hand, some of the reduction in NEAT is out of our control. For example, dieting individuals start fidgeting less without being aware that it is occurring.

Therefore, it is important to stay active outside of the gym to keep NEAT elevated and prevent weight loss plateaus. This doesn’t necessarily need to be anything extreme, but a conscious effort to be active during daily life can go a long way, especially if you are finding that you tend to be less active as your cut progresses.

How do I increase NEAT?

If you are struggling to increase NEAT, studies have shown that use of a pedometer to track steps increases physical activity levels (9). If you need more information on how to increase your NEAT then one of our experienced coaches can build your Custom Macro Blueprint.

Therefore, it may not be a bad idea to track steps and have a daily step minimum during a fat loss phase in order to keep NEAT high, especially if you find that you are not active outside of the gym.

5. Add formal cardio

In addition to increasing energy expenditure through activity outside the gym (NEAT), energy expenditure can also be increased through activity inside the gym. This is typically done by increasing the amount of cardio an individual is doing in the gym.

How much cardio?

 

 

Much like reductions in calorie intake, increases in cardio when a weight loss plateau occurs often times do not need to be large in order to see weight loss. Ultimately, the amount of formal cardio you are doing should be something you can stay consistent with and realistically fit into your schedule.

In addition, it is important to pick a type of cardio you enjoy as this will likely keep you more consistent. Our clients have found it easier to meld this addition into their current routine.

What type of cardio?

For those who lift weights, excessive amounts of cardio may interfere with muscle size and strength gains (10), especially experienced lifters (11). Higher intensities of cardio may reduce this interference because high-intensity cardio provides a more similar training stimulus to weight lifting than lower intensity forms of cardio.

However, high-intensity forms of cardio can be more difficult to recover from. Therefore, it will be best to pick a combination of high intensity and steady-state cardio that you are able to recover from and consistently perform.

Ultimately, the goal of added cardio and reductions in calorie intake are to achieve the target rate of weight loss in a way that you can stay consistent with in order to break through your weight loss plateau.

6. Take a break from dieting

I know what you are thinking. You have hit a weight loss plateau and your goal is further weight loss, why would I be telling you to take a break from dieting? However, there are a few reasons for this.

For those who have been dieting for a while, you may have noticed that your motivation has taken a hit from the prolonged restraint and low energy intake. If this has gotten to the point where your reduced consistency is the primary reason you have hit a weight loss plateau, a break from dieting may be the answer to increasing consistency.

Refeed Days

This break from dieting can be approached in a number of different ways. Some individuals will incorporate a refeed day each week during a weight loss phase. During a refeed day, caloric intake is increased to around maintenance typically through an increase in carbohydrates.

 

 

Refeed days can be beneficial for a number of reasons including increased performance in the gym during a hard workout and most importantly a mental break from as much restriction for a day.

One thing to note is that if an individual is going to incorporate a refeed day, caloric intake over the rest of the week will need to be reduced in order to keep weekly energy balance constant.

For example, if an individual consumes an extra 600 calories on their refeed day, 100 calories will need to be removed from the other days of the week to keep weekly energy intake constant in order to keep weight loss to continue.

Diet Break

Many times, a break longer than a single day may be necessary in order to have the mental break necessary to increase consistency. In this case, an extended diet break may be the answer. During a diet break, calories are increased to around your current maintenance for a period of time (often times ranging from a week to a couple of months).

…the key to long-term sustained progress is embracing the process and rolling with the punches rather than stressing about every little thing.

This will allow you to maintain your current weight and provide you a mental break prior to dropping back into an energy deficit. For many individuals, a diet break can be very effective for increasing motivation and consistency once they are back in an energy deficit, ultimately resulting in more weight loss long-term.

In addition, metabolic adaptation occurs during an energy deficit for a number of reasons including (6):

• Lean mass loss
• Reduction in food intake / thermic effect of food
• Reduced NEAT
• Decreased hormones such as leptin, insulin, thyroid, estrogen, and testosterone
• Increased mitochondrial efficiency
• Increased gut microbe nutrient extraction

The result of these adaptations is a reduced energy expenditure and weight loss plateau.

Fortunately, these adaptations are not permanent. Once an individual increases energy intake these outcomes will trend in the opposite direction and metabolic rate will increase once again. Whether this results in additional and/or easier weight loss once an individual drops into an energy deficit again requires further research.

 

 

However, there is some evidence that incorporating a diet break in a weight loss intervention does not have an effect on the total weight lost during the intervention (12).

One important thing to note is that a diet break is not a free-for-all. It will be in your best interest to continue tracking intake during your diet break in order to prevent weight re-gain. This way you can pick back up right where you left off following your diet break rather than having to lose a significant amount of regained weight.

However, assuming body weight gain is kept in check during a diet break, it can be an effective tool to increase adherence to the diet once you go back into an energy deficit, break through your weight loss plateau and see more progress long-term.

7. Don’t stress

When the first weight loss plateau occurs, a common reaction is to stress out about the lack of progress. However, if this stress is elevated to a certain point, it may start to affect progress.

Fitness should be something that enhances your life, not takes away from it. You have chosen to lose weight and nobody should be forcing you to do so. If you are stressing about progress to the point it is taking away from your quality of life it may be important to re-evaluate why you are losing weight in the first place.

Weight loss will not fix other issues going on in your life. This is highly stressed with any of our clients that get deeper into their caloric deficit.

If you are an unhappy person, having a 6 pack will only make you an unhappy person with a 6 pack. One thing that is important to ensure is that you are losing weight for the right reasons, not as an escape from other issues going on in your life. Those issues will still be there once you have lost the weight unless they are appropriately addressed.

Additionally, if you stress about the scale to the point it makes you dislike the process you are likely going to be less consistent. As mentioned many times previously throughout this article, if you are not consistent you will not see as much progress.

Patience with the Process

Therefore, the key to long-term sustained progress is embracing the process and rolling with the punches rather than stressing about every little thing.

When a weight loss plateau occurs, stay calm, double check that your intake is tracked accurately and that you truly hit a weight loss plateau. If so, make adjustments to energy intake, formal cardio and your activity outside of the gym to achieve your target rate of loss once again.

Keep these adjustments to a place you can sustain and that isn’t incredibly stressful to do so, yet where you are seeing progress towards your goal as well. Ultimately, by taking things in stride you will not only stay more consistent and see more progress but also be a much a happier individual while doing so.

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