Trying to lose my gut. Advice please.

[abarrenfuture]

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Also, kill your abs every night. They are the one muscle group you can work pretty much every day and not have any ill affects.

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This is very wrong, your abs are muscles just the same as your biceps, delts, lats etc. Overtraining your abs isn't a good idea, they need just as much recovery as any other muscle group.

[Jeff P]

I will share with you some tips that helped me get back in shape and lose 50 pounds a couple years ago.

1) I believe that to lose body fat is really as simple as burning more calories than you intake. As has been alluded to in previous posts, the calories you intake should be more nutritious.
- Cut out snacks that are high in saturated fat and have high GI indexes. This is the no-brainer part: cut out sugary sodas, candy, potato chips etc.

2) I changed my eating habits from 3 big meals / day to 5-6 smaller meals, and this helped keep me from feeling hungry. I reccommend (if it is feasible) that you eat something every 2-3 hours.
- I personally started the day with a protein shake, had a fruit or yogurt snack mid-morning, good nutritious lunch, and a mid-afternoon protein bar. I would do my workouts after work, then I would go home and have a good lowfat dinner.
- It is reccommended that you wait at least 1 hour after your workout before you eat again, to give your body some time to work on burning fat reserves. An exception is that if you are lifting weights to gain muscle, drink a protein shake immediately after you finish your workout to provide your body plenty of raw material for muscle repair.

3) Stick with your program, don't cheat yourself. Willpower is the number one factor in your success. If you "fall off the wagon" and pig out on a extra large pizza and ice cream, don't let it discourage you. Pick yourself up and get back on the program tomorrow. But don't rationalize too much "oh I'll just have this one snack then I'll get back on my diet". That type of attitude tends to snowball and will wreck all the hard work you're doing.

4) Include cardio exercise in addition to weight training. They are both essential. The cardio exercise helps to raise your body's metabolism, while the weight training helps build muscle. As you know, increasing the amount of lean muscle mass in your body will increase the number of calories your body uses to "break even" (called the BMR - basal metabolic rate).

I had really good success following the Body for Life program, and I do not hesitate to reccommend it to anyone. Good luck to you.

[Shajen]

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[ QUOTE ]
Also, kill your abs every night. They are the one muscle group you can work pretty much every day and not have any ill affects.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is very wrong, your abs are muscles just the same as your biceps, delts, lats etc. Overtraining your abs isn't a good idea, they need just as much recovery as any other muscle group.

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yeah, I have no idea what I'm talking about.