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There is one thing that we all learned in high school biology that can be applied to fitness. I know there is more than one thing if you want to be technical, but I am referring to the scientific method. To help jog your memory, it was a 5-6 step process to solve a problem that looked something like this: 1. Ask a question 2. Do background research 3. Construct a hypothesis 4. Test your hypothesis by doing an experiment 5. Analyze results and draw a conclusion

You really don’t have to fire your nutritionist but you may feel like it if they haven’t told you what I’m going to tell you. People spend billions of dollars each year on advice on what to eat. They try all these new “miracle” diets that promise to lower your waistline, give you energy, etc. If they only knew that it boils down to a few simple foods. Meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, and nuts. That’s it. Throw in some eggs and call it a day. It’s so easy a caveman could do it…wait they did.

Every year millions of people begin an exercise program at one point or another. The most popular by far is New Years. It is cold outside, people have put on their extra holiday pounds, and they are determined to change their bodies. They start off strong the first week of January and continue doing well until the end of the month. February comes around and the gym crowd starts to die down slightly. Within a few weeks everything is back to normal. So why do 90% of them fail? It all boils down to their mindset. As I’ve said many times before, discipline of the body begins with discipline of the mind. Your reality will shift when your mind changes.

I covered the thermic effect of food very briefly in an earlier post about raising your metabolism. This post will be a little more in depth about one of the factors that can help raise your metabolism. The thermic effect of food is the amount of calories it takes to process (digest, transport, and store) the nutrients you intake. It is typically responsible for 10% of the calories your expend on a daily basis. So even though it can contribute to weight loss over time, your main focus should be on exercise and a clean diet.

Ok, it may be a little quantum physics but it is not rocket science. If you aren’t scientifically inclined there is no need to worry, I will break it down easily for you. In physics many people are familiar with the Law of Thermodynamics. There are four laws in the Law of Thermodynamics; however we can sum it up in a very brief sentence as it applies to weight loss. Simply stated, the reduction of body fat will take place when there is more energy being burned than consumed. It is really that simple. The only way to lose weight is to create a calorie deficit. This is very important for people out there who are exercising but aren’t seeing results. Somehow you are consuming more calories than you are expending. The next question is how can you burn more calories than you take in? Let me share with you a couple of successful ways: