How to Look Your Best This Summer
Time is definitely not waiting for anybody. Who would’ve have guessed March would come by so quickly? Now, we’re just a month away until it’s the season of sun, freedom, and adventure– summer. The big question here is: are you physically ready for it?
Let’s admit that all of us would want to look our best for summer. Vacation entails traveling, and traveling entails taking a lot of pictures. And it’s not even about just looking good actually; it’s about feeling good about one’s self. No insecurity, all confidence. I, personally, am not quite beach-body ready. Luckily, we still have some time to achieve our desired body and the 70-30 fitness rule could do just the trick.
What is the 70-30 fitness rule?
The rule simply tells you that, in order to be fit, you need to exert 70% effort on your diet and 30% on your workout. Think of it this way: If you exercise too much yet you don’t watch what you’re eating, it will just be a waste. Some food can be really hard to burn. If you eat a Big Mac, it will take one solid hour of jogging. So unless you have the time burn those calories down, eating mindlessly is a big no-no. That is why 70% of your focus should be on what your body is digesting.
If you don’t know how the 70-30 rule works, here are some pointers you might want to keep in mind:
70% Diet
First things first, you should determine your goal: do you want to lose weight or maintain it? It’s important to know what body you desire because this will affect your eating habit greatly. Let’s start with losing weight.
A lot of self-control is needed when you want to lose weight. Mostly it’s because you have to lessen or completely forego many types of food you’re probably used to eating. To name some:
Carbohydrates
Examples are white rice and white bread. As Filipinos, we love rice so much; it’s hard to not eat our main course without it. Sadly, it’s one of the main source of weight gain and obesity. White bread also has the same effect.
You can opt to replace your typical household rice with brown rice or substitute it with Quinoa.
Sweets
This one is pretty obvious. Cakes, ice creams, candies, whipped cream, and so forth. As a guy who has a sweet tooth, staying away from sweets is the hardest. Needless to say that all these food has very high sugar content, which, without a doubt, will turn into stubborn-hard-to-get-rid-of abdominal fat.
Dark Chocolate is a good alternative if you really can’t resist the temptation. This may be healthy, but don’t forget to limit your consumption, too!
Sweetened Drinks
Artificial juices (whether it says it’s healthy or not) and sodas are the ones you should really stay clear of. Not only do they have high calorie content, they also give little to none nutrients to your body. These drinks are likely to cause diabetes, obesity, cancer, and other detrimental ailments.
Help yourself by removing these junks from your life and go with tea or water instead. There will be notable changes once you start doing this.
Beer
Drinking moderately isn’t bad. Drinking a lot, on the other hand, is quite alarming. Studies show that drinking one bottle of beer is equivalent to eating seven slices of bread. It is definitely not normal to eat that much bread in one sitting; how much more if you drink up to six bottles of beer! This is precisely why “beer bellies” came to be.
Stop drinking beer (or lessen it) and you’ll avoid rapid weight gain and/or liver problems. Try drinking wine next time (again, not too much).
Fast Food
Processed food in general contain so many artificial flavours, sodium, sugar, fats, etc. It is understandable that fast food are much cheaper and convenient, which is why most people buy them. However, it is a big, big factor as to why people are having heart problems. Processed food contain so much harmful substances that it takes several hours just to burn down one slice of pizza or one serving of fries.
Do yourself a favor and try cooking at home. At least it is healthier and you would know the nutritional content. If you don’t have the time, order salads or healthy sandwiches to-go.
Dried Fruits
Although they are made from real fruits, some variations have been processed and added with so much sugar that it is similar to a candy. The nutritional value could still be there, but you don’t need that especially if there’s too much sugar that goes along with it.
Dried fruits are usually expensive, too. Buy real fruits at your market, instead. It is way cheaper and it’s all natural.
Those are just some examples and there are definitely more food you need to double-check before eating.
Now, all those above mentioned are pro-losing weight. But if you just want to maintain your weight, there’s really not much limitation when it comes to the food you are eating. The only concern here is the serving proportion. Here’s a life hack you might want to follow per meal:
For Men – hold up both hands
1. Protein – serving size should be as big as palm (this includes the thickness!)
2. Veggies – serving size should be as big as your closed fist.
3. Carbs – serving size should be as big as your cupped hand (begging gesture).
4. Fat – serving size should be as big as your thumb.
For Women – hold up only one hand
1. Protein – serving size should be as big as palm (this includes the thickness!)
2. Veggies – serving size should be as big as your closed fist.
3. Carbs – serving size should be as big as your cupped hand (begging gesture).
4. Fat – serving size should be as big as your thumb.
Note that two hands should be used for men. Meaning, protein consumption should be equal to two of your palms, two closed fists, two cupped hands, and so on. For women, it’s really just one hand. You do this proportion hack per meal and it’s advisable to eat three meals a day.
30% Workout
On to the less tortuous part: working out. This part is more or less straight-forward. After implementing a diet plan, doing concrete actions like exercising should follow. This will give you the chance to tone your body and burn down excess fats.
Do any steps necessary to keep your body moving. Hit the gym, take the stairs instead of the elevator, walk to your destination if it doesn’t really require using a car, and many more. There are a lot of ways you can do to build those muscles.
Discipline
Living this kind of lifestyle will not be easy. I could vouch for that since refraining from food is the hardest thing to do. But if we really want to look our best and feel great this summer, it’s definitely a sacrifice we have to make.
Beach-body ready, here we come!
Sources: healthyeating.sfgate.com | authoritynutrition.com | www.mensfitness.com | brightside.me | www.health24.com
