Have you ever seen a fat athlete? I have...lots of them. They often wonder why, when they train so much and so hard, they carry excess fat. Easy answer...they eat like crap. I've seen many an athlete not fuel during key training times when they need to and then overeat on fast food later. Wing night, the McD's combo, or even something they think is healthy (Keg ceasar salad)that is loaded down with too much fat or empty calories. Don't kid yourself into thinking that as long as you work out you can eat anything!

So what's really important, as an athlete, is to treat your body like a premium machine. Obviously you want to fuel well and avoid the overfeeding on so called "food" that has lots of calories but little to no nutrient content. The key to feeling great, performing well and looking amazing is what you consume. What you eat will affect everything from your energy and moods to your sleep and appetite. You want health and performance...don't sabotage it with poor eating. http://blog.karischneider.com  

Not an athlete? Check this out...a 2009 study by Willis, Smith and Willis looked at what frequency of exercise it takes in order to lose fat. They had overweight sedentary subjects exercise 30 minutes continuously. They had a control group do nothing, a group do 2x/week, a group do 2-3x/wk and a group do 4x/week. They had to perform exercise at least 70% of their Max HR. They did this for 8 weeks. Results... yup. The group that did nothing gained a pound of fat. The 2x and 2-3x groups lost a few pounds of fat but not significant. It was the 4x/week group that had the significant fat loss. Whoa! It took 4x/week in overweight sedentary people (easiest group to get results from) for significant fat loss! What do you think it will take for regular exercisers or athletes?!? Wake up call everyone! You want to lose fat and you already train intensely? Guess what? You MUST change your lifestyle and what you eat.

So what do you do? Here are some tips that have impacted me, my clients, and my athletes the most (and it's backed by research)...

1. Get enough sleep. When you are over-tired you WILL crave sugar. Even if you are not into sweets you won't realize that you will want and will consume extra calories. The sleep will also facilitate your training recovery.

2. Hydrate. Have you ever eatin a large meal and then drink a couple cups of water after because you are thirsty, only to find you then feel WAY over full? Sometimes when you get a hunger signal you are actually thirsty. Try this tip...always drink water before and after your meal. I drink 4oz before and 4 oz after. This will help you feel full and know it is not from dehydration.

3. Processed? Chuck it. First, stop buying the prepackaged processed crap that really does nothing good for you other than make you crave more salt or sugar. Second, get rid of what is in your home. Chips, crackers, tater tots, lunchables, candy... I don't care what just chuck it. If you need to lose fat for health or performance and it is in your house, don't rely on willpower to stop you from eating it when you are hungry! Get it out of the house!

4. Eat Fat. The good stuff. Make sure you have good fats in every meal. This can be unsaturated (mono and poly), and even some saturated too. Try to stick with the good stuff that will give you some omega-3 fatty acids (healthy) and consume this regularly. Fats from nuts, olive oil, fish oils, avacado etc. These fats are good for you and will help you feel satiated after a meal and keep you feeling full longer. I eat between 10-20grams of fat with each meal!

5. Lean Protein with Every Meal. This will also help you feel full longer and give you the much needed protein necessary for all the body's resynthesis. Athletes this is a must especially if you are losing fat. You need to be eating good lean proteins and healthy fat in order to help prevent your body from chowing down on your own muscle tissue!

6. Calories from Food not Drink. If you are trying to lose fat, then get all of your calories from what you eat. It will give you more nutrient dense calories and leave you more satisfied and feeling full longer. Cut the sugar and cream from coffees, leave the juices behind and pop is a no no. The only exception are the recovery drinks and/or your protein shakes blended with lots of good food so it is a meal.

7. 4-6 meals/day every 2-4 hours. Eating regularly allows you to keep you metabolism high while stabilizing your blood sugar and giving you regular calories for performance.

8. Lots (I mean lots) of veggies (and fruits) every meal. Vegetables and fruits are the most amazing foods. If they advertised like the cereal companies or pop companies they would not have enough time to say all the great things about them. You need them...for nutrients, anti-oxidents, carbohydrates, and more. These are the foods that give you the MOST bang for your buck. Get them in season if possible and don't be afraid to try new things. Raw is my fave.

9. Whoa Nelly...Don't overeat. Sometimes our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. Overeating at many meals/week is one of the biggest issues I see in athletes and clients. We are not designed to eat supersized portions. Furthermore, our bodies are efficient so if you do eat too much it will get stored as fat. It will also leave you feeling bad not only psychologically but physically too! And if you think you'll burn it off by adding an extra 10 minutes to your workout...think again- it takes some intense training for an hour to burn off the extra 600 calories you consummed. Try eating slowly and focusing on your food to slow down the amount you consume and take smaller portions.

10. Plan for the weak moments. You know, when your favorite (horrible for you) food is lurking at a social event or unexpectedly gets gifted to you. Have an emergency plan. That could be as drastic as giving it or throwing it away. It could be having your meal before an event so you are less tempted by food that won't help you toward your goal. Whatever the situation is you know that "life" will happen and you need to be prepared for it!

I know how it feels to be trying really hard to reach a fat-loss goal and have moments of weakness or downright failure. The important thing is that you are consistently passing with high grades. The occasional slip up will not ruin 4 days of good eating. But if you notice every meal is laden with "treats" or unrecognizable from its original form (processed beyond all recognition) then you know you are not getting a passing grade. Check out my first diet experience http://blog.karischneider.com  and get eating the way you know your body wants you to!!