Burn Baby Burn!

We're going to shake things up and concentrate on the fitness side of things this week. With summer fast approaching even the most hard core bankers, traders and brokers are going to hit the beach, the tennis court, or the golf course. In order to dominate on the courts or the course and look good on the beach, we're all going to burn some of that lingering winter flab. The next few posts will address just that.

Here are some basic laws that will get us going. Later I'll inject a meal and training plan as well.

1. Kick calories: This one's really simple. To burn a lot of fat, you must eat fewer calories than your body is used to. When the body doesn't receive the amount of calories it is accustomed to, it starts to consume fat stores. If you exercise 3-5 days per week, that means you burn 18 calories per pound per day. So a 200 lb guy would normally take in 3600 calories per day. Shoot for 3000 calories.

How? Cut out butter, salad dressings and oils and bad fats. You'll be shocked by how easy it is to do and by how fast the calories drop. Steak eaters rejoice! You can still eat flank steaks, just steer clear of the marbled cuts. Remove skin from chicken. Stick to egg whites for a week or two.

2. Cut Carbs: Carbohydrates have a huge impact on hormones that control fat burning. By suppressing the hormones that help the body store fat, you will see a drop in body fat. Carbohydrates increase insulin production. Insulin hinders fat break down. Fewer carbs=less insulin=fat loss.

Bad Carbs: Fast digesting carbs, i.e. white bread, white rice, sweets, potatoes.
Good Carbs: Slow digesting, i.e. whole grains, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, etc.

3. Pack on Protein: Protein builds muscle. Period. Muscle building boosts your metabolism. Our bodies burn more calories when they process protein than fat or carbs. You should try to eat about 1 gram of protein per pound of body fat each day. Chicken breast, fish, lean beef, whey protein, low fat milk, nuts, cottage cheese, eggs. All these are solid sources.

4. No Carbs before bed: This one's a toughie! I love some chips and salsa in front of the late night tube as much as the next person. But from what we just learned about insulin, the late night carb craves are detrimental to our mission of fighting flab. Nighttime is when our bodies produce a lot of growth hormone which is key in muscle growth. If you hit the chips and crackers before bed you'll drive up your blood glucose (carbs in your blood) and hurt your body's ability to produce growth hormone and burn fat. Got the munchies? Have some sting cheese or a protein shake. Some great places to shop for high quality whey protein at terrific prices are www.AllTheWhey.com or www.supplementwarehouse.com or just hit the nearest GNC.

5. Eat more: I know guys who come into work and blast through the first 3-4 hours on caffeine alone. A jumbo latte from SBUX, and that's it until they're starving around noon. Result? A trip to Chipotle (including a huge bag of chips and salsa with large soda) followed by the inevitable insulin crash around 3 pm. No good! Each time you eat your body's fat burning mechanism (metabolism) increases. So if eating (nutritious power foods, that is) jumpstarts your metabolism, it stands to reason that you'd be better off eating more often. Try to eat 6-8 small meals per day 2-3 hours apart. When you wait longer your body goes into "starvation mode" and stores fat to compensate. Plus, when you're absolutely famished, you are more likely to hit the feed bag extra hard, especially with carbs and starches that make us feel fuller. Just make sure to evenly space your caloric intake accordingly. 6-8 meals means eating about 400 calories per meal. Don't forget a healthy dose of protein!

6. Post workout feeding: Body fat is tough to gain right after a workout. This is because your muscles are depleted and are busy gobbling up carbs and protein to recover. Don't eat too little after you train or you could do damage to your body's recovery process. Get 30-40 grams of protein from a shake (Muscle Milkor Myoplex are good or the dozens of whey protein shakes out there) plus a baked potato (hold the butter and sour cream!). I'm also a fan of guzzling a 20 oz Gatorade most nights, especially after heavy cardio.

7. Easy does it: Don't over train. People kill themselves and do dozens of sets and 60 minutes of cardio every single day. In the words of ESPN's Lee Corso; Not so fast my friend! Train till you're tired, not dead. Overtraining can hamper your anabolic hormones. Remember, muscle mass helps fat loss. It is the main driver of your metabolism. By all means, bring the noise while you workout, but after 60-75 minutes you're just breaking down muscle and inhibiting growth hormone.

That covers it. Later this week I'll provide a good workout routine and meal plan.

Till next time. Watch your calories. Watch your workout routine. And keep watching that ticker!