Stop Exercising to Earn Food! (and what to do instead)
If you’ve ever felt like you needed to hit the gym so you could enjoy a dinner at your favorite restaurant or drinks with friends, we’re about to change everything! It’s time to stop exercising to earn food and start seeing better results—while banishing the guilt!
We’ve all seen the memes and t-shirts...
I run so I can eat cake.
I run so I can eat cookies.
I run so I can eat.
It’s time for us to change the narrative...
I run to celebrate what my body can do!
I run to get (or stay!) fit!
I run for fun!
If you approach nutrition with a “calories in, calories out” mindset, it would make sense to burn off the calories you plan to eat. The truth is, if you’re exercising in order to “earn” your food or “punish” your body for something you ate, you’re not doing yourself any favors.
HERE’S WHY
Our bodies are not simple machines, which means “calories in, calories out” doesn’t work quite like we might expect. Calorie burn is affected by more than just exercise output. It’s also affected by metabolic rate and hormones, which can’t be accounted for in a simple math equation. Not only that, we’re typically not very good at estimating calories—we tend to overestimate the calories burned by exercise and underestimate the calories we consume.
One of the most important reasons to avoid “earning” your food is to foster a more positive relationship with food and exercise. When you feel like food has to be earned you may start associating it with guilt or shame, and you may start to view exercise more as a punishment rather than a way to stay strong and fit.
THERE’S A BETTER WAY
Rather than focusing on calories, focus on the proper nutrition your body needs and wants! Eat balanced macronutrients, focus on intermittent fasting, and cycle your carbohydrates to burn more fat.
Balanced Macronutrients
Macronutrients, or macros, are the carbs, fats, and proteins that make up the food we eat. When we consume them in balanced ratios, our bodies have the proper amount of energy to fuel our activity without storing excess energy (or fat) for later use. Try using a free app such as MyFitnessPal to calculate your body’s nutritional needs and track your macros.
Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting isn’t a diet, it’s simply an eating schedule with a set window for consuming food and another window for withholding food. A typical schedule is to fast for 16 hours each day and consume all macros within an eight-hour period. This doesn’t just promote fat loss, but a whole host of benefits including improved brain health, increased gut health, better cellular health, and so much more.
Carb Cycling
Carb cycling is a highly effective way to burn fat by harnessing the power of science-backed nutrition. By consuming low carbs just a couple of times each week, you can teach your body to tap into your fat stores and burn it for fuel. Coupled with a strategic exercise regimen, fat will simply melt off your body!
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
Balanced macros, intermittent fasting, and carb cycling are all strategies backed by science as well as countless men and women who have combined their power to burn fat, get well, prevent disease, and fulfill their purpose with ENERGY.
You don’t have to spend weeks researching each of these strategies just to end up with more questions than you had when you started. At the FASTer Way, we’ll guide you through the simple daily habits that will help you burn fat through a healthy lifestyle that works for everyone—even busy people!
Join us for the next round. We’re starting soon and we can’t wait to join you on your journey to better health with our proven strategies that work for everyone from fitness fanatics to those taking their first step. We can’t wait to watch you thrive with energy!
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