Do you know how to burn body fat?

  • Do you know what foods tell your body to burn body fat?
  • Do you know what foods make you fat and unhealthy?
  • Did you know that fruit can make you fat and raise your trigylcerides?
  • Did you know that no matter how much you exercise, you may never see your muscles if your diet isn’t on track?

www.yourdailyworkout.com

Well, if you don’t know the above, chances are you’re wasting your time in the gym. It’s time you learn what works. 80% of any fat loss is the result of a fat loss diet. Come to my nutrition workshop and in an hour you will learn everything you’ll ever need to know about how to take your body from flab to fab.

Learn what foods stimulate fat burning, fill you up, and what foods create disease. Learn how to put meals together, how to eradicate sweet cravings, improve your digestion and get great, clear skin. And, walk away with a plan that will help you drop 10 lbs in the first month. No crash dieting necessary.

Tuesday, May 21st at 6.30pm-7.30pm
Stepping Out Studios, 37 W. 26th Street (between Broadway and 6th Ave), 9th floor
Fee: $25

Sign up here

I look forward to seeing you!

Cheers, Ariane

Lose Fat in 24 hours

In the past weeks quite a few boot campers have taken on a new challenge to increase their fat burning. It seems the word is spreading as every week I see more and more people trying it out for themselves. They take the Monday 6.30am class, then the 6.30pm class, then come back 11 hours later on Tuesday at 6.30am. Some have even dropped into the Tuesday 6.30pm class for a 4th workout in 2 days. How did this all start? I think I have to blame Preethi for this, who writes an educational and fun blog called “The Skinny on Manhattan”. Preethi has been taking Slim & Strong on and off for ages and she’s a true convert when it comes to taking care of her fab physique and eating clean. In her blog she writes about how to enjoy Manhattan without getting fat (yes, really that’s possible). In an effort to lose fat fast, we developed an approach that she would take when she had to work of a few extra pounds fast. You can read about her approach here, which she calls the “Quickie Blubber Burn“.
Here’s how it works: You work out for 3 hours in 24 hours and keep your carbohydrate intake very low. When you have little energy coming in from carbs, and when you burn off stored energy in your body with workouts, then your body is forced to shift to fat burning mode. The fat will come from stored body fat and that’s when the shape of your body changes. 
source: www.allposters.com
You can do this on your own by simply eliminating all foods that contain sugar and starch. What’s left is 5 daily meals – balanced with a decent amount of protein (about the size and thickness of your palm) from fish, turkey, chicken, eggs, protein powder, low-fat diary (the latter in moderation) and pair it with loads of veggies. It’s hard to overdo it on veggies because they are very low in carbs, so eat your heart out. 
The result is a balanced blood sugar level which creates balanced energy, reduces food cravings, and keeps inflammation at bay. You’ll also notice you’ll sleep better throughout the night, no longer have energy roller coasters throughout the day and your mood is more balanced. In the long run your skin is clearer and your concentration better. Need I list more good things or are you convinced yet this isn’t just all about vanity? 
A balanced blood sugar level also means that you are allowing the hormone glucagon to kick in, which signals your body to burn body fat. If you feed on sugar and starches frequently, then you’re preventing this hormone from doing its job. 
Here are a few suggestions on how you can structure your meals during this Fast Fat Burning Day. 
Eat breakfast within an hour of getting up, 2-3 hours later a snack, lunch 2-3 hours later, then another snack 2-3 hours later and for dinner drink a protein shake only. 
Breakfast:
  • 3 eggs with veggies (omelet or fritatta) or 
  • Protein Shake with whey protein, water, ice and a little bit of fruit, or 
  • Greek yogurt non-fat with berries
Snack: 
  • Protein Shake or 
  • Greek yogurt or 
  • Turkey rolled up with celery or
  • Carrots and hummus or
  • Veggies (bell peppers, carrots, snap peas, celery)
Lunch:
Mixed green salad with tuna or salmon or grilled chicken or
Grilled chicken with veggies or
Grilled fish with veggies or
Soup (clear broth) with veggies and chicken
Dinner:
Protein Shake mixed with water, ice and protein powder. Add half an avocado to stay full longer. 
If you have blood sugar fluctuations you’ll benefit from drinking a casein protein shake. Casein is the type of protein in cottage cheese, which forms a curd in your stomach and slowly releases protein over time. Thus keeping you full longer. You can also buy the Probolic Whey Protein, which is a protein blend of fast releasing, medium-speed releasing and slow-releasing proteins. That means that some proteins will get to your muscles fast, while others take hours to get there. This one’s ideal before bedtime. 
Taking in very little carbs at night ensures that your body turns to stored body fat for energy throughout the night. When you wake up in the morning, you have used up your glycogen stores in the muscles and liver and will be running on empty for the most part. When you then work out you will use body fat for energy. You may feel a bit low on energy at first but you can train your body to become efficient at fat burning if you do this on a regular basis.
This approach is not recommended for anyone with low body fat. If there is little body fat to burn the body turns to muscle for energy, which is detrimental. Also, if you are a distance runner and plan on running for longer than an hour, then this approach is not recommended either as with distance training your body will likely also burn muscle as energy and not much body fat. 
Give it a go and see excess bloat disappear and feel lighter just within a day.

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Food Coma After Thanksgiving. How do I get back on track?

Ariane, I was hoping not to have to send you an email like this but my Thanksgiving meal turned out to be the biggest meal I’ve had in a long time. As a result I feel bloated, heavy, tired and lethargic even two days later. How do I get back on track fast and get rid of this awful feeling?

Thanks, Michelle

Michelle,

welcome to the real world. One of the reasons I didn’t post a blog on how to handle Thanksgiving was that it is the meal when almost everyone overdoes it to some extent. Too much starch, too much sugar, too much booze (to drown out the relatives…), and the stress of the travel that goes along with it. The meal should be enjoyed and what’s the point of restricting it too much if it has such a strong emotional connection. I’m by no means suggesting everyone should gorge themselves on whatever is presented on the table, but I’m also not assuming that people don’t have the common sense to know what’s appropriate and what not to eat. It’s not like it’s your first Thanksgiving, right?

So, here’s your best course of action next time it comes to sitting at a huge dinner table and being presented with so many options. And, I’ll also tell you how to get rid of the bloat fast.

Ideally, you want to exercise before eating a big meal. Exercise uses first your blood sugar and then glycogen as energy. Glycogen is the energy that is stored in your muscles and liver and supplies you with about 2,000 calories worth of energy. So, on Thanksgiving morning you want to head out for that Turkey Trot or put in a heavy-duty strength training workout to empty your glycogen stores. Once they’re empty, your body starts burning stored body fat for energy. In your case, you’re getting ready to hit the Thanksgiving table and refill those glycogen stores. Depending on your choices you can either keep your body in fat burning mode or put it into fat storage mode.

There are great choices in a Thanksgiving meal – lots of protein from the turkey and lots of good carbohydrates in the form of fiber from the veggies (carrots, green beans, corn, brussels sprouts – you know your veggies). And then there are of course the starches: the stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, bread and corn bread. Every Thanksgiving also offers up plenty of sugar from the pies: apple pie, sweet potatoe pie, pumpkin pie…

Every one of these food groups are handled differently by your body and once you know this, you’ll know how to handle them:

Protein: fills you up for a long time as it takes ages to digest, tells your body to burn fat, fuels your muscles
Fiber: fills you up, provides bulk for your digestion, balances your blood sugar level and satiates you for hours
Starches: if eaten in excess (and that means on average more than 10 – 15 bites) they raise your blood sugar and insulin spike. The insulin tells your body to store fat. After a blood sugar spike you crash and feel hungry and lethargic again.
Sugar: Quick blood sugar spike, which causes an insulin response -> which tells your body to store body fat. After the quick spike your blood sugar drops and you’re hungry and lethargic and in fat storage mode.

Both sugar and starches make you retain water and that’s where the bloated feeling is coming from. Mashed potatoes and the pies… Every gram of carbohydrate holds on to about 3 grams of water, so there is no surprise if on the day after a big meal your face looks puffy, your belly is quite round, and your rings fit tight around your fingers. Your energy is typically also low and your digestion may be slowed down. Dehydration is typical as well.

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Here’s how to fix it:

  • Exercise before eating a big meal. Empty your glycogen stores (an hour of a high intensity workout would be ideal. Take a look at this mega-intense treadmill routine or a workout in a snap if you need some inspiration).
  • Start your meal with a protein. Eating the turkey first will ensure that you balance your blood sugar somewhat before the starches and sugars will put it on a rollercoaster ride. For example, fill your plate with turkey that’s the size and thickness of your palm (about 20-25 grams) and then add lots of veggies for fiber. 
  • Eat starches later in the meal as they add up quickly in carbohydrates and they will impact your blood sugar negatively. For example, you could eat 50 spears of asparagus to get 30 grams of carbs but only 1 mini bagel to reach that same number. Or, you could eat 4 cups of green beans but only 1.5 slices of bread to get 30 grams of carbs – 30 grams of carbs is about the amount of carbs that will keep your blood sugar balanced and in fat burning mode. If you eat much more than that you will spike your blood sugar and signal your body to store fat, so balance in carbs is key. 
  • Skip the sugar if you can. If you eat the sugar (desserts or alcohol) then make sure you skip the starches instead. You don’t want to overload your body with too many carbohydrates from sugar and starch as they have unfavorable health effects if eaten in excess. However, if you do have the dessert you should be aware that if you eat it hours after the meal – alone or without any added protein – that you might end up crashing from too much sugar. 

Most people don’t pass out on the couch after the big meal from the tryptophan in the turkey (you’d have to eat the whole bird to get a good dose of narcotics from that), but they fall asleep because they’re blood sugar is so low that the body doesn’t have any energy in the blood stream. All sugar that went into the blood has been shuttled into the cells and there is nothing left for your brain or body to derive energy from, so you snooze until your body makes energy from your body fat.

After a heavy meal, you want to make sure you exercise within 12 to 16 hours. That’s your magic time frame in which the energy you ate is likely still in your muscles and liver. However, if you ate more than 2,000 calories in that meal (that number varies depending on how much muscle mass you have), then chances are some of the food was already converted into body fat. Pinch yourself – you’ll know where it went :-)
So, head to the gym and put in another high intensity workout the next morning and ideally the same day in the evening. If you can work off the glycogen stores then chances are no excess food will be converted to body fat. 

How do you get rid of the bloat? 
  • You need to drink lots of water to rehydrate your body and push bloat water out of your system. Aim for at least 3 liters a day.
  • Make the day after a high carb meal a low-carb day. All meals should consist of a protein and veggies. No starches or sugars as they will make you hold on to water. 
  • Exercise to induce sweating out excess salt you ate and to regain your sense of what a healthy body feels like. 
  • Add starches back only on the day after the low-carb day if needed. Starches are not necessary nutritionally, so they are optional. Sugars are certainly not necessary for you to survive, so keep them at bay as much as possible. Sugar is linked to most diseases, so stick to protein and veggies. 

A typical low-carb day could look something like this:

Breakfast: 3-egg omelet with mushrooms, onions, broccoli
Snack: 20 almonds 
Lunch: Large mixed green salad with tuna and 1 tbsp of olive oil with lemon dressing
Snack: Whey Protein Shake (Protein powder, water, ice)
Dinner: Grilled Chicken or Fish with roasted or steamed veggies
Or: 
Breakfast: 1 cup of low-fat plain Greek yogurt with 1 green apple
Snack: 3 hard-boiled eggs
Lunch: Turkey burger with veggies
Snack: Veggies (bell peppers, baby carrots, snap peas, celery) dipped in low-fat greek yogurt mixed with Herbs de Provence
Dinner: Chicken soup with mixed veggies (the lighter the dinner, the faster the fat loss and the better your sleep). 

Burn fat and get lean – What’s the Best Workout?

Q: I want to get lean and defined but I’m confused about how to go about it. Do I need to go on a diet and lose the weight? Do I have to lift light with lots of reps? Help, there’s so much confusing information out there.  - Melissa


A: Forget about the fat burning zone:
 The myth that you only burn fat if you work at low intensity is outdated. The harder your work, the greater your overall calorie burn. When you work out at lower intensity (about 70% of your max heart rate), the percentage of fat burn is just slightly higher than the percentage of carbohydrates burned, but what matters is how many calories you burn overall and how much after-burn you create (the amount of calories burned in the up to 48 hours after you’re done). So, there is no point in walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes and burning 200 calories if you can run and burn off 400-500 at high intensity.


Lift heavy:
 Some trainers (hello Tracy Anderson) promote the notion that lifting anything heavier than 5 lbs weights puts bulk on women’s bodies. That is not true. You should see the Slim & Strong participants lift their 10, 12 and 15 lbs weights in class and they are lean (and mean). You would have to spend hours in the gym and supplement heavily if you wanted to look like a body builder. Women don’t have enough testosterone to get bulky. If you lift light weights your body will stop responding after just a while and you will plateau. You would have to complete 100s of reps to continue to create a difference but who wants to spend hours in the gym if you can get the same result in a short period of time?

Keep challenging your muscles by increasing the weight, increasing the number of repetitions and changing the speed of lifting. Your muscles will be leaner quicker and your metabolism through the roof. The heavier the weight, the faster your muscles will develop. And, don’t you worry, you’re not going to wake up miraculously one morning with massive muscles. You will see just how your body changes and can adjust your routine accordingly.


Try Interval Training:
 If you have been doing the same strength routine for a while then you must add high-intensity cardio training to get your body lean quickly. The Brooklyn Bridge Boot Camp and Slim & Strong classes follow this format. We combine strength training with cardio, which creates the ultimate after burn effect – lots of calories burned for up to 48 hours AFTER your workout is done. Plus, you’re increasing your resting metabolic rate when you add lean muscle to your body.

After completing two strength training exercises get on the treadmill, bike or eliptical for a 1 minute sprint and 1 minute slower-paced run for recovery. Then continue your workout with the next two strength training exercises and add another 2 minutes of cardio until you are through with your routine. Training this way will not only keep your workout interesting but it also maximizes your calorie burn. Even better, your heart rate will become more efficient within a few weeks and you will enjoy greater energy after your workout.


Here’s a great interval routine you an do on the treadmill. If you weigh about 150 lbs you’re sure to burn at least 400-500 calories:

Treadmill – 30 minutes
Time Speed Incline Segment Time
0-5 5.5 0 5 min
5 to 10 5.5 2 5 min
10-10:45 7 0 45 sec
10:45-11:30 5.5 0 45 sec
11:30-12:15 7 0 45 sec
12:15-13 5.5 2 45 sec
13-13:45 2 5 45 sec
Continue alternating 45 sec @ speed 10 with 45 sec @ speed 2
at incline 5 until you reach 25 minutes (complete 10 intervals)
25-30 3 0 5 min


Full range of motion:
 If your form during strength training is poor your results will be disappointing too. Using full range of motion when lifting weights will stimulate the entire muscle and force it to get stronger quicker. Do not sacrifice form for weight and choose to lift lighter with proper form rather than heavier with poor form and risking injury.

Putting on muscle AND burning fat- How do I go about doing that?

Q: I have about 3% of fat to burn off first and then I want to put on muscle to get stronger and leaner. Is that the right way to think about this, or should I aim to build 4lbs more muscle, which will somehow make the fat go away? I am confused because the first means I add more cardio; and the second means that I add a heavy weights day to my workout week.


A: You have two goals that don’t happen at the same time typically. In order to gain muscle you need extra calories because muscles don’t grow in a calorie deficit state. To burn fat you need fewer calories but still enough protein to maintain your muscle. So, your best bet would be to break your ultimate goal into two stages: Initially you focus on gaining muscle by keeping your calorie intake steady and lift heavy weights at least 2-3 days a week. Then, when you’re happy with the amount of lean mass, you start cutting carbs from starches and sugar to kickstart your fat burning and increase your cardio until you reach your ideal body fat percentage. 

It is absolutely crucial that you monitor your protein intake in the mass gaining stage. Make sure you take in at least 20 grams of protein within 30-60 minutes after finishing your strength routine, ideally with at least 20 grams of carbs (they stimulate insulin, which helps drive the protein to the muscle). As you are looking to cut fat you still need to ensure proper protein intake as you want to avoid losing muscle mass. Too much cardio can sometimes do that, especially as you get leaner. 

Food Diary Feedback

Hi Ariane, 

Here is what I ate the last two days. Please let me know where I need to change to put my body into fat burning mode.  I’m trying!!! Compared to what I used to eat — this is a huge change! I have only had 1 diet coke since the nutrition class (over the weekend)— which i was having 2-3 per day…soo that is a huge change. 

Wednesday:
Breakfast – 4 egg whites, 2 cups of raw vegetables (peppers, carrots, celery, cucumbers), and a banana
Snack – 0% Greek yogurt with 12 almonds 
Lunch (had a work event so this was tough and not a normal lunch) i put lettuce on a plate and took a vegetable wrap and dumped the vegetables on the salad and threw out the wrap, then took a half of turkey sandwich – threw out the bread and had the turkey and cheese and tomato. 
Afternoon snack – PowerCrunch Protein Bar
Dinner – Half of Zero Impact bar and a salad with tuna, tomatoes, reduced fat cheese, and balsamic dressing

Thursday:

Breakfast – 0% greek yogurt with 12 almonds and  a reduced fat cheese stick
Snack – banana
Lunch – tuna with reduced fat cheese and a  little mustard, 3 cups of vegetables
Snack- PowerCrunch Protein Bar
Dinner – half of zero impact bar and a salad with ground turkey, carrots, reduced fat cheese and balsamic dressing. 

A: Your food diary is quite clean! Congrats to implementing so many changes so quickly. Just a few notes. 
  • Make sure you limit tuna to once or twice a week to avoid eating too much mercury. Your body stores it in the fatty tissue and can’t get rid of it, so toxicity is an issue. 
  • Skip the Zero Impact Bar for dinner. You can have half of it it as a snack right before bed and it will help you keep your blood sugar balanced throughout the night. Or, you can simply have a protein shake (ideally, a casein shake) right before bed. 
  • Do your best to replace protein bars with real food as most of them contain sucralose (splenda) and other artificial ingredients which don’t cause the same level of satiation as real food and some can cause sugar cravings.

Why do my muscles burn?

Q: I have been working out for a while but only when I take your class I notice a burning sensation in my muscles. Is that normal?

A: Welcome to the Club! Sounds like you’ve finally found the right workout :-)

The burning you feel in your muscles tells you that your workout is indeed making a difference. The harder and more effective your workout, the quicker you’ll see results and the faster you’ll get to your goal. Here’s why the burning in your muscles is actually an indicator of a good workout: During exercise muscles prefer to use fat as fuel. However, when you work out intensely, your body doesn’t get enough oxygen. Instead of fat your body turns to glucose (a carbohydrate)* for energy.

When your body burns glucose without oxygen, lactic acid is created (also called anaerobic metabolism) and causes muscle soreness the day after. Lactic acid also fatigues your muscles, so it’s basically a built-in protective mechanism to keep you from overdoing it. Over time you can train your body to produce less and less lactic acid and work out longer and harder. You may have heard of it as “increasing your lactic acid threshold” – the period of time it takes your muscle to start producing lactic acid.

The good news is that lactic acid is recycled by the liver into glucose (= more energy) and thus can provide almost endless energy for working out.


Next time you’re working out and notice that your muscles start to burn, know that you are fatiguing your muscle and you’re forcing it to use glycogen as fuel. Once the glycogen is depleted (typically within 45-90 minutes) your body has to turn to stored body fat for energy. At that point you’re in fat burning mode. The reason the Brooklyn Bridge Boot Camp is so effective at changing your body is that we utilize high intensity interval training, which keeps your heart rate up (aerobic) while using your muscles to shape and strengthen your whole body (anaerobic). Using both energy systems increases the after-burn effect – the amount of fat you burn in the up to 48 hours after your workout.

You can speed up the fat burning effect by eating a moderate carbohydrate diet that is comprised mostly of fibrous veggies and very limited starches and no sugar. Keep in mind that you can work out all you want without ever seeing a difference in your body fat if you keep a high carbohydrate/high starch/sugar diet. You need to enable your body to burn fat in order to see a difference in your shape, so keep your carbohydrate to about 1g per pound of body weight per day. This will enable you to burn stored body fat while still having enough energy to make it through your day without crashing.

*Glucose is stored in your muscles and liver in the form of glycogen. Depending on how many carbohydrates you eat, you have enough glycogen fuel for about 45 minutes to 1.5 hours of a vigorous workout. Once those glycogen stores are depleted your body burns fat for energy.

Strength Training – Less is More!

Hi Ariane,
in addition to the bootcamp m/w/f, what else should we be doing for workouts aside from 1 hour of cardio and 1 home boot camp routine?
I accidentally went to this sports circuit class on Tuesday night at my gym before our 630am session on wednesday and I was beat! I shouldn’t have done that!

A: The more cardio you can do, the better for fat burning. The circuit class is a good idea too. You just need to make sure you have about 48 hours of rest between strenght training workouts so your muscles can repair the little microtears we create during our workouts. Muscle grows on the day AFTER working out, so doing too much strength training is actually counterproductive. If you strength trained the same body part every day you would break down your muscle, not build it up – what a waste of time.

Strength Training – Less is More!

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Hi Ariane,
in addition to the bootcamp m/w/f, what else should we be doing for workouts aside from 1 hour of cardio and 1 home boot camp routine?
I accidentally went to this sports circuit class on Tuesday night at my gym before our 630am session on wednesday and I was beat! I shouldn’t have done that!

A: The more cardio you can do, the better for fat burning. The circuit class is a good idea too. You just need to make sure you have about 48 hours of rest between strenght training workouts so your muscles can repair the little microtears we create during our workouts. Muscle grows on the day AFTER working out, so doing too much strength training is actually counterproductive. If you strength trained the same body part every day you would break down your muscle, not build it up – what a waste of time.