Cutting some weight or shedding some fat is usually a New Year’s goal for many people. A goal many people abandon in a month or two.
You walk into any gym or fitness centre right now, and you can’t get a space. It is packed to the limit with guys trying to stay slim.
That is not bad. If you’ve decided to work on your weight this year. I would like to tell you that it is a very achievable goal.
I have seen before-and-after photos of people who intentionally worked on their weight and managed to lose a tremendous amount of weight.
Fat loss when done right and with discipline is a very achievable feat that many people give up on way too early.
We are just from the festive season, when we indulge in lots of fast foods and calorie dense foodstuffs. I didn’t take processed juice for almost the last 8 months of last year, but on December, I found myself drinking a glass or two. Even drinks like soda that I rarely take, I found myself drinking a small bottle.
Now we are in January, trying to lose extra weight and stay light and fit. Here are a few tips to stay thin this year.
You know most of these things if you’ve been even remotely concerned with cutting weight. It is all over the internet and YouTube. There is no magic pill for staying slim. But it seems many people always read an article or watch a channel hoping to find a new magic to staying thin.
We know these things. We just don’t want to do them.
Exercise your whole Body and Mix Up Workouts.
If you didn’t tone well last year and you were working out consistently, you might have been doing it all wrong. Maybe you were performing one workout or following an ineffective workout program. Running on a treadmill, Zumba and cycling in the gym is okay. Kettlebell swings and jumping is good, but at some point, your body hits a plateau, and you stop to grow or get used to doing the same thing. Switch it up with circuits, Pilates, cross fits and whatever else is out there.
To trick your mind and body, switch up and do something different. It is time you try power yoga or calisthenics or cross fit if you are serious about hitting every part of your body and tendons.
Different workouts bring out different advantages to your physique and well being. And most importantly, be consistent in your workouts. You don’t necessarily have to train intensely, but you need to train many times a week to see desirable results.
If you are going to quit the gym after 2 months, I would advise you to take a 6-month membership or a yearly membership that will make you accountable. If you invest your money in it, you will be driven to get the returns and the gains.
If you can download workout videos from YouTube and try them at home. Consider that it is also an easy way to exercise. Just buy a mat and a few dumb bells and fix that pull-up bar on your door, and you are set to begin.
We tend to complicate workouts when we can just improvise and execute from the comforts of our homes.
When working out, work out your entire body and try to hit every muscle. You will see a common problem with people who just want to lose belly fat and they only concentrate on that. If you have love handles, start by losing weight in your entire body. Or getting every muscle in your body toned.
If you want a well-toned ass, work out your legs and back and everything in between, and you will get an overall appealing appearance. Don’t be like the men who get a nice chest or arms but have skinny legs like Johnny Bravo; it is not an appealing look at all.
Don’t look like the women with nice butts but skinny legs, also another weird combination. Give every part of your body the love and attention it needs to look decent.
Working out, like many things that are rewarding, is bloody tough. If you want to look good with a sexy body, there is a price. A heavy one to pay. Go hard or go home.
Deadlifts, dips, squats and bench presses are not for the weak, so get ready to suffer. You will grow through the pain.
Eat Better. Get healthier
Diet is everything. You are what you eat. You are what you feed into your mind and body. I believe you know this, so I am just reminding you.
Stop watching beer commercials with people eating berbecue and drinking soft drinks full of empty calories.
Calories in, calories out. If you eat empty calories (fries, cookies, pizzas, burgers, sodas, beers and chapatis and mandazis and doughnuts in large quantities) you will have a problem staying in shape.
They are very tasty and leave you feeling full, and give a dopamine rise. But with time, they give you a belly, so you might want to check on them. I still take a mandazi here and there, but it has no effect on me at all. My diet is pretty strict.
I don’t like attacking people’s eating habits, but if you can’t put the fork down, you will have a problem with weight.
Fast food and sweet stuff taste good. It is like unprotected sex; if you indulge in it for a long time, you will sooner or later find yourself in trouble. You taste it here and there, and you will get away with it.
Try OMAD (One Meal a Day). Try two meals a day. Try going for two days without a meal. Trust me, nothing will happen if you don’t eat. You will get used to it.
Avoid restaurant food. It is not the healthiest. Cook vegetables at home. Look for beans, steam them in a pressure cooker. Use olive oil or coconut oil instead of vegetable oils. Drop sugar if you can.
Consume grilled fish, not fried ones. Cook goat meat and vegetables. Cow’s leg soup and liver. Look for traditional vegetables, or spinach.
Eat boiled maize, sweet potatoes, and arrow roots for breakfast instead of bread and wheat products.
Pack your fridge with berries, oranges,mangoes and all types of fruits as opposed to frozen pizzas and juices. Don’t blend your juice; eat the fruits in full with the fibre, as it helps with digestion.
Befriend Slim People and Fit People
Obesity spreads among friends. In the same way, it is very hard to find a home with slim parents who work out and observe a clean diet and obese kids. It is also not possible to have healthy-looking friends if you are overweight. Your friends influence what you eat and how you look, so find some fit friends who can work out with you and influence you to make better lifestyle choices.
If your friends call you for beer and barbecue every weekend, you might need to change your circle or have better plans. Find friends who call you for yoga every weekend. That’s how you will lose weight and stay thin. And in shape.
Birds of a feather flock together.
Stay in shape once you get in shape.
You won’t get fit in 6 months unless you were already in an okay shape. It will probably take you around 18 months of hard work and a good diet to look good enough. Being fit is hard; it is something many people have not been able to achieve. Around 80 per cent of city dwellers are fat, even those who think they are fit. Or those who look fit.
To be really fit and be able to comfortably perform a free handstand, headstand, or backflip will take you some time, especially after many years of bad posture and abuse on your body.
Visit a country with healthy people like Japan or China, and you will realise your countrymen are fat. So once you get in shape, the battle is not won yet. Now stay in shape.
Your muscles have memory; if you go back to your previous bad eating habits and lifestyle, you will get out of shape or relapse to your former self. Look at athletes when they retire and stop working out. They go back to their former selves. And they have to start again. So, once you get there, stay there.
Find an instructor who knows about fitness and diet, or just follow them on YouTube. A good instructor or routine will keep you accountable if you are lazy. Or will push you beyond your limits.
If you are a man, train with other men. They will take you to another level and help you unleash a new level of fitness this year.
All the best with your fitness goals this 2026.
Slade.
