Hawaiian BBQ, Chipotle, California burrito, Chinese food?
These were my options to eat for today while on a cut to lose the extra fluff I have.
I used to struggle with my weight. I was fat for almost all my life. As a kid, doctors made me go on a diet and forced me to eat salads and stuff I didn't like while my family ate burgers and fries in front of me.
I would lose a few pounds only to regain more in a few weeks. The dreaded yo-yo.
No matter what I did, I felt like I was going to be stuck being fat for the rest of my life.
I was ashamed of my body, shy, unconfident, and I didn't know what to do to solve this problem.
Over the years, I've tried everything to try to find the easiest, most sustainable way to lose fat without feeling like I was torturing myself.
This is what I learned.
Intermittent fasting and insulin resistance
"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day."
This is the most common phrase repeated in the health industry.
However, this information is a big fat lie.
The way this false information came about was an effort to make people consume more bacon.
Yes, you heard me right. Mmm, Bacon lol
At the time, there was a decline in meat consumption, and they wanted to find a way to get people to consume more.
So they released the slogan "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" to boost bacon sales.
This marketing strategy was so successful that people still believe this slogan to be true to this day.
We have people eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, dessert, and everything in between. Stuffing their faces all day and never giving their body a chance to break down the food and access stored fat.
No wonder America is more obese than ever.
People look at themselves in the mirror and honestly don't like what they see.
They wear oversized clothes and yoga pants up to their nipples to prevent slabs of fat from poking out from underneath.
I used to wear an oversized black sweater every single day. Even on hot days I would be sweating balls, but the sweater never came off. It would be I was too ashamed to take it off.
I would go on these diets, but this is how it normally went.
I gave up my favorite foods for weeks. I tried to eat only bland, healthy stuff, and I would dream for my diet to be over so I could go back to eating food I actually liked.
I would lose a few pounds and regain them literally days after ending my "diet."
I dreaded having to go on these diets. I knew there had to be a better way.
This is where I found out about intermittent fasting.
Essentially, you give yourself a set period of time where you don’t eat or consume any calories at all. You allow your body to actually gain access to your stored body fat without having to count calories, weigh out everything you eat, or give up your favorite foods.
I outline the easiest way to lose fat in my course here. The Anti-diet. The easiest fat loss method on earth.
It literally makes losing weight a joke.
Anyways, why does fasting work? Because when you don't eat, insulin goes low.
Insulin is the key hormone that prevents you from losing fat.
Every time you eat or drink something, your body releases insulin. This hormone literally stops your body from accessing your body fat and forces it to use glucose from the food you eat as fuel instead.
This is why you aren't losing weight. You are constantly releasing insulin throughout the day with every meal, drink, and snack you eat.
When you fast, insulin goes down, which allows your body to access your stored fat. It uses that fat as fuel, and you finally get that shredded physique you've been dreaming about.
Here is one of my favorite fasting methods.
Omad
Omad has become one of my favorite fasting methods. But what exactly is Omad? What does it mean??
Omad stands for One Meal A Day. As I covered in the section above, every time we eat our body releases insulin, which blocks access to our stored fat.
Omad solves for this by fasting the entire day and eating only one meal. We are only releasing insulin during this one meal, and the rest of the time we are in a fasted state.
This gives our body ample time to digest food and access stored body fat.
How exactly do you do Omad??
Strict Omad is the hardest. Basically, you fast all day and eat only one huge meal. You don’t have to count calories or macros.
All you have to do is eat until you are comfortably full and close your eating window. That’s it.
While you are fasting, you can’t consume any calories or sugar-free sweetness. Only water, black coffee, and unsweetened tea. Keep it simple.
The reason this is hard is that you have to be strict. You only get 1 hour to eat your meal every day, and most people cannot sustain this. This is why I do a modified version of Omad.
I first learned this modified version of Omad in a book called Feast, Fast, Repeat.
Basically, we take the concept of eating one meal like this. We have an appetizer, our main dish, and a dessert if you so choose.
We can spread this one meal into a longer eating window.
Normally, what I do is I wake up and try to push my fast as long as I can for later in the day. You can aim to push your fast 4-5 hours after you wake up. Longer if you aren’t feeling particularly hungry that day.
Listen to your body. Tune in to your natural hunger and satiety signals.
You’ve been relying on external cues such as weighing everything out and tracking calories on fitness apps for too long. You must learn to gain these natural abilities back through fasting.
I wake up, drink water, add pink Himalayan salt for electrolytes and push my fast until I get hungry (normally around 2-4pm)
I then allow myself to eat my appetizer, which is something small and portable like a protein bar or some fruit like apples.
Once I break my fast with this small meal, I allow myself to drink zero-calorie drinks, diet juices, diet sodas for taste if I wish to have some. Just to make this process more enjoyable.
I continue to work and keep busy until it’s time to go home.
Then I eat a big feast. Try to get your protein in during this meal. Focus on eating meats and rice or meat and potatoes.
If you’re vegan, fuck, I don’t know what to tell you lol.
In this meal, I don’t track calories, but from past experience tracking, I’d say I eat anywhere from 1000-1500 calories.
Then before bed if you still wish to have a small dessert or drink to end the night you are free to do so.
I prefer this method of fasting because it makes fat loss a joke. You get to enjoy big meals and feel satisfied at the end of the day.
That’s pretty much it for Omad.
However, I do like to play with other fasting methods from time to time just so things won’t get stale.
Lift weights
Hit the fucken gym broskies. I promise it will change your life.
The first time I started lifting some serious weight was after a break up lol. I was like fuck this b$#$ and started hitting the gym everyday.
My motivation at the time was to improve my physique to get my ex jealous and to attract more girls, but pretty soon after I grew to love lifting.
Lifting over cardio any day.
I recommend doing both lifting weights and doing cardio for health reasons, but if you are limited on time prioritize lifting weights. It provides other benefits that cardio does not.
First you build muscle mass. The more muscle you have (as a natural lifter) the more aesthetic you will look. Plus your body will require more calories to maintain that muscle mass.
This means you can eat more food without gaining fat…
Yes sir, load that barbell up and hit a Korean bbq after for some delicious gains lol.
Fasting + Weightlifting + Food = Gains
If you have never lifted in your life I recommend searching for beginner bodybuilding programs online. There are many free ones to choose from.
I recommend looking into a 3 day full body split or an upper lower split as a beginner. You will see quicker gains due to the higher frequency of working out each muscle group.
Find a program you enjoy and stick with it for at least a year. You can find a beginner program along with a fasting regimen in my Anti-Diet Course.
Important points
This email should provide you with everything you need to reach your goal weight. Here are some important points to remember.
-Eating all day increases insulin levels-Insulin stops your body from accessing stored body fat.
-Fasting reduces insulin levels.
-lift weights for aesthetics and health.
-Muscle increases your metabolism and allows you to eat more food.
-Do a 3 day full body split or an upper/lower split to start.
-hit a Korean bbq everyday for massive gains (lol jk)
Hope this helps you out in your journey. Share this with a friend who may need the help as well. Good luck!!
-Jovanny Castillo