The best body fat percentage for anyone who wants a great physic is around 8 %. Don’t take my word for it, Arnold Schwarzenegger always competed at around 8% body fat. 8% will allow you to see the definition in your muscles and your abs will be defined, but your body won’t be in a state of starvation and you will look healthy.

Many people think they can reach a very low percentage of body fat by lifting weights, doing cardio and doing lots of ab exercises. It is true that all of those things can lower your body fat percentage, however, it is nearly impossible to have a bodybuilder type physique without understanding diet. Your diet is what will make you or break you. In the sport of bodybuilding, it is very common to hear bodybuilders say it breaks down to diet 70% and training 30%.

One of the most crucial things to avoid while trying to achieve a low body fat percentage is sugar. Sugar is a simple form of carbohydrates that causes an insulin response. When your body releases insulin fat is stored. Essentially, when you eat sugar, if those calories are not burned off almost immediately, they are stored as body fat.

Eliminating carbohydrates is not an option because they are the main source of fuel for your body. However, you can almost eliminate sugar without any negative effects on your body. Checking food labels is important. You’d be surprised at how many foods have sugar. Slow burning carbohydrates like vegetables, oats and quinoa are the best way to incorporate carbs into your diet. Even though foods like bread and pasta don’t contain sugar, they do contain processed carbohydrates, which rank high on the glycemic index. The glycemic index is a scale that rates the body’s insulin response. The higher a food is on the glycemic index, the more it raises your blood sugar levels and the more likely it will be stored as fat. Shoot for foods under 50 on the glycemic index.

You do need to lower your carbohydrate intake overall and increase your protein intake. You should try to split up your calories 40% carbs, 40% protein, 20% fats. That, again, is straight from Arnold himself.

The next two things you want to avoid are saturated fat and sodium. Both these items are usually present in high amounts in fast foods and store-bought, prepackaged foods. Even nice restaurants also use lots of sodium to make their food taste better. Sodium causes your body to retain water and a can also make it harder for you to lose fat. Taking into much sodium also leads to high blood pressure and other health risks. Fats are necessary in your diet, however you want to make sure that the majority of them are unsaturated. Unsaturated Omega three fats have lots of health benefits and can actually help you lose body fat. Avocados are a good example of these.

Drinking lots of water will flush toxins out of your body, allowing it to operate more efficiently. There is a long list of benefits to drinking water, but it is necessary for achieving low body fat.

Fiber is important because it can help slow the rate at which your body burns carbohydrates. The slower you burn the carbohydrates the less likely they are to be stored as body fat. Fiber is also an important part of a balanced diet and has many other health benefits. Beans are an example of a food that is high in fiber, protein and ranks low on the GI.

You need to eat small meals throughout the day. The purpose of this is to keep your metabolism up and to avoid excess intake of calories that cannot be burned off before they are stored as fat. Keep in mind that all macro-nutrients (carbohydrates, protein and fat) can be stored as fat when taken in excess. That is why 6 smaller meals a day is much better than 3 large meals.

Finally, you do need to exercise at least 2-3 times per week to achieve 8% body fat. Diet is your most important tool, but exercise is necessary as well to get down to 8% while still keeping a muscular physique.

The #1, absolute best exercise for obliterating body fat is sprints. Sprints are both a power exercise (anaerobic) and a cardio (aerobic) exercise. When the body is at 100% intensity it sheds body fat very quickly. If you like jogging or bodybuilding that’s great, but I still recommend working sprints into the schedule at least once a week to reach your goals that much faster.

If you’re really serious about getting your body fat down to 8%, you’ll need to start preparing your meals at home. I’m going to give you a list of foods to eat and also a list of foods not to eat, to help you with your shopping. Chilli or stew is probably the easiest way to combine most of the good foods on this list into one meal. I guarantee that, the more strict you are with following this list, the better results you’ll get.

Foods to Eat

Proteins
Chicken breast
Turkey (sliced or ground)
90% lean ground beef or steak (no more than 2 times per week)
Fish (Tilapia, Wild Alaskan salmon, or any other types of fish low in mercury)
Eggs
Protein powder
Cottage cheese

Good Carbs

Brown rice
Quinoa (slow burning carb high in protein, containing all essential amino acids)

Beans –black, pinto, white, garbonzo, lentils, (wash them first to get rid of sodium)
Vegetables (main source of carbs) (steamed or raw keeps the most vitamins)
Fruit (no more than 1 piece per day)
Old fashioned or steel cut oats

Good Fats That Help You Get Lean
Nuts- almonds, walnuts, brazil-nuts, pistachios, cashews, macadamia
Peanut butter
Avocado
Coconut oil (ok to cook), uncooked olive oil, uncooked peanut oil, uncooked canola oil, uncooked sesame seed oil (can be used for dressings)

Foods to Avoid
Breads
Milk (too much sugar)
Fried foods
Candy
All baked goods
Pasta
Soda
Fruit juices
Cheese
Pre-packaged store bought food (very high in sodium and usually saturated fat)
Any food or drinks that contain sugar

Things to avoid

Sugar
Sodium
Saturated fat

Good Things

Drink lots of water
Foods high in fiber

Byline: John McKiernan is a personal trainer who enjoys researching information on bodybuilding, supplements, diets, health tips and more. He is the owner of Supplementhelper.com where he shares knowledge and advice about popular bodybuilding and health supplements.

If you want to lose weight in a healthy way, you’ll have to eliminate some of the foods that got you into trouble in the first place. No one is telling you to turn yourself into a vegetarian, but you’ll have to make smarter choices along the way. A lot of people forget that healthy eating can actually be quite delicious. In some cases, you might even find alternatives that you’ll enjoy far more than your favorite choices right now. At the end of the day, you can take a lot of pressure off yourself by avoiding certain foods with high calorie counts and little nutritional information. None of the following foods will come as a complete surprise, but it might shock you to learn exactly how bad they are for your overall health. Here are five foods you definitely need to avoid if you plan on losing weight successfully.

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Burger and Fries – there is perhaps no more popular combination in the world of fast food then a burger and fries. While one combo every once in a while won’t hurt, it’s important to be fully aware of exactly what you’re putting into your system. Fast food restaurants these days will give you nutritional information if you ask them. However, you should be prepared for bad news if you actually want to find out what you’re eating. A typical burger and fries combo is absolutely loaded with calories and an incredibly high fat content. Let’s not forget all of the attitudes and make this choice less than natural. In many cases, a single meal at a fast food restaurant will meet or exceed your daily caloric and fat allotment for the day.

Ice Cream – this is a wonderful summertime treat that goes with almost every dessert. Of course it can be enjoyed on its own with a wide array of flavors that taste great. Unfortunately, ice cream is loaded in calories, fat, and can potentially raise your cholesterol. It seems innocent enough on the surface, but there is a lot of fat and sugar that goes into ice cream. And the better it tastes, the worse it is for your system.

Soft Drinks – soft drinks are a major contributor to excess calories and excessive weight for many people. One can of Coke or Pepsi puts around 150 calories into your system while offering no nutritional benefits. Soft drinks are also loaded with sugar and contain caffeine which doesn’t react well for some people. You might think diet sodas are a good alternative, but in many cases people end up drinking more than they would otherwise. It’s far better to forgo any type of soft drink altogether and get back to enjoying water.

Pizza – tomato sauce is actually quite a healthy element that can benefit you in many ways. Unfortunately, its redeeming qualities aren’t able to counteract all of the negative aspects of a pizza. Obviously this is one of the most enjoyable party foods around, and it’s nice to be able to indulge from time to time. Just be aware that even two slices of a typical pizza can load your system with excessive fat and calories. It’s usually the cheese that the main culprit, but you also have a wide array of meats that might not be the healthiest choice.

Salad Dressing – eating salad it should be good for you, right? Many people think that a fresh garden salad or Caesar salad is a good alternative for fast weight loss that gives them a healthy serving of vegetables. While this is true, you are pretty much negating any benefits when you consume salad dressing as well. Strangely enough, a fully loaded salad topped with dressing is considered one of the worst high cholesterol foods to avoid. Salad dressing is loaded in elements that you simply don’t need, and you’re basically ingesting liquid oil and fat. It doesn’t mean you have to forgo dressing altogether, but try avoiding slathering it on top of everything. Have your dressing on the side and carefully dip your vegetables with moderation.

This look at unhealthy foods comes from rabbitsadvice.com where you can find more tips on better eating and weight loss.

Research conducted in the UK into diets and weight loss has yielded some surprising results.  Scientists at the University Hospital in South Manchester conducted trials into three different types of diet and concluded that dieting for just 2 days out of 7 could be the answer to loosing weight and keeping it off.

For millions of women (and men too) this could come as something of a relief as the trials showed that those women who ate a strict calorie controlled diet for just 2 days and then ate what they liked for the other five was more effective when it comes to weight loss than dieting every day.

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For the study, researchers placed 115 women on one of three different diets.  The first diet required eating just 650 calories for two consecutive days.  The diet did cut out all carbs including pasta, bread and potatoes and any foods high in fat.  On the following five days they could eat whatever their hearts desired although they were encouraged to choose healthy foods.

The second diet was also based on dieting for 2 days with no carbs, however they were not given a calorie limit.  And the third diet was a standard plan with the women consuming 1500 calories a day whilst avoiding any alcohol and foods high in fat.

The results after three months showed that those women following the two day diets has lost on average nine pounds, whilst those on the standard weight loss diet had only lost an average of five pounds.  The study seemed to show that by following a two-day diet there appeared to be a continuation of benefits even when the women went back to normal eating.  It also showed that the women actually continued to eat healthily and less even on the unrestricted days.

This study has to be good news for millions who want to lose weight but do not like the thought of a strict everyday calorie controlled diet.  With so many different diets hitting the weight loss market the results of this research is sure to bring about something of stir especially from those trapped in a cycle of yo-yo dieting.

However, before you hail this as the perfect solution to your weight loss problems, you do need to note that the women who followed the two day diet plans did eat healthily for the remaining five days meaning they effectively continued the diet albeit with a higher calorie count.  They also cut carbs on the first two days and probably continued to do so for the remainder of the week. 

Anyone who finds portion control and calorie counting difficult may want to introduce other weight loss aids into their plan such as meal replacement shakes or supplements.   Exercise should also be introduced as regular activity has been shown to help weight loss and maintain a healthy lifestyle.  Before embarking on any kind of diet though, you should seek medical advice especially if you have any pre-existing medical conditions.

This article was written by Georgina Clatworthy, a freelance author writing about fitness, health and nutrition. I am not associated with getprograde.com however I can recommend their products for weight loss and health needs.

There are an enormous amount of weight loss tips available on the internet today. Not only can you find them on the net, but you can also gather them from the programs that are available at most fitness centers. Weight loss is an increasing issue in many people’s lives. Listed below are weight loss tips that have worked well for me and others. I hope you benefit from this list and start feeling better about your weight.

Be dedicated and consistent
If you are serious about losing weight, then you should be equally serious about following your weight loss program/plan. You should have goals that you can reach in a specific time frame. Remember to always be realistic when setting your goals.

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Don’t Rely On A Scale alone!
This is usually debated among weight loss professionals and those who are losing weight. A scale alone isn’t the only way to tell If you are losing weight. As you workout you can gain weight by increasing muscle at the same time looking slimmer.

- Look in the mirror and compare yourself over time. Before and after photos can help you with the process.
- Use calipers to actually measure your fat loss.
You’re scale may be able to tell you how much weight you’ve lost, but it can’t tell you where it was loss. You can’t spot reduce fat in any specific area.

Don’t skip meals!
Many and I mean many people tend to skip meals when attempting to lose weight. When your body needs food it needs food. Refraining from eating will tell your body that you don’t have the resources and it will begin to store fat. You’ll actually just continue to either gain weight or harm your body. Many small meals will actually help you lose weight by increasing your metabolism. It is harder for your body to process many small meals then it is large meals. This helps you lose weight.

Be Wise About Your Diet Plan!
People love to tell others what has worked for them and what didn’t. Listen to what they say and take what you need from their plan. Everyone’s body functions differently. You can take what they say and tweak if for your own body. Seek a doctor’s council, but unfortunately doctor’s usually request that you do as they say and not as they do. Most doctors I have seen aren’t very healthy probably because they work too much and are under too much stress.

Just the Basics!
You should start dieting and losing weight with the basics. Watch what you eat. If you think it is bad for you it usually is. Decrease the amount of food you eat, but don’t’ skip meals. Take a walk which doesn’t require any specific equipment, but your shoes. Increase your mileage over time so that you don’t get discouraged.

If you’re looking to get in shape and lose weight, you should look into kickboxing. I have listed 5 reasons below why you should start kicking around them feet of yours!

1. For one thing, it’s fun and a big stress reliever. One of the most important aspects of training whether if you’re trying to lose weight or increase your endurance is that it’s got to be fun. If it’s not fun, you’re not training. And if you’re not having fun, the workout routine isn’t probably going to last long. If you find jogging on the treadmill or being on the stationary bicycle to be boring (which it is if you don’t have a sexy lady right next to you) then you should try kickboxing.

2. Ever heard of Billy Blanks? He has produced one of the best workout DVD series you can find, and not to mention it’s fun and intense. If the name doesn’t ring a bell, maybe “Tae-bo” does. You can do kickboxing at the comfort of your own home or even at a local martial arts studio. Doesn’t matter which as long as you’re comfortable with the surrounding environment. Being able to find kickboxing workout sessions with other groups of people might not be an easy task to find, but if you do, the benefits are well worth it.

3. If you train right, one kickboxing workout session can burn an astonishing 400-500 calories per hour. If you’re looking to lose weight, kickboxing is what you’re looking for to burn those extra calories and fat off your belly. Kickboxing also keeps your heart rate up and going at about 75% which is efficient for burning calories and stimulating exercise for your body. And it can be so much fun that you probably won’t even notice all those calories you’re burning. But not only are you burning fat and calories like a heat wave, you’re also building powerful muscle and working those fast and slow twitch muscle fibers. The more muscle you develop, the higher your metabolism will be. The higher your metabolism, the more calories you’ll burn while you are resting.

4. If you got serious about it, you could even enter a couple kickboxing competitions for the heck of it if you’re daring enough. Although, I would only consider that if you are being trained under a supervised instructor and know what they’re doing. But if not, you can still use kickboxing for your workouts at home or even at the gym.

5. Unlike running or jogging in place, kickboxing has the ability to actually add more definition to your body with all the calories you burn per workout. The results you get over time are astounding, and not only will you look great, but you’ll FEEL great as well!
Using kickboxing for your cardio workouts can be an amazing way to get stronger, lose extra poundage, look great and make new friends as well. If there’s a perfect way to exercise when it comes to intense cardio, kickboxing is definitely on top of the list.