Getting Lean and Cut | A Beginners’ Guide

Lean, muscular bodies are something many dream of, yet they don’t always succeed in achieving such a physique. Many feel that having such a toned body is too difficult and it it doesn't appear realistic to work towards. For some, obtaining a lean and muscular physique may be as easy as riding a bike, while for others, it can be as difficult as acquiring a college degree!

Some people are able to achieve such a lean physique with ease due partially to their body composition, while others will struggle greatly to simply gain a few pounds of muscle or lose a few pounds of fat. Getting lean isn’t an easy task, instead it takes incredible discipline and you’ve got to be 100% committed to it.

Where Are You Now?

The first step is to examine your current health regime. Take a look at your current diet that you have been eating for the last week, and see what exactly you can either cut out of your diet completely or swap out with an alternative and more healthy option. Usually when someone removes or swaps out part of their diet, it tends to consist of that person avoiding a fast food meal or a meal away from home and substituting it with a more healthy option, such as a PB&J sandwich or turkey breasts.

This is not a drastic change that is incredibly hard to do; instead it’s a really small change that anyone can make and can have a large impact on one's fat loss journey.

Where Are You Going?

Set a goal. If you are trying to lose weight and you have a large amount to lose, do not just keep getting on the scale and looking in the mirror each day to try to see your progress. Instead, when you wake up Monday, set a realistic goal that by Saturday you will lose 1-2lbs.

This is an ideal goal and by aiming small it helps make your goals seem more realistic to achieve.

Find A Partner

The next step is to find a partner. Whether or not you think that you can achieve your goals by yourself, having a training partner or a friend working towards the same or similar goals can have a huge impact. A friend can be a large motivating factor that can not only help keep you on track, but can provide expertise in any area he/she may have.

Don't Skip Meals

Next, I advise against anyone skipping meals. Many people who are trying to lose weight often believe that skipping a meal will help them greatly because they are consuming much less food. Skipping meals is one of the worst things anyone can do, because often when someone eats breakfast and skips lunch, thinking that this will help their fat loss journey, they become extremely hungry by dinnertime and end up eating second or even third helpings at dinner, which in turn ends up being more food they would have eaten if they had lunch earlier.

Instead of skipping meals, each person should eat 3 strong meals a day, with small snacks in between meals consisting of healthy options, such as nuts and fruit. This will help keep you full throughout the day and resist the urge or temptations to stray from your diet and your goals.

Add In Weight Training

Use weights in your exercise routine and not just cardio. Although cardio is extremely important and will help you out in the long run towards burning fat, building muscle throughout your body will help you increase your metabolism which will speed up your progress. Muscle also helps give people that lean look that everyone wants, and it's also very important to train the upper body with moves such as bench press, deadlifts, and concentration curls.

But just as one trains the upper body, its very important to train the lower body. Compound movements such as squats and leg press will help build muscle in your lower section.

Carry On With Cardio

Do your cardio. Cardio is extremely beneficial because it not only burns calories which help get lose weight, its also strengthens your cardiovascular system and helps with better heart function. High-intensity interval training will burn the maximum amount of calories in the shortest amount of time, something you might find in functional fitness training or other lifts. A simple, yet effective example of this might be getting on a treadmill or a track and performing sprints.

You can perform an all out, 100% effort sprint for about 15-30 seconds and follow it with 1-2 minutes of a calm and easy jog. This will help keep your heart rate high and pumping, which will help get you lean. Now to some this may seem hard, however, you will never know how hard it may be until you truly try, so go ahead and start making these adjustments and start seeing results in no time.

Take-Home Message

By assessing where you are now, setting realistic goals, and making small changes to your routine, you will be well on your way to achieving your desired physique.