getting lean is quite straightforward while it's not an easy task it doesn't demand any advanced knowledge or techniques instead it relies on consistently practicing a few fundamental principles on the other hand staying lean over long periods is a completely different story and there are some pretty important things you should do and even some you should avoid if staying lean over a long period of time is your goal firstly we have to talk a little bit about getting lean versus getting shredded typically being lean is somewhere in the region of 7 to 10% body fat on
the other hand being extremely lean AKA shredded means body fat measuring around 4 to 7% the thing about having a shredded body is that you're likely to suffer a couple of side effects such as poor sex drive and many more which I'll be covering next let me be straight with you if you're not planning to be a competing bodybuilder anytime soon then no you don't need to get shredded and risk your health shedding fat is healthy but unbeknown to some people too much fat shedding can also lead to dire repercussions according to Pennsylvania State University
the average guy's body fat is 15 to 20% 3% of which is essential meaning you die without it too low body fat percentage particularly below 5% is seen as an alarming sign of poor health including in Elite athletes it leads to negative Health consequences like decreased energy levels low testosterone levels irritability poor libido weak muscle development of Eating Disorders you name it the list goes on so long that it's simply not worth it thus if I had to pick between lean and shredded I'd pick lean any day in fact even longtime bodybuilders only ever get
in their most shredded state for a short while which usually happens when they're preparing for competitions they don't stay there in the offseason and when they do get shredded they try to conceal these symptoms by taking certain supplements so for average people like you who simply want a nice Beach Body I'd say keep your goals and expectations realistic in contrast a leaner look is far easier to achieve and sustain since you've got a lot of time on your hands then isn't this High time to get in the best shape ever having considered everything we know
about the science of staying fit here are the crucial steps you should be doing from workouts to nutrition to get that awesome beach body and always stay that way change your goal of getting shredded to getting and staying lean you don't even need to achieve 7 to 10% body fat percentage to be lean you can still have a lean physique with 12% 13% or even 14% fat percentage maintaining low double- digit body fat is enough to give you fantastic abs and some great muscle definition to look athletic and aesthetic without all the bad stuff but
if you really want to try getting shredded at least once in your life go ahead but be sure to make it brief take pictures for remembrance and quickly get back to being healthfully lean once you've changed your perspective about the whole lean versus shredded debate it's time for some real action in the gym and that is to build muscle the truth is it's easier to build muscle first and then proceed to getting and staying lean than it is to do it the other way around that's because the more muscles your body has the easier it
is to stay and look lean besides no one is actually going to measure your body fat percentage and say no you aren't lean enough what matters more is how you appear physically so I say go for a lean body but with enough muscles that'll put you in that sweet spot between an Amber cromi and Fitch model to a bodybuilder meanwhile the less muscle you have the further you are to your goal of staying lean since your body requires and burns fewer calories at rest packing more muscles Demands a lot of calories and having a higher
caloric requirement means you can eat more before your body starts storing fat although you can still stay lean with lower levels of muscle it's either you have to burn more by increasing your physical activities or you have to consume few calories in most cases individuals who can maintain their leanness with less muscle are usually regular climbers cyclists or athletes of some kind but for the average Joe whose everyday life is not that active it might be hard to maintain now the question is what are the best exercises for growing lean muscle here's a combination of
compound and isolation exercises to add to your routine number one squats number two deadlifts number three bench presses number four pull-up s number five rows number six overhead presses isolation exercises number one bicep curls number two tricep extensions number three leg curls number four calf raises number five lateral raises number six hamstring curls establishing a solid workout is a big step closer to your goal but in order to get real and significant results I believe it's especially important to have a workout routine you can enjoy which I'll talk about a little later be an expert
in intuitive eating tracking your calories and macros is arguably the most valuable step when trying to lose fat I also stand by the fact that everyone should do it at some point whether it's because they want to step up their weight loss game or simply because they want to know what's inside of all of their favorite foods and drinks that said I can also relate to the people who don't like to keep tracking every single thing they consume and I don't blame you if you think that way because not everyone has the Pati patience and
time for it enter intuitive eating the concept of intuitive eating is to let your internal cues of hunger and fullness dictate when and how much you eat and when to stop think of it as the absolute traditional diet there are no guidelines of what to avoid and what or when to eat instead you're the only one who makes those choices isn't it too good to be true you don't starve yourself nor do you stuff yourself you just let your body take over and hope that you end up consuming the rough amount of calories you need
on average but here's the thing the whole intuitive eating rests on your body's satiety is a good indicator of caloric consumption which largely depends on the kind of foods you're eating for instance whole foods naturally tend to be more filling while processed foods tend to be less filling so if your diet consists of Highly processed foods then you could easily go over your caloric needs we all have different appetites and caloric requirements most of us don't have such an enormous appetite that we would need to entirely avoid eating anything remotely processed in order to feel
full from a normal number of calories therefore I highly recommend you do several attempts until you know how lean you have to eat to feel full while consuming roughly the number of calories that allows you to maintain your weight for many it can mean having a diet composed mostly of whole unprocessed foods with a little room for Indulgence here or there once you have a rough idea on this you can go for long periods of time without needing to track your calories while still staying lean the five principles of intuitive eating number one reject the
diet mentality forget about strict diet plans books and articles that promise to shed those excess fats strict diet rules are likely unsustainable if the diet fails or you're unable to keep it up you may get angry at yourself and try to look for newer ways and start all over again restricting your body of foods May prevent it from getting the nutrients it needs Plus in some cases frequent dieting could result in an eating disorder number two eat when you're hungry listen to your your body and its internal cues and eat when it tells you that
you're hungry eat a variety of foods and make sure that you get adequate energy and nutrients stop ignoring your hunger pangs if you eat only when you're excessively hungry all rational thoughts of moderate conscious eating will fly out the window and instead of choosing foods that make you feel good you're likely to eat whatever you can get this also increases your chances of overeating number three pay attention to fullness while eating pause frequently and feel connection between the meal and your body think about how the food tastes and assess your hunger levels to see if
you need more also take time to savor the experience of eating you'll know you've had enough when you feel satisfied and happy number four choose foods that will make you feel good stopping yourself from eating certain foods can actually trigger serious craving and even binge eating you must pick foods that satisfy both your health needs and your taste buds moderation is key one scoop of your favorite ice cream won't make you gain weight overnight but what and how you eat over time affects your health five respect your emotions emotional eating happens when you eat solely
to satisfy emotions like anxiety loneliness anger or boredom no food can fix any of these feelings while it may provide comfort for a short time it won't solve the problem if you find yourself doing this often talk to a therapist to really deal with the source of the emotion extreme diet is never a prerequisite for having a lean body it it's why intuitive eating exists what you eat doesn't just determine the nutrients your body gets but also its energy levels here's how energy levels impact leanness anything that requires physical and mental activity is far easier
when you have high energy plus it makes life far more enjoyable hence it's only natural to want to know the various ways we can increase and maintain our energy levels getting shredded equals calorie restriction and the less calories you consume the lower your energy levels become not to mention the nut nutrients you get are also compromised remember that the body requires the right nutrients to function properly one common cause of lethargy is either vitamin or mineral deficiency then there are also factors like sleep and testosterone levels While most of these are associated with your General
Health the takeaway here is to see the whole picture of what makes up your daily energy levels as these have a direct impact on your ability to train and recover and even make good decisions many case studies and research have revealed that athletes who prioritize optim ing their energy levels through healthy diet hydration and good sleep tend to perform better and recover quicker likewise professionals who have good energy are often more productive and Achieve better work outcomes there's tons of food that will give you the energy you need but some of the best I'd recommend
you to eat are these these these these these and these on the contrary you should minimize if not avoid all together energy Busters like this these these this and these speaking of healthy diet if there's one whole food that should always be present in your diet it's boiled egg hard-boiled eggs are rich in lean protein and would make a killer muscle building SL weight loss food research says that a high protein diet may help preserve muscle mass and Metabolism during weight loss but more about their life-altering benefits in a bit enjoy your training exercising doesn't
have to feel like hell training can actually be fun once you find the exercises you like to do that you may need to try a lot of things there's no one size fits-all after all Additionally you may have to stick to something for a while before you realize you quite like it as much as you can stay lean with only calorie restriction it's much more difficult with just this therefore a high activity level is almost a must if you want to stay lean and muscular at the same time both cardio and resistance training will serve
you well to get lean muscles according to the American College of sports medicine resistance training is a vital part of an adult fitness program your resistance training must be challenging enough to increase muscular strength and endurance while also boosting muscle size at the same time incorporating cardio is equally crucial for leaning out especially if you could use some pounds off your body with a combination of cardio and resistance exercises it'll give you the highest chance of success to become lean and muscular I personally think that starting out with some stretches or a couple of walks
is good if you're still at the stage of finding the movements you can enjoy stretching and walking are highly accessible and can work from for many people you can make them even more fun by bringing along your pet or a friend listening to your favorite playlist or Audi book is another way to make the exercise enjoyable also give yourself time say a month to try various exercises then take notes of the ones you like the most aside from gym exercises I think you'd likely enjoy more outdoor activities like rock climbing hiking cycling or swimming once
you figured out the exercises you like don't forget to mix things up adding variety could mean increasing the speed adding more more weights increasing distances or changing locations the variety will keep you mentally stimulated while also enhancing your Fitness level furthermore you may find yourself enjoying different kinds of exercises at different times in your life it's perfectly fine to switch things up or fall in and out of love with certain movements embrace the change and just keep moving while we're on the topic of training one way you can add more gym time is when you've
had some extra hearty meal here's why and how it works make good use of those extra calories with so many holidays and special occasions we can't help but eat more than our usual portions for those who are managing their weight their initial solution is to burn off the calories with some cardio exercises but I highly suggest you lift Instead This is even more important if you've had calorie deficits recently because they're usually followed by binge eating the thing with a low calorie consumption is that you might not see much muscle gain so instead of trying
to quickly torch those calorie surpluses capitalize on the extra energy you get and do a few extra reps and ultimately achieve some hypertrophy as for your cardio you can always do it after your weights but personally I believe focusing on weight training is the key to changing your body build for those of you who stuck around to the end here are some excellent food choices you can get ideas from to help you achieve a lean body again an extreme diet isn't necessary so never starve yourself my go-to breakfast is a nice balance of lean protein
high fiber carbohydrates and healthy fats including scrambled egg whites a slice of organic seated toast and 1 qu of sliced avocado a good snack in the morning should be nutritious but not too filling a sliced apple with 1 tbspoon of peanut butter or other nut butter is a great choice providing your body with simple good carbohydrates and healthy fats for lunch eat some white meat preferably skinless chicken breast then pair it with some green veggies so you can have some fiber rich carbohydrates along with lean protein got some cottage cheese just laying round get a
half a cup of that and pair it with 1/4 cup of pineapple and you've got yourself some protein and healthy carbohydrates for dinner you can go big just keep it healthy in my case one of my favorite dinner combinations consists of 4 oz of grilled salmon half a baked sweet potato and of course a green salad that's made of spinach kale and chard topped with a balsamic vinegar thanks for watching if you enjoyed the video make sure to hit that like button and subscribe for more interesting videos like this do you got any other good
tips on how to stay lean drop it in the comment section below and see you next time [Music]
