Are you looking for ways to lose that extra fat and get into shape? Then you have landed the perfect place as we have brought you a complete guide on why losing body fat is essential to avoid the health risks. We have also brought you ways to lose the fat while keeping track of your progress and yet ensuring that you intake all the essential nutrients.
For that matter, fat Loss calculator is the perfect tool to find out the fat loss percentage that you can accomplish as a result of your balanced diet and a well-rounded fitness regimen. So, read on to find all the important information regarding body fat and how to lose fat and calculate it through the length of this article. So, let’s get started.
Why Losing Body Fat is Essential?
Losing fat has become the fundamental goal for all the adults in this extremely busy life. Obtaining and maintaining the optimal body composition helps in improving the health, performance as well as the aesthetic appearance.
So, what is body fat? Body fat is adipose tissue whose function is to store energy. However, it also provides cushioning and insulating effect on the body. The human body stores fat in two major forms: essential fats and storage body fat.
The essential fats are significant when it comes to supporting life as well as reproduction. These fats are found in women in substantially higher ratios as they have to bear children and require them for proper hormonal functioning.
Storage body fat, on the other hand, is the fat that is additionally accumulated. However, it can’t be regarded as useless and unimportant as this fat insulates the internal organs and the abdomen.
Losing the extra body fat is essential to stay fit and avoid many chronic diseases:
Benefits of Balanced Body Fat Percentage
For the body to function properly, having the right body composition with an appropriate fat percentage is very important. A healthy body fat percentage has the following benefits:
- Regulated temperature
- Vitamin storage levels maintained
- Balanced levels of blood sugar
- Hormonal balance
- Balanced reproductive health
- Better mental and physical performance
- Healthy metabolism
Health Risks of High Body Fat Percentage
A high percentage of body fat comes with its risks and harmful effects. Too much visceral fat in your body can put you at risk of the following health issues:
- Heart disease and stroke
- Complications in pregnancy
- Type 2 diabetes
- Hypertension
- Hormonal imbalance
- Coronary artery disease
Track your weight loss goals
While you’re making a consistent progression, you need to keep track of it. For that purpose, you will have to hold yourself accountable. Self-accountability is a very helpful tool to reach our defined goals as it helps you to assess your actions and potential. You can follow the below steps to track your weight loss goals.
1. Take daily pictures
Try taking your pictures every day and evaluate your progress over the month. This evaluation will help you track if you are going on the right lines or you need to make some changes to your weight loss regimen that would take you towards your goals in a better way.
2. Use a tape measure
Always keep a measuring tape handy and take your body measurements every week. If you feel your measurements reducing over time, then you will feel motivated and would want to continue on the same lines. On the other hand, if you don’t feel like making enough progress, then you can consider making some changes to your current weight loss regimen to produce better outcomes.
3. Fat Loss Calculator
Use our fat loss calculator to determine your fat loss percentage so that you stay on the right track of fat loss and ideal body weight management. All you have to do is input the following facts and then calculate your fat loss:
- Gender
- Age
- Height
- Weight
- Start Date
- Goal Weight
- Calorie Deficit
- Activity Factor
- Exercise Factor
Using these variables, you can find your fat loss percentage and tweak your diet plan and exercise regimen accordingly to move in the right direction of fat loss.
Ideal Body Fat Percentage
When it comes to the ideal body fat percentage, it is variable depending upon each individual. For instance, a common person would have higher levels of body fat when compared to an athlete. However, the borderline for obesity in men is beyond 26% of body fat while for women, it is 32%. For a man to be fit and healthy, the percentage of body fat must fall in 14 to 17 percent range while for a woman it must fall in the range of 21 to 24 percent.
How to Lose the Fat and not muscles
Body fat is among the most unwanted things as it doesn’t only sabotage your beauty but also undermines your self-confidence. We millennials are faced with a lot of challenges when it comes to body fat as a result of our bad eating habits and unavoidable bad lifestyle. It is therefore imperative to get enough education on body composition, particularly body fat, to stay healthy and promote fitness. The following ways can help you in dropping those extra body fats and make your lifestyle better.
1. Lose Fat – Preserve Muscle
When it comes to losing weight, it would be better if you focus on losing the fat and preserving the muscle. As with most of the diets, you lose weight, which includes your lean body mass, leaving you with very little muscle to make your booty look flattering. So, it is important that you understand the difference between losing weight and losing fat while preserving muscle.
2. Intake More Protein
Adding more protein to your diet will help you feel satiated for longer, which also helps you in avoiding cravings. Add protein-rich foods or maybe a protein supplement to your diet. Protein-rich foods include low-fat cheese, eggs, meat, poultry, fish, etc. By taking a protein-rich diet, you will be able to avoid high-calorie and junk food while eating lesser that would help you lose body fat but preserve the muscles.
3. Cook in Batches
Go ahead, indulge in batch cooking simple one-pot dishes over the weekend, and store them in containers to use over the busy week. This will help you in avoiding junk food over the week while you eat healthily and get lean. You will not have to worry about what you will eat once you get home after a hectic day. All you have to do is defrost your stored healthy food and dish it out to enjoy your meal without having to worry about the fats.
4. Resistance Training
Another great and effective way of losing body fat is none other than resistance training. Lifting weight can help you in dropping the body fat while you gain muscle, and it comes with a plus of getting all the strength. Strength training will also help you with an increase in the Resting Metabolic rate so that you burn more calories to maintain all your muscles.
5. Water, Water, Water
Water is the best drink when it comes to fat loss. So drink up plenty of water regularly to get rid of all the toxins in your body while keeping it hydrated.
6. Get on the Spicier side of things
Who doesn’t love a bit of spice in their life? We sure do! You can add the thermogenic spices to your foods to convert your body into a fat-burning machine. All you have to do is enjoy some spicy food which will enhance the thermogenesis in your body. As a result, your body will burn the calories from your food alongside all the excess body fat. So, add any of your favorite spices from the list below to your food and enjoy it:
- Cayenne Pepper
- Cinnamon
- Turmeric
- Black Pepper
- Cumin
- Cardamom
Just add a couple of these spice to your regular diet, and you can lose all the fat while having a healthy metabolic rate.
7. Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple Cider Vinegar is the ultimate tonic, which also serves as a probiotic that also helps in fat loss. It helps in making you feel satiated and reduces your appetite. You can dilute it with water and take it during the meals. You can also add it to your salad dressings and marinades if you don’t like drinking it directly.
Ensure you are Getting Enough Essential Nutrients
The latest dietary guidelines provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are given below:
- Physical activity is essential to balance the calories you intake while managing weight.
- Consuming more foods and nutrients like fruits, low-fat dairy products, seafood, vegetables, and whole grains is recommended.
- Avoid consuming the foods that contain added sugars, cholesterol, refined grains, saturated fat, sodium, and trans fat.
If you succeed in following these dietary guidelines, you would be able to lose fat, bridge the nutritional gap and would get closer to achieving optimal health.
Bottom Line
It isn’t an impossible task to lose body fat when you transform your lifestyle into a healthier one. The nerve-wracking process can be made easier with the right strategy and determination. The achievement of ideal body composition involves a healthy balance between energy intake and training program for you. Get ready to experience the amazing transformation as you go on to build more muscle while losing the fat for a healthier and fitter you! Using our Fat loss calculator will help you keep track of your results to keep you focused on your fat loss goals.