Some of us have more of it than others, but body fat has many important functions in human beings, from serving as a valuable source of energy, to the insulation and protection of your vital organs. However, as with many things in life, too much can lead to problems and where body fat is concerned, this means it can put you at risk of things like heart disease and diabetes. With nearly a decade of working in this industry, I’ve seen my fair share of faddish, unsustainable and extreme fat loss plans that are almost always destined to fail. Here are my sensible tips on how to most effectively burn body fat.

1 – The importance of activity
The human anatomy was built to be a physically active machine, which expends energy through movement. In the days of the hunter-gatherer, very few were overweight. The main reason – activity (and catching animals is very difficult!). You would need to expend calories through hunting before ingesting calories from whatever food source you found or caught. Now that our ‘hunting’ is completed in supermarkets, it means our calorie expenditure through exercise to receive the reward of food is less, which in turn reduces the potential for a calorie deficit that allows your body to burn excess body fat effectively. The good thing about the point I’m trying to make is that this couldn’t be a simpler problem to fix - all you must do is simply move more! Walk to the shops instead of driving. Take the stairs instead of an escalator. Enjoy a fast paced evening walk or jog in the park before or after work. The possibilities to burn calories are endless; you’ve just got to be prepared to do it!



2 – Avoid Fat-Free
If we remove fats from our diet, do we all become skinny? Unfortunately, it’s not really that easy. It might sound crazy saying it, but many fat-free foods and products can hinder your progress in losing body fat. The reason – some fats are good for you whilst others aren’t so good. The main hidden trouble with fat-free foods is that they usually have a high sugar contents, which your body can store as body fat (which is exactly what your trying to get rid of!). Instead of removing any particular food from your diet, simply avoid fat-free, highly processed products and opt for fresh, home cooked food with plenty of vegetables and lean sources of protein.



3 – Put the Sugar down
Sugar has many uses within the human body, and is important to the everyday function of movement, but many studies suggest sugar as being an important factor when it comes to various weight-related illnesses and diseases, such as coronary heart disease (CHD), diabetes, and even some types of cancer. Now, removing all sugar from your diet is extremely difficult, so setting this up as a target would be unrealistic, but I believe we can all do more in improving our overall health by monitoring the amount of sugar we consume (and even this can be tricky, as sugar hides in food products you wouldn’t believe had any in it at all!). With that said - remember to check over the list of ingredients in all the food you purchase at the shops and always opt for products lower in sugar content. I promise your body fat percentage will thank you for it.



4 – Get in the Gym!
Going to the gym and investing your personal time into your goal of fat loss is more than just about losing that excess body fat – it shows commitment and determination, which will make you more disciplined in your approach to achieving successful fat loss. This investment can also assist in your decision- making outside the gym environment, and allow you to choose the right foods to eat more often, because you do not want all that sweat and investment of time to go to waste. So always book three or four days every week for 30 minutes to 1 hour's exercise and make that commitment to the cause, and watch those pounds melt!

Remember, the time you invest does not have to be a chore – so brighten things up by trying a class or even going one step further and speaking to a Personal Trainer to get you kick-started in the right direction!

5 – The Tortoise & the Hare
It is a real minefield out there with hundreds and thousands of diets and training regimes that guarantee to get your body in check, which is why I use this childhood story to explain to people how fat-loss really works. Body fat reduction should be a slow but consistent battle - not a sprint with instant results from day one. I know, it would be great if fat loss was an overnight process, which some fad-diets promise, but realistically if it was that easy, everyone would have the healthier and leaner physique they desire. With that thought in mind of a slow but consistent battle, I say aim for 1-2lbs loss per week as a short-term goal, which is safely sustainable, and allows you to drop body fat on a regular basis. Sometimes though, like the tortoise, things aren’t always going to go your way and you may experience some set-backs, but slow and steady always wins the race!

This blog has been written by our Manager at Watford, Tom Ward, who is an knowledageable and enthusiastic, teacher and personal trainer.