The Forgotten Keys to Fat Loss

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I don’t consider myself a “fat loss” guy per se.  I spend the majority of my days working with athletes ranging from high school all the way to the professional ranks helping them move better, run faster, lift more weight, throw harder, or whatever their respective sport may be, I just try to help them become a little bit more awesome compared to when they first walk through our doors at Cressey Performance.

This isn’t to say that some of the athletes that show up don’t need to get rid of that spare tire around their waist. But in the grand scheme of things, when it comes to fat loss, the only time I really place an emphasis on it – or at least go out of my way to make it a priority – is when I work with general population clients who come to the facility to get their ass kicked to get their sexy on.

It’s with that in mind that I recently wrote an article for Livestrong.com which sheds light on two forgotten components of fat loss – directed specifically to those people who are frustrated that, despite being inundated with a literal avalanche of information on the topic, are still fighting the battle of the bulge.

Two favors, if I may:

1.  Read the article HERE.

Or

HERE (<— In case you needed bigger letters).

2.  Once you read it, and if you thought it was pretty baller, please “Like” it  on Livestrong’s page. Or Tweet it.  Or better yet, do both!  I want to send a message to them that the TonyG.com empire are a loyal bunch.

If you don’t like it, that’s cool. I’ll just remember that the next time you need help moving into your new apartment.

Or the next time you need to borrow some money because you happened to “forget your wallet.”

Or the next time you need affirmation that the girl you’re currently dating isn’t some uppity skank who thinks she’s better than everyone else.

I DIDN’T WANT YOU TO READ IT ANYWAYS!!!!  YOU’RE RUINING MY LIFE!!!!!! AHHHHHHH.

*slams bedroom door*

3. In all seriousness, though, I’d appreciate any feedback or insight or opinions on the article.  Thanks everyone!

Did what you just read make your day? Ruin it? Either way, you should share it with your friends and/or comment below.

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Comments for This Entry

  • Julia Buckley

    Read it. Loved it. Totally agree. :-)

    August 15, 2012 at 10:10 am | Reply to this comment

  • John J Brooks

    That is a hard article to write.. no one wants to read the truth especially when it's unsexy: eat less, work hard, be patient. Which is to say I think it's right on. One thing people miss about the whole calorie thing is that it is possible to be undernourished and over fed. If one is eating junk with no nutritional value, the calories are the same, but physiologically you're going to be begging for some nutrients (read as more food) if you're eating nutrient dense foods, the hunger will be the same, but the nagging "feed me, I'm dieing" feeling will be muted. Either one will technically work, but the former involves more tears and emotional breakdowns.

    August 15, 2012 at 11:21 am | Reply to this comment

    • TonyGentilcore

      Excellent point(s) JB, as always. I can't tell you how many times I've had to break things down with various women (sorry ladies, I'm picking on you here) that UNDER eating can be just as detrimental. More specifically the lack of eating nutrient dense foods and how they plays into things. As you noted the body is going to crave the nutrients it's not getting. I remember one time when I told a female client of mine to start eating WHOLE eggs. She about flipped her shit. It was hilarious (and disheartening) at the same time.

      August 16, 2012 at 6:14 am | Reply to this comment

  • Laurence Howles

    Really good article. I find that it is the motivation, or lack of, to change the nutritional aspect of a lifestyle that can highlight how important weight loss really is to someone. It should be far easier to leave that glass of wine every night than go power-walking for two hours...but it just doesn't show the neighbours you are on a new health kick?

    August 15, 2012 at 12:26 pm | Reply to this comment

    • TonyGentilcore

      Couldn't agree more Laurence. Changing one's eating habits or patterns is undoubtedly one of the toughest things to work on. It can be VERY intimidating for people. The last thing trainers should do is try to do a complete 180 on people on day one: eat more protein with every meal, eat every 2-3 hours (which is BS), prepare foods the night before, oh, and don't forget your fish oil. That shit ain't gonna happen. Instead, I try to focus on ONE thing at a time. I'm sure you do too. Once they get the hang of that, and it becomes a "habit," then we can start to tackle other things. Thanks for reading and sharing!

      August 16, 2012 at 6:17 am | Reply to this comment

  • Andrew Meadows

    This is an awesome article. I was trying to explain these concepts to my friend the other day...now I'll just send him this article. Nice work!

    August 15, 2012 at 1:56 pm | Reply to this comment

  • david huber

    Cool "Power of the Internet/Power of Tony" moment: My sister-in-law is obese, and trying to address that life challenge. On her Facebook page today, she lamented about how much she doesn't enjoy exercise. That comment seemed to connect at some level with your article. So i sent her the link. She read it. Liked it. Sent it on to her daughter, who is also fighting the obesity battle. My point: Your voice is being heard, and you are saying things that connect to people and their efforts. Long-distance bro' hug.

    August 15, 2012 at 2:29 pm | Reply to this comment

    • TonyGentilcore

      Wow, David.......thanks for sharing. I try my best to speak in a way that doesn't talk down to people and (hopefully) teaches them something and motivates them to change. Generally speaking, it's NOT an educational thing. People know what's good for them and what's not. It's just a matter of stating things in a way that resonates with them and motivates them to change. Sounds like I was able to do so with this article, which is a great feeling. Let me know how things go. Tony PS: have her read The New Rules of Lifting for Women.

      August 16, 2012 at 6:23 am | Reply to this comment

  • Patrick Striet

    Great job Tony. I always tell our clients "It doesn't take ANY time NOT to eat 500 calories...but it takes up to an hour to burn that many." There needs to be a huge paradigm shift-and fit pros like us need to lead this shift-in how the general public views exercise programs and their objectives. Expecting an exercise only approach to result in significant fat loss makes as much sense as joining Weight Watchers and expecting it to put 50 lbs. on your deadlift. Can improved nutrition contribute to better workouts, and, in turn, lifting heavier weights? Sure, but sound programming drives 95% of the results when it comes to getting stronger. I don't know why people expect exercise to be different when it comes to weight/fat loss. Sure, exercise can make a small contribution towards weight/fat loss, but the quantity and, to a lesser extent, quality of food eaten is going to be responsible for results or lack thereof.

    August 15, 2012 at 3:22 pm | Reply to this comment

  • Barath

    Do you realize that you seem to publish in pairs? I remember last time one of your TNation articles went up, there was a livestrong publication on the same day. Good job sir!

    August 15, 2012 at 5:38 pm | Reply to this comment

  • dtc

    Tony, what is your view on the argument that 'calorie in/calorie out' is the wrong equation; rather its more related to type of calories (essentially protein/fat vs carbs) or, putting it another way, the equiation is 'energy in vs energy expended', where 'energy' does not equal calorie, because what the body does with a calorie of carb is different to what it does to a calorie of protein (as the argument goes): Carbs cause high insulin, driving a disproportionate share of what people eat into their fat cells; meaning that energy is stored instead of burned. So while the 'energy in' equation is essentially calories in; the 'energy expended' part of the equation is affected not only by exercise but also by the type of calories that went in. Obviously this is the paleo school of thought and you touched on it with your side bar (oats are better than bagels).

    August 15, 2012 at 6:41 pm | Reply to this comment

    • TonyGentilcore

      I completely agree with that notion, actually. But I still think the whole calories in/calories out is still applicable to a VAST majority of people out there reading. I kinda/sorta alluded to the QUALITY of calories in the sidebar section of the article: oatmeal vs. bagel. I'm fully aware that the hormonal effect of what we can (even when calories taken into account and are the same) has a profound effect on results. I was playing with a word count for this article and I didn't want my editor to hate me for sending in a thesis. I had to limit myself a bit and stick with more of the "big rock" I ideas I wanted to get across to the reader. At the end of the day, I completely agree with you.

      August 16, 2012 at 6:32 am | Reply to this comment

  • FreakSammy

    I, too, provided the link to your article to a FB friend who is lamenting her weight gain, while talking only about "not looking at a scale until I have run X number of times". We'll see....we'll see.

    August 16, 2012 at 5:32 pm | Reply to this comment

  • Top Good Reads of the Week: Edition 11 | LaVack Fitness

    [...] Adam Bornstein Workouts, Walking and Running using the Big Toe Effectively – The Gait Guys The Forgotten Keys to Fat Loss – Tony Gentilcore Should Lack of Exercise Be Considered A Medical Condition? – Eliza Barclay Let’s Stop [...]

    August 25, 2012 at 11:48 am | Reply to this comment

  • Top Good Reads of the Week: Edition 11

    […] Adam Bornstein Workouts, Walking and Running using the Big Toe Effectively – The Gait Guys The Forgotten Keys to Fat Loss – Tony Gentilcore Should Lack of Exercise Be Considered A Medical Condition? – Eliza Barclay Let’s Stop […]

    September 12, 2013 at 9:49 pm | Reply to this comment

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