The sudden realisation that the summer is only a couple of months away will no doubt send anyone a long way from bikini-body-ready into a bit of a mini panic. However, fear not! There is still enough time to lose weight before the summer season starts!
It's mid-spring, and that horrible sense of deja vu has returned - the summer is suddenly very near and your body is a long way off being ready for the bikini season. You've been here before. And truth be known, in previous summers, you weren’t as prepared as you had wished. The good news is that by following common sense health tips from kick-starting your fitness regime to cutting down on poor-quality carbs, quitting alcohol for a few weeks and adding collagen to your daily routine, we've got this covered!
Tactics for losing weight before the summer arrives
Weight training
The principal motivation for weight training shouldn't necessarily be weight loss. After all, weight training helps you build muscle, raises your resting metabolic rate, and strengthens your core. While you won’t lose as many calories from weight training as you will from intense cardio, weight training enables us to maintain muscle during dieting. You will lose fat, build muscle, and your body will be in much better shape for the beach in July!
Calorie counting
There are hundreds of different diets, but one of the most successful weight-loss tactics is calorie counting. Did you know that the country with the highest per capita average consumption of calories is Ireland? According to Our World in Data, with 3885 calories per person, Ireland beats the USA to this dubious title. The optimum daily calorie intake varies depending on age, metabolism and physical activity. But as an average across the population, the recommended intake is 2500 calories per day for men and 2000 for women. If we take the examples of Ireland (3885) and the US (3782), it is clear that the general population is overconsuming calories. Over weeks, months and years, imagine how the numbers add up!
The general rule is:
Calories in (food and drink) - calories out (physical exertion) = weight gain OR loss.
Let’s take the example of Japan:
Average calorie consumption = 2705 calories per day.
A physically active Japanese consuming 2705 calories per day will likely lose weight.
Calorie counting is no exact science, but following this practice as a general rule of thumb will likely lead to weight loss.
Follow proper nutrition!
We all want a bikini-beautiful body but remember that being in good shape goes far beyond looking good and getting appreciative glances from strangers and friends. Losing weight reduces blood pressure, enables us to sleep better, helps us fight off diseases, and improves our overall quality of life. To maintain a healthy weight in the long term (bikini bodies aren’t just for summer), practice proper nutrition in your life:
- Eat several servings of fruit and vegetables per day
- Consume healthy fats
- Limit your portion sizes
- Eat whole grains instead of refined grains
- Consume lean proteins, legumes and nuts
Reduce poor-quality processed carbs!
Many argue that food quality is just as important a factor as calorie counting when it comes to rapid weight loss. It is a fact that consuming poor-quality processed foods with their easily digestible carbs leads to a spike in blood glucose. Cutting processed carbs from your diet is a surefire way to help you be bikini-body-ready.
Drink more water
We all should be consuming a lot of water per day. Optimum water consumption enables our bodies to function better and clean our bodies of excess water. For women, this means 2.7 litres per day and 3.7 litres for men (U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine). It probably doesn’t sound like a big deal but try consuming the recommended daily amount of water and see what happens!
Quit alcohol for two months!
By quitting alcohol for a couple of months, you not only cut down on calories and unhealthy sugar but will sleep better at night. The benefits of better sleep include:
- Better mood
- Enhanced brain function
- Improved immune function
- A healthier heart
- Improved athletic performance
- Better metabolism
If you dream of sipping mojitos and margaritas on the beach this summer, put in the hard miles and take a break from alcohol for a few weeks!
Fasting
Fasting can bring many health benefits:
- Improved sleep function
- Reduced inflammation
- Overall reduction in visceral fat
- Weight loss
Add collagen to your diet!
As we age, we lose collagen. This collagen depletion causes our skin to sag and age and also leads to bone density loss. Adding collagen to our diets ahead of the summer can bring many benefits:
- Boost our overall health
- Support weight loss
- Our new bikini-ready bodies look younger and more beautiful
- Adding a collagen sachet to our morning coffee can help regulate fat metabolism
- Weight training effectiveness increases
And the good news is, you can consume Collagen during Keto and Paleo fasts without breaking them!
Fasting and Collagen
It’s a common question: can you consume collagen while fasting? The simple answer is ‘yes’. Let’s look at this topic in more detail:
Zero-tolerance fasting, where no calorie intake is allowed, is not recommended. But if you add vitamin pills and supplements to a fast, it will likely be beneficial to your health. And although this small calorie intake will temporarily spike blood sugar levels, it will not undo the overall benefits of fasting. One 5g single serving of Col Du Marine™ collagen will only prompt a negligible rise in blood sugar, while daily collagen intake brings many positives. So go ahead and add collagen to your fast!
The 5:2 fast
The 5:2 intermittent fast is increasingly popular due to its periods of eating what you want, followed by two days of fasting. Consuming 300 or 400 calories during the two fasting days is permitted - a morning scoop in your coffee or smoothie of your favourite Col Du Marine™ peptides collagen powder is not only allowed but is an absolute must!
The Paleo Diet
The human body is struggling to deal with the rigours of modern life, which includes the consumption of twenty-first-century processed foods. Indeed, many doctors are concluding that we are better suited to the diet humans consumed for much of the previous hundreds of thousands of years. A Paleo Diet is based upon this diet of yesteryear and means lots of vegetables, fruits, fish, nuts and good quality meat. Adding collagen to a Paleo Diet is permitted as collagen is a natural part of this diet regimen. Practising a Paleo Diet in combination with collagen intake for 2-3 months will inevitably lead to weight loss and improved overall health and well-being.
Losing weight with a Keto Diet
Ketosis is the metabolic state when the body burns unhealthy fat. A Keto Diet is a diet low in carbohydrates but high in fat. For anyone wishing to lose weight, the benefits of this diet include improved metabolism and excess body fat loss. Can you supplement a Keto diet with collagen? Yes, collagen peptides complement a Keto Diet.
Diets and collagen summarised
Collagen peptides taken in their purest form do not break a fast. Therefore, you can confidently add a scoop of Col Du Marine™ to your morning coffee safe in the knowledge that not only are you not breaking the fast, but you are helping build better stronger bones and boosting the health of your skin.
Should you follow a 5:2 intermittent fast? A Keto Diet? Or a Paleo Diet?
You must choose the diet you believe works best for you!
The summer is nearer than you think!
The summer is only a few weeks off, so now is the time to make positive changes to your body if you want to look and feel your best for the beach! Try practising proper nutrition, weight training, quitting alcohol for a few weeks, and eating less processed food! And if you want to follow one of the popular diets of our times, remember to add a 5g sachet of Col Du Marine™ peptides powder to your daily routine! The benefits are many, including losing weight and enjoying healthier skin and bones!
