Throughout the years, you’ve noticed a little bit of pudge has slowly and surely started to accumulate in areas where you don’t want it. Suffice it to say, reality has struck you and it’s time to do something about it.

The best approach is to learn how to lose weight and build muscle. This gives you the best of both worlds. You’ll feel and look strong, and you’ll be slimmer. All that’s left for you to do is follow the right steps to make it happen.

1 – Shore up your diet

Bad eating habits are probably what gained you the weight in the first place. You need to turn the tables completely to kickstart your efforts in the right direction.

First of all, identify any food or drinks you’ve been consuming that are high in calories and unhealthy. Be honest with yourself! These include all forms of alcohol, white bread, processed baked goods, cakes, cookies, deep-fried foods, chips, pretzels, fries, and white rice.

Eliminate all this stuff and replace it with wholesome foods with minimal ingredients. You are always safe with lean meats, fish, whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables. In fact, make your diet completely revolve around these foods and only drink water. Calories in the form of liquids are just as destructive as food.

2 – Pump some iron

Muscle is metabolically active. It causes to you burn more calories when you are at rest, which contributes to weight loss. Since you want to know how to build muscle and lose weight, you must include weight training in your lifestyle. Then you’ll kill two birds with one stone.

Focus on targeting all of your major muscle groups with exercises like chest presses, back rows, shoulder presses, squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, and hanging knee raises. Use a resistance that is heavy enough to spark muscle growth, too.

A good rule of thumb is to use a weight that you can only lift 8 to 10 times with good form. Also take two days off between your workouts to make sure your muscles have enough time to recover. It’s during your rest periods that your muscles are actually building, anyway.

3 – Include cardio in your workout regimen

Cardio is the type of exercise that’s performed in a steady motion for an extended period of time. Not only is it good for your heart, but it also burns a lot of calories. By incorporating it into your program, you’ll be building muscle and losing weight at the same time, which is your overall goal.

Choose a form of cardio that you like, such as running, cycling, elliptical training, stair climbing, or rowing. All of these are good at burning calories. You just have to choose one that’s not going to feel like pulling teeth when you work out.

Ideally, you’ll get in a minimum of 30 minutes of cardio three days a week. But feel free to do more if your schedule allows. Plus, you can boost your results by doing interval training.

Simply alternate back and forth from high to low intensity throughout your entire workout. This will not only cause more overall caloric expenditure, but it will also give your metabolism an even bigger boost when you are at rest.

Conclusion

You may think this plan is a bit tough when you first look at it. But once you get a little momentum, it will get easier and easier. And when you start seeing defined muscles appear on your body and all the while your waistline is going down, you’ll have all the motivation you need to stay on track!

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