There are many different factors that can facilitate fat loss. Some techniques are more effective than others, and others might surprise you – it’s not all counting calories.

With the right know-how, you can still enjoy an evening out and keep on track with your transformation.

Here are our top 10 nutrition tips to improve your success when it comes to the fat loss aspect of your journey.

1. Don’t Lose Sight of The Big Picture: Calories

Calorie control is the foundation of fat loss and knowing how to manage calories effectively and efficiently is vital to your success.

You can have the most perfect macro-nutrient ratios in place, but if they tip you into a surplus of calories, you won’t lose body fat.

Essentially, the lesson here is to not run before you can walk. Nail down the essentials first and foremost before refining the small stuff.

2. Get Your Protein Intake ‘Just Right’

If there was one thing Goldilocks got right was finding the perfect balance, and even though we are talking about protein and not porridge, the lesson is nevertheless the same.

Too little protein and we risk tissue loss, increased hunger, and decreased recovery from the gym and a decrease in mood. That last point may sound a little strange but neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine are built from amino acids meaning by not consuming enough, we can be selling ourselves short on not just the physical benefits, but the mental benefits too.

However, when we get protein intake just right, we keep hunger at bay, recover better from our workouts, stimulate muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and cognitively perform at our best.

Even though there is no real upper limit, anything above 0.8-1.2g/lb of bodyweight just doesn't seem to offer any additional benefits to the points mentioned above. This also goes for the appetite suppressing effects meaning you're better off going with vegetables vs doubling up on the protein.

If you really like protein, then by all means have more but understand that you will have to reduce carbohydrates and/or fats to accommodate this which can be a negative if you're looking to maximise performance in the gym. 

3. Don’t Be Afraid of Carbohydrates

If you’ve read our ‘setting up a fat loss diet’ series, you’ll know that there are certainly benefits to including carbohydrates within your diet. Metabolic function, improved mood/sleep and increased performance in the gym being the top three reasons.

Within the process phase of the RNT transformation journey, shedding body fat but retaining as much lean muscle tissue as possible requires peak training performance. During this phase, you need to ensure that your strength and energy levels are as high as possible. And, you guessed it, this requires carbohydrates.

While there’s no set number of carbohydrates to have within a diet, we’d suggest keeping them as high as possible while staying within your calories and hitting your protein and fat minimums. This will also come down to preference, stage of journey and whether or not you have any preexisting metabolic conditions meaning this is not a blanket statement for all.

4. Don’t Fear Fat

Similar to our previous point, fats have been demonised in the past, but they aren’t as bad as you think.

Without a base level of dietary fat, the synthesis of sex hormones will likely be impaired. If this happens, there will be knock-on effects in terms of mental well-being, libido, skin, hair and nail health etc.

This will certainly affect you if your aim is to build muscle as testosterone is the main hormone required to increase muscle growth.

We’d recommend around 0.4g/lb of bodyweight here as a minimum but don't be afraid to experiment with higher numbers while prioritising fats from plant and marine sources. Think avocado, olive oil, nuts., nut butters, seeds, salmon, mackerel, herring or just fish oil/algae oil supplements.

Aim to keep saturated fat on the lower end which equates to roughly 10% of your total calories.

5. Fibre is Your Friend

While fibre might not directly play a role in burning fat, it is a very much overlooked aspect when setting up a diet. Many high 

Fibre also helps regulate blood sugar and cholesterol levels. It does this by slowing down the rate that carbohydrates and other food items reach are absorbed while also binding to cholesterol particles within the small intestine, rendering it from being absorbed into the bloodstream. 

This allows for more stable energy levels throughout the day along with feeling satiated between meals. Shoot for a variety of fruits and vegetables to make up the bulk of your diet but if you're looking to add a serious fibre hit, the following are great sources.

• Oats
• Potatoes (skin on)
• Kiwi fruit (skin on)
• Apples (skin on)
• Avocado
• Black Beans
• Lentils

6. Nutrient Timing

Whilst total energy balance (calories in Vs calories out) will always trump nutrient timing in terms of fat loss, it still can play a beneficial role.

For example:

• Placing carbohydrates before bed may help you sleep. If you sleep better, you’ll recover better, have more energy and potentially have better appetite regulation.
• Placing carbohydrates before you train may help you train harder and you’re less likely to feel fatigued halfway through your session.
• Placing carbohydrates after you train will allow your body to dispose of the glucose by shuttling it into the muscle cell much more efficiently.

In terms of protein and fat, spreading these somewhat evenly throughout the day makes the most sense. But strategically placing carbohydrates can yield benefit here and there.

The effects may be small but will give you a slight advantage.

7. Stop Snacking

Planned snacks are fine as they are accounted for. What we mean here is the impulsive raiding of the fridge and cupboards.

Regardless as to whether it’s the odd sweet or two, the one chocolate bar over the weekend ‘because you’ve worked hard all week’, or the occasional bite while preparing meals, all those instances of ‘it’s just one bite’ add up!

If these snacks are accounted for and factored into your diet, that’s absolutely fine. But if these ‘one off’ treats keep adding up, so do the calories and your efforts are in vein.

Outside of the additional calories though, snacking in and of itself is just a bad habit in general as you entrain yourself to be consistently grazing which has been shown to be detrimental to fat loss when compared with people who consume regular meals.

Keep on track – don’t snack!

8. Remember, Supplements Are… Supplements

While there are many supplements that we would highly recommend to certain clients to complement their transformation goals, they are not food replacements.

The definition of the word ‘supplement’ is ‘a thing added to something else in order to complete or enhance it.’

Supplements are not substitutes. This is a common mistake that many people make and replace foods with additional supplement pills or fluorescent coloured drinks.

Quality diet, training and transformation protocols are essentials, supplements are simply enhancements.

9. Consistency Is King

The secret to progress is consistency.

The most common pitfall we encounter is those that work hard Monday-Friday, and then completely fall off over the weekend. Whether it’s missing cardio sessions or binge eating, inconsistency unravels progress.

That’s not to say you must live like a robot. The key is to plan ahead. If you want to go out for a meal, take this into consideration and look ahead at the menu, work out what the calorie burden will be, and create a ‘buffer’ of calories during the day by eating lighter.

It’s not rocket science, it’s basic preparation.

10. Create Accountability

When nobody knows your goals/intentions, it’s easy let the ball drop. You are not disappointing anyone if you have no one to ‘own up’ to or pull you up on it.

Creating accountability is a powerful tool to keep you on the straight and narrow.

If you think of it like a workplace, you are held accountable to your line-manager, and it is their duty to ensure you stay focused and achieve your goals. Without this sense of structure, most workers would slack off and performance would decrease.

The same can be said for the transformation process.

Whilst on the RNT transformation journey, you are held accountable by the coaches, your cohort and the entire RNT family which we have found to be extremely effective.

You can likewise create accountability around you by telling others about your transformation journey, such as family and friends. You never know when in social situations they just might be your conscience pulling you back from the temptation of ordering a dessert or having another drink.

The power of accountability is surprisingly strong, which is why it is almost always referenced within our client testimonials on our transformations page.

While there are many more elements that facilitate fat loss, these are our top 10 tips and, if you can master these, you should be well on par to achieve your long-term transformation goals.