Q & A

Hellooooo! 

So this is where I answer random questions that I've received over the past weeks from YOU! I'm going to answer 5 at a time, bi-weekly. If I didn't answer your question yet, hold tight! If you have more, contact me or ask in comments and I will definitely get back to you :)

Yes, I do have my fitness trainer & fitness nutrition specialist certifications, but I am NO expert. I am still constantly researching and learning new information/methods. These answers are just my personal experiences and opinions. Just want to say before anything that there is not ONE right way to eat or to workout to achieve the physique you want. There are sooooo many things you can do if one thing isn't working! But you, and only you, know if you are actually giving it your all 120% effort to reach goals. That means eating right and WORKing out, sweating, burning fat!

1. How much & what kind of cardio do you do?

Off season I would do about 25-40 minutes, depending on how I felt, 4-5x a week of steady state cardio. Now while in contest prep, I do 30-50mins of both steady state and HIIT cardio 5-6x a week. I always do my cardio after weight-lifting.

Steady state cardio: Some form of cardiovascular exercise where you keep a steady pace and rate of exertion for the bulk of the workout.

>check out this article on steady state cardio<

HIIT cardio: HIIT stands for high intensity interval training. HIIT involves alternating between very intense bouts of exercise and low intensity exercise. Example: sprinting for 30 seconds, then walking for 60 seconds, repeat. Example: sprinting up the step mill for 20 seconds, then slowing down for 2mins 40 seconds, repeat.

>check out this article on HIIT cardio<

Personally, I LOVE the days I do HIIT cardio. I feel powerful, energized, and enjoy sweating my ass off! Both are optimal for fat loss. Just switch things up! Keep your body guessing and have some fun. If you're bored, you won't want to keep going. 

2. What do you eat? 

There seems to be two different "eating lifestyles"? I guess you would say these days. The "clean eaters" and the "IIFYM"-ers. IIFYM: if it fits your macros. Talking about these two would take up a whole separate blog so I'll leave that aside for now. My main foods I eat are lean proteins, green veggies, carbs, and healthy fats. 

*Lean proteins: boneless skinless chicken breast, extra lean ground turkey, salmon, tilapia, tuna, lean ground beef, eggs

*Veggies: spinach, green beans, brussels sprouts, kale, broccoli, asparagus (I don't like it though, yuck)

*Carbohydrates: sweet potato, oatmeal, brown rice, jasmine rice, ezekiel bread, rice cakes

*Fats: extra virgin olive oil, peanut butter/almond butter, avocado, almonds 

*Fruits: strawberries, grapefruit, blueberries, bananas

*I don't have any dairy while in contest prep, but during off season I love plain fat free Greek yogurt, fat free cottage cheese, and almond milk. Yuuuum!

There are so many more options than what I listed. Here is a wonderful example of a bigger list and options by Jamie Eason.

Example:
1. Breakfast: Oatmeal with blueberries, 1 whole egg and 3 egg whites
2. Snack: check my blog on healthy snacks 

3. Lunch: chicken/turkey/fish/beef with carbs, and green veggies
4. Snack: chicken/turkey/fish with carbs, and green veggies
5. Dinner: chicken/fish and green veggies or spinach salad with 1 tsp of extra virgin olive oil

*I always have a protein shake right after my workout, usually as I'm walking to pick up my son from the gym daycare. 

*I always eat 30-60 minutes before my workout as well. DO NOT go workout on an empty stomach. It will not help in losing weight/fat. Your body will start eating your muscles, and you do not want that because more muscles= more fat loss. The more muscles you have, the less fat your body has. 

Above is just an example. To know how much of what you should be eating, you would need to calculate your BMR, and from there we would get your maintenance caloric intake and from there we would see what your macros are to lose fat/weight or gain, if your goal is to gain (mostly men). It's very important to get a well balance of PROTEIN, CARBS & FAT! There is no magic number that works for everyone. 
If you would like help on this, please email me at suarezcoral@hotmail.com

3. What are macros?
Macros are macronutrients. Macros, in short, are the PROTEIN, CARBOHYDRATES, & FATS in every single thing you eat & drink. People pay too much attention to CALORIES, when they should be paying attention to more detail, as in whats IN those calories. 
1g of protein = 4 calories, 1g or carbohydrates = 4 calories, 1g of fat = 9 calories. 

People think "oh these crackers are only 120 calories!" but what's in those 120calories? usually 40g carbs, little to no protein, and lots of fat! Plus, you're most likely going to get hungry again in 5 minutes. Or have another. 

It's super important to learn how to read labels. If you don't know how to yet, go grab something from your fridge or pantry and look at the label. Read how much PROTEIN, CARBOHYDRATES & FAT that is in ONE serving! I bet most of you will be surprised. Especially because people don't read the serving size and eat 2-3x the amount! 

Macros are what will get you to your goals. You can workout and workout, but if your eating is not on track, you're going to end up going in circles.

This topic is very huge. I think I could go on and on, but I will keep it short and simple.

4. What is your routine?
There's no magic routine, magic number of sets, magic number of reps. I weight train for about 45-1hr 15 minutes followed by 30-50minutes of steady state or HIIT cardio. I take Sundays off to recover. When I weight train, I train at least 2 muscle groups at a time.

Example: glutes and abs, biceps and back, biceps, triceps and shoulders, legs and chest, back, chest and abs. 

Each workout I do, I do 3-5 SETS with anywhere from 6-15 REPS. If you see workouts saying 3x15, that means 3 SETS of 15 REPETITIONS. 

My coach has told me to do them all to failure. What that means is, if it says 3x12/10/8, I make sure I'm doing a heavy enough weight to FAIL at that number (cannot do another rep.) If I go over that number, I know my weight isn't heavy enough. If I'm a bit under, it's okay as long as my form is right. I believe this has really changed my body.

*Don't be afraid to LIFT HEAVY. It won't make you look manly! It will burn fat, create "tone" aka MUSCLE, and bring out your lovely beautiful curves. 

*Exercise tip: workout with INTENSITY & RESISTANCE. Sweat! If you are talking while you are lifting weights, you're not doing it right. You're not working hard enough.

To be honest, I don't believe in those "30 days squat challenge" and etc. I believe in working every muscle group to be strong, adding WEIGHT (that's how you get that booty!) and RESISTANCE to burn the fat. I may think the "30 day squat challenge" was awesome if they were JUMP SQUATS. Try that if you really want to do body weighted squats every day.

5. What's the best way to start losing weight?

My advice, don't pay attention to the scale. Weigh yourself once and hide it until a month or so later. Go by the way your body looks in the mirror, the way your clothes fit, the way you FEEL. Don't think of it as numbers you have to lose, think of it as body fat you want to burn. 3 easy ways to start:

1. Clean up your eating habits, little by little. Drink soda? Stop and drink more water- I drink a gallon a day! Eat lots of cheese? Cut down, try some non fat, and use more seasonings in your cookings. Moderation is key. Start eating more lean proteins and veggies, exchange your pastas for some sweet potato and brown rice. Give up your butter and vegetable oils for coconut oil and extra virgin olive oil. Start walking 30 minutes a day. Anything. There are so many ways to make little lifestyle changes so it's not overwhelming.

2. Ask me about the Advocare 24-Day Challenge! I wrote a previous blog on it, so check it out :) It's a fail-proof plan, I swear by it. It will guide you with a day by day nutrition and supplement guide consisting of what, how much and when to eat and the bundle comes with high quality supplements filled with vitamins and aminos to kick start your fat loss, increase energy/wellness, AAAAND I would be your coach to support you through it all! 

3. email me at suarezcoral@hotmail.com with YOUR GOALS and we can discuss what's right for you and your lifestyle for nutrition/training :)

Just wanted to add ONE MORE THING- because I read it today on IG and it's awesome and SO TRUE: "It's time to break the weight re-gain cycle. If you can't see yourself eating the way you are eating now in 6 or even 12 months, then it's time to rethink your approach because it's sustainable. Cutting out whole food groups is not sustainable. No carb is sustainable. 2 hours of daily cardio is not sustainable. Take care of your metabolism and employ a system of eating that allows you to incorporate almost any food in healthy moderation so that you don't rebound." - Dr. Layne Norton

Pizza is not bad. Burgers and fries are not bad. IN MODERATION. I do believe in having a good relationship with food. Don't think of them as 'good' or 'bad' foods, or make yourself feel guilty for having a cookie! Everything in moderation!! Chocolate, peanut butter, even the "good" foods must be balanced right. 

If you have more questions, don't hesitate to email me or comment!

Follow my IG for more daily stuff: @loveliftdrift

xoxo