People have long believed that to lose weight and shed that extra fat you have to overdo cardio and either starve yourself or follow extremely strict diets; yet the reality is quite different. Personal trainer Borja Yus, who shares videos on his social networks and has helped more than 600 men achieve a real physical transformation, is clear: losing fat does not require starving yourself or living glued to the treadmill.
In the face of extreme diets and exhausting routines, the key to a real change lies in applying small gestures that require little effort. «It’s not necessary to starve yourself or kill yourself on cardio to lose weight. There are 30 micro-habits that help you shed fat even if they seem insignificant,» the expert says. This is because adding this kind of tactic into your daily life will activate your metabolism and allow your body to define itself truly.
Eating Smart, But Without Harsh Prohibitions
To eat well without feeling deprived, the key is to plan smartly and pay attention to the small details in the kitchen. Instead of five small meals that leave you hungry and lead you to snack constantly, it’s far better to have three larger meals that truly satisfy you.
There is also a need to watch what you drink: having several coffees a day with milk and sugar can add up to 400 calories without you noticing, so the expert advises: «Avoid coffee after six in the evening because it can affect your sleep.» The same goes for fruits; many experts now suggest it’s much better to eat them whole rather than as juice, because juicing removes the fiber and you drink the sugar all at once without feeling full.
Additionally, when we talk about cooking, Borja explains that the oil is the trickiest part because it carries a lot of calories, so using a spray bottle helps you stay under control, just as swapping heavy sauces for spices to add flavor without adding calories.
Moreover, if the afternoon craving for something sweet hits, a protein shake mixed with milk or fresh cheese is a superb trick to curb the urge to snack in a healthy way.
Finally, if you’re going to have a beverage outside the home, always look for zero-sugar and zero-calorie drinks like Coca-Cola Zero, and for days when you don’t have time to cook, turn to frozen vegetables, which are just as healthy as fresh ones and prepare in seconds.
Be mindful of how you view food
The way you sit at the table and how you think about food completely changes your results. To begin with, eating without watching TV or scrolling on your phone and doing it slowly helps you notice when you are full, preventing you from overeating almost without realizing it, as listening to your body becomes easier.
According to Borja, you don’t necessarily have to have breakfast every day out of habit; if you wake up with no appetite, try a smart fast and eat only when your body asks for it.
On the other hand, when you go grocery shopping, always go with a full stomach to avoid the temptation of filling the cart with unnecessary things that won’t really benefit you, and always keep several lifesaver meals prepared at home—simple, healthy dishes you enjoy for those days when you have neither time nor desire to think.
In the evening, don’t make the mistake of skipping dinner or having only one piece of fruit, because you’ll wake up the next day with an incredible hunger that will make you eat twice as much.
Also, don’t leave sweets in sight in the kitchen, since willpower wears thin and, as Yus notes, «the key isn’t to train your willpower, but to create an environment where those temptations don’t exist».
Finally, take care of your mind: if one day you crave a treat, allow yourself only one free meal and not an entire day out of control, and if you overstep a bit, don’t punish yourself or write off the day, because not wanting or failing once won’t make everything you’ve achieved disappear.
Habits you should add to your daily life
To accelerate fat loss, the key is to combine movement in your daily life with a workout at the gym. In your routine, look for small discomforts that force you to move more, such as taking the regular stairs instead of the escalator, and set a daily step goal, because walking daily is a true fat-melting activity that prevents you from getting stuck.
When you go to the gym, don’t improvise and go in without a plan; bring a thought-out routine to gradually lift a bit more weight or perform more repetitions each week with the same exercises. Additionally, according to Borja, it’s ideal to begin your workouts with compound exercises, such as squats or the bench press, because they work several muscles at once, help you burn a lot more energy, and strengthen the entire body. It’s also crucial to train with real intensity, which means finishing each set feeling like you could only perform one or two more reps before completely fatiguing.
Finally, include protein-rich foods in your main meals, as this will keep you fuller for longer and protect your muscles, helping your body burn more calories naturally even while you rest.
Long-term lifestyle habits
Improving your lifestyle and achieving a lasting physical change requires taking care of your daily habits and, above all, having a lot of patience. A very simple trick is to always carry a water bottle with you, since we often confuse thirst with hunger, and staying well hydrated helps you control your appetite.
Getting good rest is also key; the expert explains that the best approach is to try to sleep at least seven hours every night, because not getting enough sleep disrupts your hormones, increases hunger, and makes you move much less during the day due to fatigue.
On the other hand, when it comes to eating, you should add vegetables you genuinely enjoy to your plates, even if it’s just two or three repeated options, to be able to eat them with pleasure. And if you happen to eat out, you should prioritize high-protein dishes, choosing, for example, a burger instead of a rice dish drenched in cream and fat.
Despite all the tips offered, Borja explains that to avoid overwhelming yourself, don’t try to change your entire life overnight; start by choosing only three or four small habits and add more once you have mastered them. Remember that real results take time: “Don’t change anything in 90 days. Most people overestimate what can be achieved in a few days and underestimate what can be achieved in a year.”
