Getting lean in your 30's and beyond can be a challenge because it requires correcting unhealthy habits and undoing false beliefs about what it takes to lose body fat and to maintain it in a sustainable way. If you are someone who is generally healthy and just wants to get leaner for aesthetic reasons, the following nutrition guidelines will help you to simplify your strategy and fast-track your results. For those of you who want to lean down for more urgent health reasons, I sincerely hope that these guidelines help you to get headed in the right direction.
Before I get into specifics, don't think that I’m some type of diet extremist. Far from it!
My personal diet isn't restrictive. I consume “bad” foods like refined sugar and grains. I drink alcohol (more on that later). Sometimes I eat way too late at night.
I recognize that these are not the healthiest behaviors, but I've learned for myself how much I can get away with before experiencing negative health effects. All it took was a willingness to experiment and observe. You can figure this out for yourself too!
Start with the the following guidelines and you'll start seeing results within weeks instead of months.
1. Have zero tolerance for refined & concentrated sugars
Cutting out refined and concentrated sugars from the diet is a must if you are at all serious about getting leaner and improving your health quickly. Excess sugar will stop your fat loss efforts in their tracks! It is also likely to increase inflammation in the body (causing skin, gastrointestinal, and cognitive issues), weaken your immune system, and lead to gut dysbiosis (an imbalance of the microorganisms in your gut). I can't think of a chronic health condition that wouldn't be improved by reducing excess sugar.
By refined sugars, I mean ingredients like table sugar, which is commonly derived from sugarcane and beets, as well as corn syrup. These are empty calories with no nutritional value.
On the other hand, concentrated sugars (by my definition) also include fruit juices and dehydrated fruits like raisins, dates, and mangoes. I'm not saying these are unhealthy. They are great, snacks full of vitamins and minerals that are useful when you are particularly active. But because dehydrated fruits and juices can be consumed much more quickly than whole fruits, you'll end up taking in many more calories before you begin to feel full.
Think about how quickly you can chug a pint of juice or inhale a few handfuls of raisins. Before you know it, you've blown your entire sugar/carbohydrate allowance for the day!
Action Steps:
1. Eliminate all refined and added sugars from the diet. All of them!
2. Also eliminate natural and artificial sweeteners. We are trying to kill your sweet tooth, not reinforce it!
3. When you have fruit in the diet, focus on fruits that are not particularly calorie-dense such as berries, melons, and citrus.
4. Notice how your cravings gradually begin to subside after a week or so of sugar abstinence.
2. Eliminate refined grains from your diet
Consuming excess refined grains causes basically all of the same issues as excess sugar, so I'll spare you the lecture on the negative health effects. This category includes most breads, noodles, pasta, and white rice.
One distinction between refined grains and refined sugar, is with wheat and other gluten-containing grains. I've noticed so many people experience a dramatic reduction in chronic fatigue, bloating, and joint pain after removing gluten-containing grains from the diet, that I recommend this to anyone trying to lose fat or improve chronic health conditions. It is not uncommon to drop body fat percentage by 1% point or more after a single week of taking gluten-containing grains out of the diet.
The exception to this no-gluten rule, and this is mostly for once you have achieved your ideal leanness, is if the grains have been fermented, as in sourdough bread. This results in a more digestible, and lower glycemic food. Even so, I would recommend heritage wheat varieties like einkorn and spelt which contain a weaker gluten protein that is easier to break down.
Action Steps:
1.Cut out bread, pasta, noodles, and white rice from the diet.
2. Consume lower glycemic staple carbs like squash, sweet potato, plantain, and oats in moderation.
3. Get high-quality protein in your diet
Getting sufficient protein in the diet will do a lot to reduce carb cravings, and will also make your diet more enjoyable and sustainable. Just don't follow the outdated bodybuilding recommendations that tell you to get your protein from skinless chicken breast, light tuna, and egg whites. You want whole foods, which means that fat should always be a part of the meal.
Basically any type of meat (poultry, fish, beef, etc) or eggs is a good choice as long as the animal it came from was healthy. Assuming you don't raise your own livestock or hunt wild game, look to buy your meat and eggs from a local farmer that uses responsible agricultural practices. Yes, it will tend to be more expensive, but is will also be a vastly superior, more nutrient-dense product.
And don't forget about organ meats and connective tissue! These are arguably more nutritious than skeletal muscle. And if you have a particularly fatty cut of meat, don't throw the fat away! Render it and use it to cook your vegetables, eggs, etc.
If you are vegan/vegetarian, there are options for you too! You'll want to combine a variety of foods so that you get a good balance of amino acids. Chickpeas, lentils, brown rice, squash/pumpkin seeds, amaranth, quinoa, mushrooms, and black beans are just a few of my favorites, but there are many other good choices.
Action Steps:
1. Find good quality meat, preferably from a local farm
2. Don't focus only on skeletal muscle meat. Include organ meats and connective tissue, and render animal fats for cooking.
3. Vegetarians and meat-eaters alike should consume a variety of proteins from plants and fungi to get a more balanced and diversified diet.
Bonus - Cut out alcoholic beverages
Having lived in NYC, where its common for people to drink 3-4 nights per week at happy hours, company parties, business meetings, weekend brunch, etc., I worked with many people who maintained a healthy diet overall, but drank to excess. And while they could make a small amount of progress with fat loss initially, they would always reach a point where they would stagnate. Only greatly reducing alcohol intake allowed them to make further progress.
Even when you aren't necessarily consuming a ton of calories with alcoholic drinks, your body is forced to direct its energy towards detoxing, which temporarily puts your fat burning and muscle building functions on pause. And if drinking is done late at night, the harm is compounded by the fact that your sleep is disturbed, causing you to lose a full day of productivity and likely triggering carb cravings.
Since this article is about getting fat loss results rapidly, my recommendation is to simply eliminate all alcohol while you are trying to lean down. Once your focus shifts to maintenance, then you can reintroduce alcohol in moderation if you so choose.
For context, I would estimate the combined annual alcohol consumption between my partner and I is approximately 2-3 750mL bottles of liquor, 8 bottles of wine, and a dozen random drinks over the course of a year. It’s more than enough to satisfy my taste buds these days.
I understand that for many people, cutting out alcohol means having to put up with peer pressure and constantly explaining to people why you stopped drinking, which can be a real burden. It’s probably wise to skip happy-hour events and late nights out if you know you will struggle with abstaining from alcohol. This is hard for many, because they don't want to feel like they are being anti-social or are disappointing their friends or family. But always know that any true friend will value your well-being and will support your efforts to improve your health.
Wrapping it up...
Getting leaner and doing it in a sustainable way doesn't need to be complicated. Follow these recommendations, and I'm certain that you will start to see progress quickly.
Even if you have to make sacrifices in terms of food quality because of lack of access or high cost, just do the best you can and make improvements along the way. These guidelines will still be effective. Don't let the quest for perfection keep you from getting started!
I wish you the best in your health journey and don't be shy if you have any questions!
