No bullshit guide to getting fit
It's really not that hard to turn make yourself fit. You'll be happy you clicked on this. Trust me.
You’ve sure heard so much bullshit about fitness at this point.
“Don’t eat carbs after 6 PM”
“Breakfast is the most important thing”
“Keto is the best way to lose fat”
“These 7 superfoods will make you lose fat forever”
Let me tell you a story that you might relate to. Then break those myths and jump straight into actionable advice.
Storytime
When I was 15 years old I was this fat turd from a small city in Slovakia an I just joined high school. All I am doing is sitting at the computer, learning how to code, and going out with friends on some days. I am carrying a lot of baggage when I walk. If I use the American merits system I weighed around 650 hamburgers. That’s 95 kilos.
Let’s be real, I want to get girls. I am ashamed of my body though. My cousin just started going to the gym so he hits me up if I want to join. I am telling him like “nah nah you know I got this thing to do”. He calls me a pussy. So now I am going.
Here I am, at the full gym. Peak hours. Everyone seems to know what they are doing. The amount of muscle in the room is unprecedented to my mind. Both of us are complete newbies so we kinda don’t know what to do. We don’t want to bother muscle heads so we just try to copy them.
Luckily, our uncle, former alcoholic, joins us at some point. He knows all kinds of stuff. He is this gym-bro. Basically, he thinks you have to eat chicken breast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. By the way, the amount of chicken that died because of bodybuilders must be huge. Back to my uncle. I believe him every single word. He is in better shape than both of us. He must know what he is doing.
After a few months I have gained some muscle, but also lost a ton of weight. Like 15 kilos. It’s a complete surprise to me that the weight pointer can go down. So I get addicted to this. I preach what my uncle and cousin say for 12 months and it seems to be working. But the progress slows down. I am stuck at this skinny fit shape — I am fit, but not “fit fit” and I am fat, but not “fat fat”.
I start to read fitness blogs, research papers, watching scientific videos on YouTube to gain knowledge during boring high school lessons. That really helps. I realize I can eat after 6 PM, that I can eat bread and still lose fat and that I have to eat more calories than I burn and train hard to gain muscle.
This is really just a long process of reading a lot and filtering information. You’ll get a handle of it, don’t worry.
Another 4 months pass and I am going to the 2nd year of my high school. I am in better shape, more confident, and shooting my shot in a girl’s DMs. I get a date. She likes me. So we started dating (my goal was achieved lol).
End of story for now.
The point is: It’s all about having a goal in mind and being relentless about achieving it. I hated my body back then. My confidence was taking a hit because of it. I burned for being fit so I did what needed to be done.
Reading this again it sounds cheesy, but I don’t know how to better put it.
Mythbusters part
Myth #1 “Don’t eat carbs after 6 PM”
This myth numero uno is totally untrue because all that matter during fat loss is a calorie deficit. You’ll lose fat if your calorie intake is lower than your calorie expenditure.
You will learn more about this in the Losing weight AND fat section.
I still have a clear memory of learning this two years into my fat-loss journey. I couldn’t believe it. I refused to. I had that confirmation bias in place. However, I started eating later in the day (at around 11 AM) so I finished my last meal at 9 PM or 10 PM and then it hit me. It’s really about the intake vs expenditure.
Myth #2 “Breakfast is the most important thing”
It’s not. Eating breakfast it optional. It totally depends on your preferences and the activity you do in the morning. If you go to the gym, then fill up on some carbs so you’ll get a good pump in the gym.
Myth #3 “Keto is the best way to lose fat“
Again, it’s not.
Keto is a form of diet when you don’t eat any to little carbs in a day.
It can make you lose weight faster, but only because it depletes you of carbohydrates (carbs). And because carbs retain water in your body — you’ll lose water weight faster.
Any diet that will get you in the calorie deficit and — more importantly — you can stick to long-term will make you lose fat.
Personally, I like IIFYM (If It Fit Your Macros). I can eat whatever I want if it fits my protein, carbohydrate, and fats goal for the day.
^^ This is a screenshot from the MyFitnessPal application. I use it to track my calorie intake and macronutrient (protein, carbs, fats) intake.
Choosing IIFYM allows me to eat a pizza, fried chicken, a drink, or that damn good burger.
I personally tried Keto a few times. I still try to keep my carbs lower, but only because I like fatty foods more. I didn’t have that much energy in the gym and throughout the day. I’m much better off eating carbs before workout.
Myth #4 “These 7 superfoods will make you lose fat forever”
These articles are just clickbaits. None of the foods will make you lose fat.
Once again, the calorie deficit will make you lose fat.
Some foods are less calorie-dense than others (vegetables) so you can eat a lot of them and it’s only a few calories.
There is a saying “If it’s green and vegetable you can eat how much you want”. I think it’s because no one can binge on eating cucumber.
PS: I believed those when I was 15 and struggling to loose fat. I was already at 90kg at 15 so I looked for shortcuts.
Losing weight AND fat
It starts in the kitchen
So, one more time. Last time. It’s super simple. Listen carefully.
You’ll lose weight if you eat fewer calories than you burn throughout the day.
And how do you lose FAT? Basically the same way, but you’ll be looking better if:
You workout
You don’t sit in front of a TV all-day
You don’t eat shit
You eat lots of protein (~1.5—2.2g per kg of bodyweight)
How to know how many calories should you eat?
You can approximate your calorie expenditure for fat loss using this website. Try to fill those calories eating healthy, high-density foods (food that is weighty but low calorie — like vegetables).
Simple-to-follow rules
Eat lots of protein
Drink a lot of water
Don’t drink your calories (don’t drink too much soda or alcohol)
Don’t overeat
Use apps to track your calorie intake — MyFitnessPal.
Use a calorie calculator like TdeeCalculator.net to calculate your calorie intake
Example nutrition plan
You can eat these meals whenever you feel like it. No fixed schedule.
Breakfast
Medium Eggs (4 pieces)
Grated 30% cheese (20g)
Olive oil (1 tbsp)
Lunch
Chicken breast (250g raw weight)
Rice (100g raw weight)
Broccoli / Asparagus / Cucumber / Tomato / whatever vegetable (how much you want)
Coke Zero
Snack #1
Peanuts / Almonds / Walnuts / Pistachios (50g)
Dinner
Beef 10% fat (200g)
Grenaille potatoes made in the oven (300g)
Olive oil (2 tbsp)
Any kind of vegetable
Before-bed snack #2
Cottage cheese (200g) with a banana (1 piece) — trust me it’s better than it sounds 😁
Protein shake (30g protein, 250ml milk)
Getting fit & strong
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING: Stay consistent. Don’t fall out of routine. Knowing this would have saved me so much time in the past years. Don’t push yourself to the limits every single day. Rest. Sleep good.
For the beginner lifters:
Don’t start way too heavy the first day. You’ll get sore for a week and never come back to the gym again. This video is a great tutorial on how to start lifting.
PS: You have an advantage as beginnner. Beginner lifters can loose fat and gain muscle at the same time. Overtime this gets harder.
For everyone:
If you want to look good and have abs (most people do) 70% of the work is done in the kitchen. You’ll have to get your nutrition in check. Everyone has abs. They’re just hidden under the belly fat. If you lose that fat, your abs will pop.
Prioritize technique over weights. Fuck your ego. Fuck what others think. Use weight that is challenging enough, yet doesn’t fuck up your word. Right, cool down, that’s enough fucks for the post.
Have a good nights sleep. Recovery is very important to grow your muscle.
Try to follow workout program. With a little bit of time and internet skills you will figure out some sensible plan on your own. If you need help, shoot me a message at galovicmartin1@gmail.com.
Example workout plan
MONDAY
Chest & Triceps
TUESDAY
Shoulders & Arms
WEDNESDAY
Rest / Cardio
THURSDAY
Back & Biceps
FRIDAY
Legs
SATURDAY
Core & Calves
SUNDAY
Rest / Cardio / Core
Recommended apps
MyFitnessPal — Tracking calorie intake along with macronutrients (protein, carbs, fats)
RISE Sleep — Tracking sleep and energy peaks/slumps
Who I recommend following
Mike Thurston — This guy is like a mini-Dan Bilzerian with a bigger chest and legs. I learned so much about fitness, business, and lifestyle from him.