With the right plan and the right discipline, you can get seriously shredded in just 28 days. At age 62, "Big Bill" shares his wisdom to dominate one of the ultimate strength marks. Follow these fit women we're crushing on for inspiration, workout ideas, and motivation.

To keep the fires hot, you need to eat every hours throughout the day. Not only that, but you must choose the right foods in the right amounts to keep your metabolism revved up so your six pack will be ready for its close-up.

The way we see it, there are 12 fundamentals—laws, if you will—that are all you need to shed that unwanted blubber from your midsection and elsewhere. Most of them are nutrition-driven, but training comes into play as well.

These 12 laws of fat-burning will help get you there. Step 1 revolves around simple math: You must eat fewer calories than your body is accustomed to in order to drop bodyfat.

When a calorie shortfall is created, the body responds by digging into body-fat reserves to make up the difference. And presto, you grow leaner. All other laws aside, this one heads the list every time, no matter what dietary approach you take.

Do this: Most guys who are fairly active and exercise regularly burn about 18 calories per pound of bodyweight or more per day. On that basis, a pounder would consume 3, calories daily. To start dropping body fat, reduce your calories to between per pound of bodyweight per day on workout days, or 2,, calories daily.

The easiest way to cut calories? Eliminate excess dietary fat—meaning no butter, oils, or salad dressings low-fat or fat-free dressings are OK ; remove the skin from chicken; substitute egg whites for most of your whole eggs; avoid whole-milk dairy products; and ditch marbled red meats such as rib-eye for lean cuts such as flank.

Keep some healthy fats in your diet, such as salmon, mixed nuts, peanut butter, and avocados. Though calorie control is a must, hormonal control is nearly as important. Coupled with calories, hormones govern fat-burning.

Suppress fat-storing hormones and you can expect a significant amount of body fat to melt away. The ideal way to control these hormones is to keep your carbohydrate intake in check, since carbs kick up insulin, a hormone that inhibits fat breakdown and drives fat storage.

Eat fewer carbs and insulin levels tend to moderate, leading to fat loss. Of course, not all carbohydrates are equal. In short, fast-digesting carbs tend to create a large insulin burst, leading to more potential fat gain.

These carbs include white bread, most cold cereals, any sweets, rice cakes, white rice, and white potatoes. Do this: The common sense approach is to halve your carbohydrate portions. If you tend to eat a large bagel for breakfast, eat only half and save the rest for tomorrow, or simply eat a smaller bagel.

If you typically eat 2 cups of pasta at dinner, eat just one. At all times during the day, in fact, choose whole-grain foods over refined ones, the only exception being immediately after a workout, when fast-digesting carbs reign supreme for boosting insulin and replenishing muscle glycogen stores see Law 8.

Keep carbs to less than 2g per pound of bodyweight per day. Is a calorie truly a calorie? Not always, because different types of calories can affect your body and your results differently.

Granted, carbs can potentially make you fat, but they also directly fuel your training. Protein, on the other hand, not only adds to your muscle—key in boosting the metabolism—but actually increases your metabolism more directly.

The body burns more calories processing protein than it burns to process carbs or fat, known as the thermic effect of food. When attempting to lose body fat, insulin control is crucial.

Refined carbs digest quickly, raising insulin levels substantially, which is why you should avoid them. But if you do happen to eat, say, a bowl of cold cereal typically a fast-digesting carb , you can still take measures to ensure those carbs digest more slowly. This will cause less insulin to be released and therefore have less of an impact on your ability to burn fat.

Written by Erin Heger. Share icon An curved arrow pointing right. Share Facebook Icon The letter F. Facebook Email icon An envelope. It indicates the ability to send an email.

Email Twitter icon A stylized bird with an open mouth, tweeting. Twitter LinkedIn icon The word "in". LinkedIn Link icon An image of a chain link.

It symobilizes a website link url. Copy Link. This article was medically reviewed by Samantha Cassetty , MS, RD, a nutrition and wellness expert with a private practice based in New York City.

Our stories are reviewed by medical professionals to ensure you get the most accurate and useful information about your health and wellness.

For more information, visit our medical review board. Redeem now. No food is truly fat-burning, but some help with weight loss by increasing metabolism and satiety.

Thermic foods like eggs and cruciferous vegetables burn fat by taking your body longer to digest. Some of the best fat-burning foods are green tea, salmon, apple cider vinegar, and lean chicken. Read preview. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go.

download the app. Email address. Sign up. You can opt-out at any time. Erin Heger. Erin Heger is a freelance journalist located in the Kansas City area. Adding whey protein to your breakfast smoothie or taking a daily supplement will keep you feeling full, support your ability to increase muscle tone and spike your energy while stabilizing blood sugar levels.

Other good protein powders to include in your meals include collagen protein, hemp protein, pea protein and bone broth protein. Omega-3s can potentially help with hormonal balance and cardiovascular health, according to some studies.

One study found evidence that omega-3s from fish have potential to act as nutritional therapeutic agents in prevention of obesity-related inflammation. An added benefit of all of these nutrients is that eating fish regularly may help boost brain function and your mood, as well as improve immunity, bone health and skin health.

Aside from wild-caught salmon, incorporate other oily fish in your diet, such as sardines, mackerel, tuna and halibut. Like green tea, coffee contains both caffeine and antioxidants, which can help reduce inflammation, promote alertness and mental well-being, improve stamina during workouts, and potentially control hunger.

Consuming coffee is an easy way to lift your mood, assuming you tolerate it well. It can improve decision making and give you energy to push harder while exercising. Caffeine may also slightly boost your metabolic rate and curb hunger, helping you stick to a healthy diet and resist temptations.

One study found that consuming caffeine about 30 minutes before a meal helped suppress energy calorie intake during the meal. Including eggs in your breakfast may help control your appetite the remainder of the day and enhance weight loss thanks to their protein and fat content.

Compared to sugary foods and refined grains, eggs are more satiating and help stabilize blood sugar. Additionally, eggs contain nutrients such as omega-3s, B vitamins, choline and antioxidants like lutein and zeaxanthin that may help protect you from a variety of issues, such as liver disease, heart disease, diabetes and stroke.

They also supply you with collagen, the protein that helps build and strengthen skin, joints and connective tissue. For the greatest nutrient content, avoid conventional eggs, and purchase only certified organic, pastured eggs, preferably from a local farmer if possible. One hundred percent whole grains such as oats , quinoa, barley, etc.

are some of the best sources of fiber, which supports gut health, as well as appetite control, blood sugar balance and more. Oats contain about 55 percent soluble fiber and 45 percent insoluble fiber.

Fiber takes up a large amount of space in your stomach and absorbs water, helping you feel satisfied despite being low in calories.

Certain studies have also found that oat intake has significant effects on controlling hyperglycemia, lowering blood lipids and reducing weight. Just be sure to buy unsweetened rolled oats, oat bran or steel-cut oats for the most benefits.

Add your own toppings to make oats taste great, such as yogurt, fruit, nuts, seeds, cinnamon, vanilla and cocoa. They also supply lots of fiber, antioxidants like flavonoids, and numerous vitamins and minerals, such as folate and magnesium. Studies have linked regular consumption of legumes and beans including black, navy and white beans; chickpeas; lentils ; etc.

as part of a mostly plant-based diet with enhanced protection against obesity, inflammation, heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers. Consuming fiber found in beans is associated with reduced risk for cardiovascular disease since it helps balance unhealthy cholesterol levels, while also removing waste and toxins from the body.

Certain studies have shown that consuming resistant starch found in beans can help control your appetite and assist with blood sugar management and digestive function. Allulose is a simple sugar found naturally in several food sources, including figs, raisins, maple syrup and brown sugar.

It can also be produced commercially from corn and is found in a variety of processed foods. One of the biggest differences between allulose vs. sugar is in terms of calorie content. In fact, allulose contains just 0. In addition to promoting weight loss, promising research suggests that allulose could be a fat-burning food and increase fat loss.

A study published in the journal Nutrients included overweight subjects aged 20 to 40 years. They were randomly assigned to three groups: one supplementing with sucralose 0. In the high-allulose group, there was also a decrease in abdominal and subcutaneous fat compared to the placebo group.

Here are some meal ideas based on the time of day:.