6 Things to Remember While Achieving A Beach Body this Summer

By Patrick McCarthy (MSc)
8 May 2021

Hey guys! Welcome back to another article here at Plent! It is a common goal over the Spring months to shed some lbs and achieve a “beach body” for the sandy, Summer days that will soon be upon us! So, we thought that we’d share our thoughts on this concept, and provide some practical advice for optimizing your results.

IT AIN’T EVERYTHING

First of all, a “Beach body” is a state that is based on only physical progress. When it comes to nutrition, activity and health there are many more markers of progress. So, while it can be a fun goal to try and achieve your beach body, you should not make it the ‘Be all, end all’. Here are some other factors you should consider, when changing your dietary and exercise habits:

Energy levels – How easy is it getting up in the morning?
Sleep – How rested do I feel every day?
Mood – Am I more at ease throughout the day?
Clothes fitting – Do I feel more confident in my clothes?
Diet Satisfaction – Am I enjoying my current habits?
Overall health – How do I feel about my health?

And now, because we covered the important housekeeping, let me provide you with some practical tips for optimizing your body composition goals this Spring.

CALORIE DEFICIT

OK, OK, I know you’re probably sick to hearing this one! And to be honest, although it is the crucial component of reducing body fat, this information is pretty useless without having ways of achieving it. For example, someone who has a large appetite and difficulty with excessive snacking. Telling them that they simply need to stay in a Caloric deficit will be futile.

Instead, I want to highlight three key behaviors that can help you achieve a Caloric deficit on a consistent basis.

protein & fibre intake
Get enough good sleep
Eat mindfully

We’ll have more blogs covering these topics in the future, but I’ll provide a brief summary here. Protein and fibre are the most satiating (filling) components in our diet. Insufficient or poor-quality sleep can increase appetite, especially the type that drives toward sweet, salty and savoury foods. Mindless eating is the intake of food without a conscious purpose, but rather an environmental cue e.g. watching TV, stressed out, etc.

START LIFTING WEIGHTS

I’m sure you have observed plenty of ‘skinny-ripped’ individuals trotting along the beach, right? These are those people that seem to have a complete lack of muscle, but somehow their abs are still pronounced.

Granted, this is more desirable than being overweight or obese, but it is not optimal and shouldn't be a standard you’re aiming for. You should be aiming to achieve a healthy level of body fat ALONG with a sufficient level of functional muscle mass.

How can it help with achieving a beach body?

First, your traditional “beach body” consists of two puzzle pieces – muscle mass and a low level of body fat. Second, the accrual of muscle mass will contribute to the reducing of fat level, by elevating the number of Calories you burn on a daily basis. This is because muscle is a metabolically active tissue and requires energy to function. Finally, more muscle will allow you to perform at higher intensities in the gym, on the field or in the pool. This will all contribute to your goal of reducing body fat.

Remember, you always have to pair strength and resistance training with an optimal protein intake. We have several high-quality protein supplements including whey, casein, collagen, isolate, and vegan powders.

RECOVER RIGHT

This doesn’t mean have an electrolyte drink on the ready after a tough training session. This means consume enough macro and micronutrients through a balanced diet, and if needed, some high-quality supplements.

It also includes optimal sleep quality and time, which consists of six to eight hours and preferably getting to sleep before 12 pm. Hydration also needs to be included here, and you should be consuming between two and three litres of water each day, while adding on additional intakes on days with strenuous exercise.

We often get questions about supplements to maximise recovery, so I’ll list out a few. But, before doing that, none of these will circumvent a poor diet, sleep schedule or dehydrated body;

DON’T RUSH IT

You may have set yourself a goal of two or three months to lose 10 years worth of stored energy, and in the process have some pretty aggressive strategies planned out. If you take one thing away from this article, let it be this -

The more aggressive you are with your weight loss strategy, the less time you’ll be able to maintain it.

A famous researcher named Layne Norton, always says “Diet on as many Calories as you can”. While I don’t love the use of the word “diet” in this context, the point he is making is key! Set a moderate and comfortable goal. You might not get “shredded” by this coming Summer, but you’ll be putting in the ground work to achieve and maintain a healthy weight long into the future.

BE REALISTIC

A key reminder I like to highlight is that we are currently in a global pandemic. That means, while I am writing this article from the USA, our main company headquarters are in the Netherlands and you may be reading this from somewhere else in the world, we are all experiencing the same pandemic.

Why is this important?

Well, nobody really cares what they are going to look like. We have a lot bigger fish to fry, don’t we? That doesn’t mean you should ditch the goals and start eating pizza three meals a day. But it does mean, that you should not obsess over this short-term goal.

Another key point here is that a true “beach body” is quite difficult to achieve. What I mean here is that any photos or posts you see of models/influencers in peak condition, are probably following an extremely rigid diet to get to that point. They are irritable, tired and always hungry, not to mention some other nasty side-effects. Achieving a healthy weight does not have to mean 2% body fat.

Well, that’s all everyone,

Hope you enjoyed another instalment of nutrition content. Stay tuned for more!