Chasing Clarity: Health & Fitness Podcast

Brandon DaCruz

The Chasing Clarity Health & Fitness Podcast aims to bridge the gap between complexity and clarity within the health and fitness space. I will cover both information and application for anyone interested in improving their health, fitness, and body composition. Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/

  1. 3 days ago

    ERIC HELMS: THE PROCESS OF GETTING PEELED: RATE OF LOSS, PROTEIN INTAKE & HUNGER MANAGEMENT FOR MAXIMIZING MUSCLE RETENTION DURING FAT LOSS | EP. 240

    Most people think getting shredded is just a matter of pushing the deficit harder and holding on longer. But the deeper you get into a fat loss phase, the more the rules change.  A calorie deficit doesn’t just reduce body fat, it actively shifts your body toward a catabolic state by lowering muscle protein synthesis, increasing muscle protein breakdown, and increasing protein oxidation.  And here’s the part most people miss: those effects get worse the leaner you get. Which means the strategies that worked at 20% body fat aren’t the strategies that will protect your muscle at 8%. Getting peeled isn’t about enduring more. It’s about knowing which variables need to change, and when. In this episode of CHASING CLARITY, I’m joined again by Dr. Eric Helms, WNBF professional natural bodybuilder, Co-Director at AUT in New Zealand, co-founder the MASS Research Review, and author of The Muscle & Strength Pyramid books. Eric is one of the most respected voices in evidence-based bodybuilding and nutrition, and in this conversation we get into the finer details of what it actually takes to get extremely lean while holding onto the muscle you spent years building. WE COVER: THE RATE OF LOSS YOU SHOULD TARGET WHEN GETTING SUPER LEAN WHY YOUR RATE OF LOSS SHOULD SLOW DOWN THE LEANER YOU GET THE DESCENDING AND DYNAMIC RATE OF LOSS APPROACH I USE WITH CLIENTS AND ERIC’S HONEST TAKE ON IT  HOW MUCH FLEXIBILITY EXISTS WITHIN THE 0.5 TO 1% PER WEEK GUIDELINE  HOW A CALORIE DEFICIT REDUCES MUSCLE PROTEIN SYNTHESIS AND INCREASES BREAKDOWN  WHY PROTEIN OXIDATION IS HIGHER IN LEANER INDIVIDUALS THE NEW SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-REGRESSION ON PROTEIN INTAKE AND LEAN MASS RETENTION WHY PROTEIN INTAKE SHOULD SCALE WITH BODY FAT PERCENTAGE WHY I TREAT PROTEIN AS AN INSURANCE POLICY DURING CONTEST PREP  EVIDENCE-BASED HUNGER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR DEEP IN A DIET  FOOD VOLUME, ENERGY DENSITY, TEXTURE AND EATING PACE AS SATIETY LEVERS  PRACTICAL COACHING TAKEAWAYS YOU CAN APPLY IMMEDIATELY If you’ve ever gotten lean and watched your strength fall off, your recovery disappear, and the mirror stop changing even though the scale kept moving, this episode will show you where the process broke down. And if you’re a coach or competitor who wants to understand not just what the guidelines say but why they exist and when to deviate from them, this conversation gives you the mechanisms behind the recommendations. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com My Reading Recommendations: THE MUSCLE & STRENGTH PYRAMIDS https://getdpd.com/cart/hoplink/25469?referrer=1l54og96lf1ccw

    ERIC HELMS: THE PROCESS OF GETTING PEELED: RATE OF LOSS, PROTEIN INTAKE & HUNGER MANAGEMENT FOR MAXIMIZING MUSCLE RETENTION DURING FAT LOSS | EP. 240

  2. 5 days ago

    FAT LOSS HUNGER HACKS: THE SCIENCE-BACKED TACTICS THAT BLUNT HUNGER & CRAVINGS DURING A DIET | FAT LOSS SERIES PART 8 | EP. 239

    Hunger is the number one reason most people struggle to stay consistent during a Fat Loss Phase. In Part 7, I walked you through the six strategic principles that build a diet where satiety is produced by your food choices themselves rather than relying on willpower. But even with that strategic foundation in place, hunger and cravings will still show up, especially in the windows between meals where most dieters actually break their diet. This episode is the tactical follow up to Part 7. These are the specific, in-the-moment hunger hacks I use with my clients to bridge those windows and blunt hunger and cravings without derailing the deficit they’ve worked to create at meals. Here’s what most people don’t realize. The strongest hunger hacks aren’t gimmicks and they aren’t tricks. They work because they manipulate the underlying mechanisms that govern food intake and satiety. In this episode, I break down the nine mechanisms that make hunger hacks work, and then I walk you through the specific evidence-based tactics that leverage them. Some of these you’ve probably heard before but may have been deploying ineffectively. Some you may not have heard before but have substantial research behind them. Either way, you’ll walk away knowing exactly which tactics to deploy for your specific execution gaps. Because once you understand how to manage hunger in the moment, staying in a deficit stops being a battle you fight and becomes a system that works for you. HERE’S WHAT WE COVER:  THE NINE UNDERLYING MECHANISMS THAT MAKE HUNGER HACKS ACTUALLY WORK  WHY SOLID FOODS BLUNT HUNGER FAR MORE THAN LIQUID CALORIES AT THE SAME CALORIE COUNT  THE BARBARA ROLLS RESEARCH ON WHOLE FRUIT VS APPLESAUCE VS JUICE AND SATIETY  WHY LIQUID CALORIES FAIL THE SATIETY SYSTEM AND DRIVE OVERCONSUMPTION  HOW EATING RATE DIRECTLY AFFECTS HOW MANY TOTAL CALORIES YOU CONSUME  WHY HARDER TEXTURED FOODS INCREASE SATIETY AND SLOW YOUR EATING NATURALLY  THE SLOWED EATING AND CHEWING TECHNIQUES THAT REDUCE MEAL SIZE  THE TWO CUP RULE: HOW WATER PRELOADING BEFORE MEALS REDUCES CALORIE INTAKE  WHAT THE SWITCH TRIAL REVEALS ABOUT DIET SODA AND FAT LOSS VS WATER  WHY DISTRACTED EATING MAKES YOU HUNGRIER LATER AND HOW MEAL MEMORY WORKS  THE PORTION CONTROL AND PLATE SIZE TACTICS THAT REDUCE INTAKE AUTOMATICALLY  HOW TO USE COFFEE AND CAFFEINE TIMING TO BLUNT APPETITE BETWEEN MEALS  WHY GUM CHEWING BRIDGES THE GAP FOR BOREDOM AND STRESS EATING  HOW SENSORY-SPECIFIC SATIETY EXPLAINS WHY THERE’S ALWAYS ROOM FOR DESSERT  HUNGER RIDING: THE ACCEPTANCE-BASED SKILL FOR LETTING CRAVINGS PASS  THE 10 TO 20 MINUTE PAUSE-AND-ASSESS PROTOCOL FOR DISTINGUISHING TRUE HUNGER FROM CRAVINGS If you’ve struggled to stay consistent between meals, if cravings and hunger have derailed your Fat Loss Phases before, or if you’ve tried hunger hacks that didn’t work because you were deploying them without understanding the mechanisms behind them, this episode is going to give you the tactical toolkit to blunt hunger, beat cravings, and finally make staying in a deficit feel manageable. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com My Reading Recommendations: THE MUSCLE & STRENGTH PYRAMIDS https://getdpd.com/cart/hoplink/25469?referrer=1l54og96lf1ccw

  3. 2 Sept

    LYLE MCDONALD: CONTEST PREP USING INTERMITTENT MODIFIED FASTING | HOW TO GET STAGE LEAN WHILE PRESERVING MUSCLE | EP. 238

    How do you take a physique athlete from a productive Building Phase all the way to stage condition while preserving as much muscle, training performance and recovery as possible? And does the traditional approach of continually cutting calories, adding cardio and pushing harder as the show gets closer actually make sense? In Part 3 and the final installment of my Intermittent Modified Fasting series, I’m joined once again by Lyle McDonald to take the IMF framework into one of its most advanced applications: contest preparation. We start by discussing something that often gets overlooked before the diet even begins: how to transition intelligently from gaining into fat loss. Rather than treating Building and Fat Loss Phases like an on/off switch, Lyle explains his Pre-Diet or Transition Phase and why temporarily moving toward maintenance, adjusting resistance-training volume and gradually introducing cardio may better prepare an athlete for a longer dieting phase. From there, we get deep into contest prep and discuss how IMF allows us to think differently about where we place the calorie deficit across the week. Instead of simply eating less every day, IMF allows RFL days, maintenance days, training, cardio and carbohydrate availability to be strategically organized around the athlete’s needs. Because the goal of contest prep isn’t simply to lose weight. It’s to arrive stage lean while preserving as much muscle and performance as possible. IN THIS EPISODE: HOW TO TRANSITION FROM A LEAN BUILDING PHASE INTO FAT LOSS LYLE’S PRE-DIET / TRANSITION PHASE WHY JUMPING DIRECTLY FROM A SURPLUS INTO AN AGGRESSIVE DEFICIT MAY NOT BE IDEAL WHEN & HOW TO INTRODUCE CARDIO WHY RESISTANCE TRAINING DURING CONTEST PREP SHOULD PRIMARILY BE USED TO PRESERVE MUSCLE HOW LYLE WOULD STRUCTURE A NATURAL BODYBUILDING CONTEST PREP USING IMF HOW TO MANIPULATE RFL DAYS & MAINTENANCE DAYS AS A COMPETITOR GETS LEANER WHY GETTING AHEAD EARLY IN PREP CAN CREATE MORE OPTIONS LATER HOW TO PLACE MORE CALORIES & CARBOHYDRATES AROUND YOUR MOST IMPORTANT TRAINING SESSIONS WHY REFEEDS & MAINTENANCE DAYS BECOME MORE USEFUL DEEPER INTO PREP USING REFEEDS AS PRACTICE RUNS FOR PEAK WEEK HOW TO DETERMINE WHEN YOU ACTUALLY LOOK YOUR BEST AFTER A CARB LOAD WHY PEAK WEEK SHOULD BE PRACTICED RATHER THAN IMPROVISED THE PROBLEMS WITH EXTREME WATER DEPLETION & OUTDATED PEAK-WEEK PRACTICES WHY EVERY REFEED, MAINTENANCE DAY & DIET BREAK NEEDS TO EARN ITS PLACE DURING CONTEST PREP The bigger theme running through this entire series is nutritional periodization. Fat loss still requires an energy deficit. IMF doesn’t change that. What it potentially changes is where we place that deficit, allowing us to push harder when the physiological cost is lower while providing more energy when training performance, recovery and muscle retention matter most. For physique athletes and coaches interested in the finer details of getting stage lean without blindly relying on more restriction, more cardio and more fatigue, this is an episode you won’t want to miss. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com LYLE’S NEWEST BOOKS:  https://store.bodyrecomposition.com SAVE 20% BY USING CODE: larrywon

  4. 31 Aug

    HUNGER & APPETITE MANAGEMENT MASTERCLASS FOR FAT LOSS: THE 6 PRINCIPLES THAT MAKE STAYING IN A DEFICIT FEEL EASIER | FAT LOSS SERIES PART 7 | EP. 237

    Hunger is the number one reason most people struggle to stay consistent during a Fat Loss Phase. It’s not that dieters don’t know they need to eat fewer calories. It’s that staying in a deficit feels impossibly challenging when hunger and cravings take over.  What I want to establish in this episode is that hunger management isn’t about willpower or about white-knuckling your way through a diet. It’s about understanding the specific principles that determine whether food leaves you satiated or starving, and then building your diet around those principles so the deficit becomes feasible to sustain. In this episode, we go deep on the science of hunger and appetite management and the six strategic principles I use with my clients to make a Fat Loss Phase feel dramatically easier. We cover what hunger actually is and how it differs from appetite, the distinction between homeostatic hunger driven by physiological need and hedonic hunger driven by reward, and the six dietary principles that determine whether your food choices fill you up or leave you fighting hunger throughout the day. Each principle is backed by research and operationally tested across thousands of client transformations. Because once you understand how these principles work and how to apply them, hunger stops being something you have to fight at every meal and starts being something your nutrition is structurally producing for you. HERE’S WHAT WE COVER:  WHY HUNGER MANAGEMENT ISN’T ABOUT WILLPOWER OR WHITE-KNUCKLING THROUGH A DIET  THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HUNGER, APPETITE, SATIATION, AND SATIETY  HOW THE INTERVENTIONS FOR MANAGING WITHIN-MEAL FULLNESS DIFFER FROM BETWEEN-MEAL FULLNESS  HOMEOSTATIC VS HEDONIC HUNGER AND HOW TO TELL WHICH ONE YOU’RE EXPERIENCING  THE DIAGNOSTIC TEST FOR DISTINGUISHING TRUE HUNGER FROM CRAVINGS  WHY HEDONIC HUNGER OVERRIDES YOUR BODY’S TRUE NEEDS IN THE MODERN FOOD ENVIRONMENT  PRINCIPLE #1: HOW TO USE ENERGY DENSITY TO EAT MORE FOOD FOR FEWER CALORIES  HOW LOWERING THE ENERGY DENSITY OF YOUR DIET REDUCES CALORIE INTAKE BY 223 CALORIES PER DAY  PRINCIPLE #2: THE HOLT SATIETY INDEX AND THE FIVE FACTORS THAT MAKE FOOD FILLING  WHY BOILED POTATOES ARE 7X MORE FILLING THAN CROISSANTS PER CALORIE  PRINCIPLE #3: WHY ANCHORING EVERY MEAL WITH PROTEIN IS THE FOUNDATION OF HUNGER MANAGEMENT  THE HORMONAL MECHANISMS BEHIND WHY PROTEIN SUPPRESSES HUNGER AND INCREASES SATIETY THE PROTEIN LEVERAGE THEORY AND HOW IT DRIVES YOUR TOTAL CALORIE INTAKE  HOW INCREASING PROTEIN FROM 15% TO 30% OF CALORIES PRODUCES A SPONTANEOUS 441 CALORIE REDUCTION  PRINCIPLE #4: WHY FIBER IS THE QUEEN OF FAT LOSS AND HOW IT PRODUCES STRUCTURAL SATIETY HOW INCREASING FIBER BY 28 GRAMS PER DAY CAN SPONTANEOUSLY REDUCE CALORIE INTAKE BY 20%  PRINCIPLE #5: MODIFYING FOOD PALATABILITY HOW ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS DRIVE 508 EXTRA CALORIES PER DAY EVEN WHEN MATCHED FOR EVERYTHING  PRINCIPLE #6: HOW ALIGNING MEAL TIMING WITH YOUR CIRCADIAN BIOLOGY MAKES FAT LOSS FEEL EASIER  WHY FRONT-LOADING CALORIES EARLIER IN THE DAY PRODUCES LESS HUNGER AT MATCHED CALORIE INTAKE If you’ve been white-knuckling your way through fat loss diets, if you’ve struggled to stay consistent in a deficit because hunger and cravings derail you, or if you’ve never fully understood the science of appetite management, this episode is going to give you the strategic framework to make staying in a deficit feel dramatically easier. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com My Reading Recommendations: THE MUSCLE & STRENGTH PYRAMIDS https://getdpd.com/cart/hoplink/25469?referrer=1l54og96lf1ccw

  5. 26 Aug

    LYLE MCDONALD: HOW BIG OF A CALORIE SURPLUS DO YOU NEED TO BUILD MUSCLE? HOW TO MAXIMIZE MUSCLE GAIN & MINIMIZE FAT GAIN USING RFL DAYS | EP. 236

    How much do you actually need to eat above maintenance to maximize muscle growth? And once you’re eating enough to support hypertrophy, does pushing calories even higher build more muscle, or simply make you gain body fat faster? In Part 2 of my Intermittent Modified Fasting series, I’m joined once again by Lyle McDonald to move beyond using IMF strictly as a fat-loss strategy and explore how some of these concepts can be applied across different phases of physique development. We start with one of the most debated topics in evidence-based bodybuilding right now: how large of a calorie surplus is actually necessary to maximize muscle growth? Lyle and I break down the research comparing different surplus sizes, realistic rates of muscle gain across different levels of training advancement, the estimated energetic cost of synthesizing new muscle tissue and why simply eating more doesn’t allow you to force-feed muscle growth. From there, we take the IMF framework in a direction I found particularly interesting: Could strategically placed Rapid Fat Loss days be incorporated into a Lean Building Phase to help control fat gain without compromising hypertrophy? We discuss using a 6:1 approach where the majority of the week supports muscle growth while one strategically placed RFL day helps reduce the cumulative weekly surplus, how this compares with simply running periodic mini-cuts, and which individuals might actually benefit from this strategy. Finally, we shift back into fat loss and revisit diet breaks. For years, diet breaks were promoted as a way to “reset” metabolism and reverse the physiological adaptations to dieting. But as more research has accumulated, that explanation has become increasingly difficult to defend. That doesn’t mean diet breaks are useless. Instead, their biggest benefits may come from improving hunger management, training performance, psychological fatigue, adherence and giving someone an opportunity to actually practice eating at maintenance. IN THIS EPISODE: HOW LARGE OF A CALORIE SURPLUS IS ACTUALLY NECESSARY FOR MUSCLE GROWTH? WHY YOU CANNOT FORCE-FEED MUSCLE GROWTH HOW MUCH MUSCLE CAN BEGINNER, INTERMEDIATE & ADVANCED TRAINEES REALISTICALLY GAIN? WHAT THE RESEARCH SHOWS ABOUT SMALL VS. LARGE CALORIE SURPLUSES WHY FASTER WEIGHT GAIN OFTEN MEANS MORE FAT GAIN, NOT MORE MUSCLE HOW TO DETERMINE WHETHER YOUR CALORIE SURPLUS IS ACTUALLY PRODUCTIVE LEAN BUILDING & MINIMIZING UNNECESSARY FAT GAIN USING RAPID FAT LOSS DAYS DURING A LEAN-BUILDING PHASE THE POTENTIAL 6:1 APPROACH: SIX BUILDING DAYS + ONE RFL DAY RFL DAYS VS. PERIODIC MINI-CUTS BODY RECOMPOSITION & WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE IT DIET BREAKS: PHYSIOLOGICAL VS. PSYCHOLOGICAL BENEFITS HOW DIET BREAKS MAY IMPROVE HUNGER, TRAINING PERFORMANCE & ADHERENCE WHY PRACTICING MAINTENANCE MAY BE ONE OF THE MOST UNDERRATED BENEFITS OF A DIET BREAK The major theme running through this episode is that more is not automatically better. More calories don’t necessarily mean more muscle. More restriction doesn’t necessarily mean a better diet. And more complexity doesn’t necessarily mean a better strategy. The goal is understanding which nutritional tool fits the individual, their physiology, their psychology and the phase they’re currently in. If your goal is to build more muscle while minimizing unnecessary fat gain, or to better understand how to periodize periods of surplus, maintenance and energy restriction across a long-term physique transformation, this episode is for you. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com LYLE’S NEWEST BOOKS:  https://store.bodyrecomposition.com SAVE 20% BY USING CODE: larrywon

  6. 24 Aug

    FOOD QUALITY FOR FAT LOSS: WHY THE FOODS YOU CHOOSE MATTER AS MUCH AS YOUR CALORIES | FAT LOSS SERIES PART 6 | EP. 235

    Calories and macros are the foundation of your fat loss diet. That’s not in question. But the quality of the foods you choose to hit those targets is what determines whether your diet actually produces the body composition outcome you’re working for or whether it produces a smaller, scrawnier version of yourself while leaving you constantly hungry, undernourished, and unable to adhere. Two foods can have identical calorie and macro profiles yet produce completely different effects on your body. The signals each food sends to your physiology, your hunger and satiety hormones, your thyroid function, your metabolism, your training performance, and your ability to adhere to the deficit you need to hit can drastically differ depending on the quality of the foods you select. And the individuals who succeed at long-term physique change aren’t just the ones who get their calories and macros right, they’re the ones who also get their food quality right. In this episode, we go deep on the science of food quality and how it affects every dimension of the fat loss process. We cover the research that establishes food quality as a measurable variable affecting fat loss outcomes even when other variables are matched, the six distinct mechanisms by which ultra-processed foods drive overconsumption, the way food quality affects both sides of the energy balance equation through TEF and metabolizable energy, the satiety framework that determines whether your food choices fill you up or leave you hungry, the micronutrient connection that ties food quality to thyroid function and metabolism, and a targeted critique of the IIFYM approach that explains why flexibility without quality fails for most people. Because once you understand how food quality affects your fat loss outcomes, you can finally address what’s actually been holding you back. HERE’S WHAT WE COVER: WHY ALL CALORIES ARE EQUAL BUT NOT ALL SOURCES OF CALORIES ARE EQUAL THE HIERARCHY OF NUTRITION: CALORIES, MACROS, AND FOOD QUALITY HOW FOOD CHOICES SEND SIGNALS TO YOUR BODY AND PHYSIOLOGY THE KEVIN HALL METABOLIC WARD STUDY ON ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS AND 508 EXTRA CALORIES PER DAY WHY ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS HAVE MORE THAN DOUBLE THE CALORIE DENSITY OF WHOLE FOODS THE PROTEIN LEVERAGE THEORY AND WHY PROCESSED FOODS DRIVE PROTEIN DILUTION HOW PROCESSED FOODS INCREASE EATING RATE AND BYPASS YOUR SATIETY SIGNALING HOW ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS DYSREGULATE YOUR APPETITE AND HUNGER HORMONES WHY WHOLE FOODS HAVE A 47% HIGHER THERMIC EFFECT THAN PROCESSED MEALS WHY FDA LABELING GUIDELINES ALLOW PACKAGED FOODS TO BE OFF BY UP TO 20% THE FIVE DETERMINANTS OF FOOD SATIETY: VOLUME, VISCOSITY, PALATABILITY, PROTEIN, AND FIBER WHY ULTRA-PROCESSED FOOD CONSUMPTION DECREASES EVERY MEANINGFUL MICRONUTRIENT THE THYROID CONNECTION: WHY IODINE, ZINC, AND SELENIUM ARE CRITICAL FOR FAT LOSS WHY THE OVERFED YET UNDERNOURISHED PATTERN IS SO COMMON IN MODERN DIETERS THE THREE CATEGORIES OF VOCAL IIFYM PROPONENTS AND WHY THEIR APPROACH DOESN’T APPLY TO MOST PEOPLE WHY PLAYING MACRO TETRIS WITH PROCESSED FOODS UNDERMINES YOUR FAT LOSS PROGRESS THE 80/90% WHOLE FOODS FRAMEWORK FOR BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE FAT LOSS DIET If you’ve been hitting your calories and macros but still not seeing the body composition results you’ve been working for, if you’ve struggled to manage hunger and cravings during your Fat Loss Phases, or if you’ve never fully understood why food quality matters beyond just calories and macros, this episode is going to give you the framework to finally address the variable that’s been holding you back. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com My Reading Recommendations: THE MUSCLE & STRENGTH PYRAMIDS https://getdpd.com/cart/hoplink/25469?referrer=1l54og96lf1ccw

    FOOD QUALITY FOR FAT LOSS: WHY THE FOODS YOU CHOOSE MATTER AS MUCH AS YOUR CALORIES | FAT LOSS SERIES PART 6 | EP. 235

  7. 17 Aug

    LYLE MCDONALD: INTERMITTENT MODIFIED FASTING: A NEW FRAMEWORK FOR FAT LOSS, PERFORMANCE & NUTRITIONAL PERIODIZATION | EP. 234

    When most people hear “intermittent fasting,” they immediately think about skipping breakfast, eating within an 8-hour window or going extended periods without food. But Intermittent Modified Fasting is something very different. On this episode of the Chasing Clarity Health & Fitness Podcast, I’m joined once again by Lyle McDonald to break down the framework behind his newest book, Intermittent Modified Fasting. This is the first interview Lyle has done since releasing the book.  Rather than treating IMF as another fasting protocol, Lyle has brought together concepts from decades of his work on rapid fat loss, calorie cycling, training, body composition and sports nutrition to create a system for strategically distributing energy restriction across the week. And that creates a much more interesting question than simply asking whether fasting “works.” Can we manipulate where we place our calorie deficit to lose fat while better supporting training performance, recovery and lean mass retention? Throughout this conversation, Lyle and I each give our perspectives on how these concepts can be applied in both physique-focused clients and athletes. IN THIS EPISODE WE COVER: WHAT INTERMITTENT MODIFIED FASTING (IMF) IS & WHY LYLE DEVELOPED IT WHETHER INTERMITTENT FASTING HAS UNIQUE METABOLIC OR FAT-LOSS BENEFITS WHY INCREASED FAT OXIDATION DURING A FAST DOESN’T AUTOMATICALLY MEAN GREATER BODY FAT LOSS  IMF AS A FORM OF CALORIE CYCLING & NUTRITIONAL PERIODIZATION HOW TO SYNCHRONIZE CALORIE & CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE WITH TRAINING DEMANDS RFL DAYS VS MAINTENANCE DAYS BALANCING AGGRESSIVE FAT LOSS WITH TRAINING PERFORMANCE, RECOVERY & MUSCLE RETENTION HOW IMF CAN BE MODIFIED FOR STRENGTH, ENDURANCE & PERFORMANCE ATHLETES HOW TO CREATE THE LARGEST PRODUCTIVE DEFICIT WITHOUT COMPROMISING THE ATHLETE’S PRIMARY PERFORMANCE GOAL The biggest theme throughout this episode is that the goal isn’t simply to create the largest calorie deficit possible. The goal is to intelligently distribute that deficit in a way that allows us to achieve the desired rate of fat loss while preserving the things we don’t want to sacrifice in the process. If you’re interested in fat loss, physique development, sports nutrition or understanding how to better periodize nutrition around training, this episode is for you. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com LYLE’S NEWEST BOOKS:  https://store.bodyrecomposition.com code: larrywon 20% off until Oct 7

  8. 10 Aug

    RAPID FAT LOSS MASTERCLASS: PSMF, FAST FAT LOSS & WHO SHOULD NOT USE AGGRESSIVE DEFICITS FT. DR. MIKKI WILLIDEN | EP. 233

    Most people argue about rapid fat loss like the only variable that matters is speed. It isn’t. The rate of loss is downstream of a decision that gets made long before anyone touches a calorie target: who this is being used with. On this episode I’m joined by Dr. Mikki Williden to kick off a new collab series where we both answer the same questions independently and let you see the reasoning on both sides. In this episode we cover: WHAT A PROTEIN SPARING MODIFIED FAST ACTUALLY IS THE BENEFITS OF RAPID FAT LOSS THE POTENTIAL DRAWBACKS OF RAPID FAT LOSS HOW WE USE THESE STRATEGIES IN PRACTICE WITH CLIENTS RAPID FAT LOSS DAYS & UNDULATING CALORIE CYCLES REFEEDS & DEFICIT DELOADS THE POPULATIONS RAPID FAT LOSS IS NOT APPROPRIATE FOR If you’ve ever wondered whether you could get lean faster without losing  your muscle, this episode gives you the honest version: what the research actually supports, where it stops, and why I turn most people away from this approach entirely. WHERE TO CONNECT WITH ME: Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/ For Info on Brandon’s Coaching Services: https://form.jotform.com/bdacruzfitness/coachinginquiry Email: Bdacruzfitness@gmail.com My Reading Recommendations: THE MUSCLE & STRENGTH PYRAMIDS https://getdpd.com/cart/hoplink/25469?referrer=1l54og96lf1ccw

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

The Chasing Clarity Health & Fitness Podcast aims to bridge the gap between complexity and clarity within the health and fitness space. I will cover both information and application for anyone interested in improving their health, fitness, and body composition. Follow Brandon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/brandondacruz_/

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