How to lose weight or build mass?

Most of us are dissatisfied with our figure and feel the need to change it. Women usually want to reduce body weight, men are more interested in building muscle mass and sculpting their figure. To lose weight, we often resort to the most ridiculous ideas – starvation diets, juice diets, drastic calorie reduction. This usually results in nutrient deficiencies, loss of energy and mood, and in the worst cases, dysregulation of metabolism and secretion of hormones in the body. The most sensible and the only way to lose weight is to reduce calorie intake. When we want to gain weight the situation is the opposite – we take in crazy amounts of calories, usually in the form of not necessarily healthy snacks, fatty foods or sweets, which leads to fat gain and deterioration of health and well-being. If you want to increase muscle mass, it is important to take in increased calories, but do not forget about the proper balance of macronutrients and following a healthy diet.

I want to reduce body weight

The principle of fat burning is one – negative energy balance. This means that the amount of calories taken in with food must be less than the amount of calories that the body consumes during the day. However, the reduction of calories should be reasonable and well-thought-out, because too drastic reduction of energy causes slowing down of metabolism. Then, paradoxically, despite a significant reduction in the supply of calories no weight loss occurs – but it happens when you increase the number of calories and metabolism speeds up. So you have to find the golden mean when it comes to fat reduction – provide slightly fewer calories than usual, but at the same time enough not to damage your health and not to suffer from slow metabolism, yo-yo effect and irritability. These are in any case the least of the consequences of poor nutrition – worse complications include thyroid problems, hormonal disorders, hair loss and insomnia.

One kilogram of fat equals as much as 7000 calories – so in order to lose one kilogram in, say, a week, you need to reduce your daily calorie intake by as much as 1000 calories. However, this rate of weight loss is not recommended, because it can have negative effects, such as slowing down the metabolism, which is counterproductive. Healthy weight loss means losing about 0.5 kilograms per week, i.e. reducing the calorie content of your diet by 500 kcal per day.

To determine how many calories you should eat to maintain or reduce your body weight, use the SUPERSONIC calorie calculator, which based on age, height, weight, gender and physical activity determines daily caloric needs and indicates the number of calories you should eat to reduce body weight.

Physical exercise is very important for weight reduction, including daily activities such as walking, cleaning or climbing stairs. Any type of activity speeds up your metabolism and burns more calories, making weight reduction easier. With regular exercise during weight loss, only body fat is burned and no muscle tissue is lost.

What should be the assumptions during weight reduction? It’s relatively simple:

1. Eat balanced meals as little as possible processed, based on natural raw materials. The lower the degree of processing of food, the higher the content of minerals, vitamins and phytonutrients, and thus the greater the health benefits.
2. Remember to calculate calories, even per eye. Know that a packet of rice is 350 kcal and more than 70 g of carbohydrates. The same caloric content, but from fats, is 40 ml a glass of olive oil. Your companion here can be SUPERSONIC Food, one serving of which is 412 kcal and a precise amount of macronutrients, as well as a set of vitamins and minerals necessary for health and a wealth of superfoods and antioxidants.
3. Do not fall into “lipophobia”, this component is caloric, but necessary for the proper functioning of the endocrine system and the regeneration of muscles and brain after training. Without fat in your diet, you will not go far. Choose high-quality fats with a high content of unsaturated fatty acids and omega 3-6-9 acids (rapeseed oil, olive oil, nuts, seeds and seeds).
4. Take the right amounts of protein – it is recommended to consume 0.8 – 1.5 g/kg of body weight, however, for people who are on the reduction, it is worth choosing the right side of the forks: an adequate supply of protein will make you not lose muscle tissue during weight loss. In addition, protein is the most hissing macronutrient.
5. Don’t be afraid to eat! One of the worst mistakes is skipping meals and starving – this will regulate your metabolism and instead of losing weight, your body weight will stand still, even with a large reduction in calories. In addition, you will not supply the body with all the vitamins and minerals valuable to it.
6. Set yourself feasible and realistic goals and remember about a healthy rate of weight losing weight. Do not assume that in a week you will lose a few kilos – half a kilo less per week is a very good result, which will avoid the yo-yo effect and will not negatively affect your health.
7. Eat regularly – try not to skip meals and eat them at regular, predetermined times. Thanks to this, you will avoid uncontrolled bouts of hunger and eating between meals, because the body will get used to the established diet.
8. Remember about proper hydration – taking large amounts of fluids allows you to reduce the feeling of hunger, so that the reduction of calories will not be so severe. Warm water with lemon and ginger drunk on an empty stomach will accelerate metabolism and improve mood, so you will start the day with a positive attitude. Be sure to take the right amount of fluids not only during reduction – it is always a very important part of a healthy lifestyle. Bet on mineral water, teas and herbal infusions without sugar, and like fire avoid sweetened carbonated drinks and too much juice – they have a lot of calories and sugar, and do not provide a feeling of fullness. Also include isotonic drinks such as SUPERSONIC Beauty Isotonic  and  SUPERSONIC Performance Isotonic in your diet, which in addition to hydration also provide electrolytes and bioactive functional components.
9. Ensure the right amount and quality of sleep – try to sleep 7 to 8 hours a day. This amount of sleep will allow your body to regenerate and maintain a balance between the hormones of hunger and fullness, while too short sleep makes the secretion of the hunger hormone increase – thus we consume more calories and the diet is less effective. To make these 8 hours of sleep as valuable as possible, it is worth abandoning the use of blue light-emitting devices (phone, laptop) in the evening and ensuring evening silence, for example, through meditation, aromatherapy or reading a relaxing book.
10. Positive thinking is essential – if you start reducing with the idea that you will not succeed, you put yourself in a lost position. Think of your goals as a good idea, and think of small failures as lessons for the future. What matters is a healthy approach and balance of 😉

I want to increase muscle mass

In order to increase weight, it is necessary to act in the same way as with reduction – only in this case, instead of reducing the supply of calories, we need to increase it. However, this must be a thoughtful action, because when we simply eat larger meals without any control and plan, we will end up with more bodyweight, but it will not necessarily be muscle mass. As is known, the most important component in the case of building muscle mass is protein, which builds muscles and contributes to their regeneration. People trying to increase muscle mass are advised to consume up to 2 g of protein for every kilogram of body weight. In the process of building muscles as important as the selection of macronutrients, is the form and frequency of physical activity. When building muscle, the form and frequency of physical activity is as important as the selection of the proportions of macronutrients.

The proportions of macronutrients should be individually selected and depend on the day – if it is a day of training, increase the supply of carbohydrates and lower fats, do the opposite in a day without training. Daily include in your diet the amount of protein that matches your body weight and remember that it is a full-fledged protein, that is, containing all the necessary amino acids. An ideal post-training meal is SUPERSONIC Food with balanced macronutrient ratios, which has a high protein content (40 g per serving), provides complex carbohydrates that are a source of energy for many hours, is also a source of essential unsaturated omega 3-6-9 fatty acids and fiber.

As with weight reduction, if we want to increase muscle mass, we need to increase the caloric content of the diet, adjusting it individually to each other. It is worth using the calorie calculator, which after giving all the parameters calculates the energy requirement, also in case of desire to increase weight.

If you want to increase muscle mass, remember a few basic assumptions:

1. Train regularly and intensively – if you want to build muscle mass, your biggest ally will be strength training: they will allow you to sculpt muscles and reduce body fat, in addition, they will strengthen the body and improve well-being. You do not need to do long exercises, it is enough 40-60 minutes, to start 2 or 3 times a week. During training, focus on it as much as possible, put down your phone, do not take breaks – give your best, and the effects will be quickly noticeable.
2. Do not skip a pre-workout meal – eat it about 2-3 hours before exercise and make sure that it contains complex carbohydrates with a low glycemic index. If you are going to exercise in an hour, eat a light meal containing carbohydrates with a higher index. Thanks to this, you will be sure that they will be digested and provide you with a source of energy, so that in training you will be able to give 100%.
3. Always eat a meal after training – so that your muscles can regenerate, you should be able to do so by providing them with the right macronutrients. Therefore, regardless of the time at which you finish training, be sure to eat a full-fledged meal after it. Omitting it will not make you burn more fat, on the contrary – your body will begin to produce cortisol (stress hormone), which slows down metabolism and hinders the regeneration of the body.
4. Take care of protein in the diet – protein is responsible for muscle regeneration and growth, providing with the diet the right amount of it you will be sure that you will achieve the intended effects. It is worth noting that the protein is full-fledged, such as in SUPERSONIC Food,for example, that it contains all the amino acids necessary for health.
5. Eat at regular times – although it is said that the most optimal for your health is to eat 5 meals a day, adjust this amount individually to yourself. If you prefer to eat 4 larger or 6 smaller meals, the decision is yours, because it is you who is supposed to feel good. Try to eat them every day at the same times, so that the body will be able to get used to the routine.
6. Don’t eat anything – calorie intake increases when building muscle mass, but that doesn’t mean you have complete freedom and your diet doesn’t have to be healthy and balanced. Full-fledged meals made up of high-quality ingredients will allow you to achieve your goals, while fast food, snacks and sweets will actually contribute to weight gain – but unfortunately fat rather than muscle. Not sure what to eat after a workout? Prepare a full portion of SUPERSONIC Food on a oat drink and blend with two tablespoons of peanut butter – such a cocktail is 800 kcal, 70 g of carbohydrates, 30 g of fat and as much as 50 g of protein, which is the perfect meal to saturate you and provide you with the necessary macronutrients.
7. Do not go to extremes – remember that this diet serves you, not the other way around. Exaggeration is not good at all and obsessive counting calories to see if you are sure you are delivering the correct amount of calories can have a very bad effect on you. If one day you happen to eat more or less than planned – this is not a bad thing, because the caloric balance is looked at in terms of weeks, not individual days.
8. Remember to eat fruits and vegetables – despite the fact that they provide few calories, do not exclude them from the diet. They are a source of valuable fiber, which regulates the work of the intestines and facilitates digestion and vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, which have a health-promoting effect and are necessary for maintaining the health of the body.
9. Set yourself achievable goals – each organism is different, so everyone gains weight at a different pace, especially muscle mass. Do not suggest other people’s successes, focus on yourself and your own development, and try to set yourself goals that you will be able to realistically achieve in the intended time.
10. Rest – in order for the muscles to develop and strengthen, they need time to recover. When choosing exercises, remember to rotate the parts of your body during the week, e.g. one day you devote one day to the lower parts of the body and the next to the upper ones. Also, do not forget about warming up and stretching after training, these actions will help prevent injuries and reduce the formation of sourdourdish. However, do not exercise every day – this will not bring your goals closer, but will exhaust the body, which will never have the opportunity to rebuild damaged muscle fibers during training.