I weighed 220 pounds in the photo above. I thought crunches would give me abs. They didn't.
Here's what actually worked:
The summer before my sophomore year, I spent three months laying concrete with my mom's boyfriend. I wasn't trying to lose weight—I was just trying to make money. But the weight fell off. I got down to 170 pounds.
It wasn't some special diet. I was just moving all day and not sitting in front of the TV grazing out of boredom.
A friend convinced me to wrestle that year. I dropped to 143 pounds. That spring, my throwing coach pulled me aside and said, "You're a different person from last season. You should run with the distance guys."
So I did. I fell in love with distance running. Ran cross country and track all through college.
But here's the thing—I still wanted to look muscular. And distance running wasn't giving me that.
Fast forward 23 years. I'm 38 with three kids and a basement gym. I've tried everything the fitness industry could sell me—P90X, keto, paleo, insanity, that weird apple cider vinegar detox my wife found.
Most of it was designed to keep me confused and buying the next thing.
But looking back at what actually worked—laying concrete at 15, wrestling, running—it all came down to the same fundamentals I'm about to share with you.
Not tactics. Not trends. Just 7 simple fundamentals that work every single time.
Introduction
Fat loss isn't complicated. But the fitness industry makes it seem that way because complicated sells.
You don't need:
Restrictive meal plans
Hours of cardio
Cutting out entire food groups
Expensive supplements
Perfect adherence 7 days a week
You need 7 simple fundamentals, done consistently, for 4 weeks (and beyond).
Let's break it down.
The 7 Fundamentals Of Guaranteed Fat Loss And Muscle Retention
FUNDAMENTAL 1: PROTEIN PRIORITY
What it is: Eat 0.8-1g of protein per pound of bodyweight daily. Capped at 180g for men, 150g for women.
Why it matters:
Keeps you full: Protein is the most satiating macronutrient. You'll feel less hungry on fewer calories.
Preserves muscle: When you're in a calorie deficit, your body can burn muscle OR fat. Protein tells your body "keep the muscle, burn the fat."
Burns more calories: Protein has a higher thermic effect than carbs or fat. Your body burns 20-30% of protein calories just digesting it.
How to do it:
Calculate your target: Weight × 0.8 to 1g (you'll do this in Day 0)
Track it in the LoseIt App
Hit it EVERY day
Week 1: Just track protein. See what you naturally eat.
Week 2-4: HIT your protein target daily. Non-negotiable.
FUNDAMENTAL 2: DAILY MOVEMENT (STEPS)
What it is: Walk 7,000-10,000 steps per day.
Why it matters:
Burns calories without destroying you: Steps are NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) - low-impact calorie burn that doesn't wreck your recovery like cardio.
Sustainable: You can walk every day. You can't do intense cardio every day without burning out.
Compounds: 8,000 steps = ~300-400 calories burned. Over 4 weeks, that's 8,400-11,200 extra calories burned = 2-3 lbs of fat.
How to do it:
Check your phone's step tracker or smartwatch
Week 1: Track your baseline (how many steps do you naturally do?)
Week 2-4: Aim for baseline +2,000, or 7,000 minimum (whichever is higher)
Easy ways to add steps:
Morning walk (15 min = 1,500 steps)
Park farther away
Walk while on phone calls
Play outside with kids
Take stairs
Week 1: Just observe your baseline.
Week 2-4: Hit your step goal daily.
FUNDAMENTAL 3: CALORIE TRACKING
What it is: Eat in a calorie deficit of 300-500 calories below what your body needs to maintain its weight.
Why it matters:
Fat loss requires a deficit: You cannot lose fat without burning more calories than you consume. Period.
You can't out-train a bad diet: Even with perfect workouts, if you overeat, you won't lose fat.
Tracking removes guesswork: Most people underestimate calories by 30-50%. Tracking makes you honest.
How to do it:
Week 1: Track everything in LoseIt. Don't restrict yet - just see your baseline.
End of Week 1: Calculate average daily calories (LoseIt shows this)
Week 2-4: Set your goal at baseline - 500 calories. Hit it daily.
You can still eat pizza, dessert, burgers:
As long as it fits your calories and you hit your protein, you can eat ANYTHING.
This isn't about restriction - it's about awareness and moderation.
Week 1: Track everything, no deficit.
Week 2-4: Eat in a 500-calorie deficit daily.
FUNDAMENTAL 4: STRENGTH TRAINING
What it is: Lift weights 4 days per week, 30 minutes per session.
Why it matters:
Preserves muscle while losing fat: Cardio burns calories but also burns muscle. Lifting tells your body "keep the muscle, burn the fat."
Increases metabolism: Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat. Build muscle = burn more calories doing nothing.
You'll look better: Losing fat without lifting = you'll be a smaller, softer version of yourself. Losing fat WHILE lifting = you'll be lean, toned, defined.
What you'll do in this program:
4 workouts per week (you pick which 4 days)
Upper body 2x, Lower body 2x
3 sets of 10 reps per exercise
Progressive overload: Add weight, reps, or sets each week
Week 1: Just do the workouts. Get familiar with movements.
Week 2-4: PROGRESS. Add 5 lbs, or 1 rep, or 1 set each week.
FUNDAMENTAL 5: STRESS MANAGEMENT
What it is: Do one 5-minute stress reduction activity daily.
Why it matters:
Stress = cortisol = belly fat: Chronic stress keeps cortisol elevated, which stores fat around your midsection and makes it nearly impossible to lose weight.
Stress kills adherence: When you're stressed, you'll emotional eat, skip workouts, and quit.
What counts as stress reduction:
5-min walk
Box breathing (4 seconds in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold - repeat 5x)
Journaling
Playing with kids (no phone)
Doing literally nothing for 5 minutes
Week 1-4: Do one stress reduction activity every day. Track it.
FUNDAMENTAL 6: SLEEP 7-8 HOURS
What it is: Get 7-8 hours of quality sleep every night.
Why it matters:
Sleep regulates hunger hormones: When you're sleep-deprived, ghrelin (hunger hormone) goes UP and leptin (fullness hormone) goes DOWN. You'll be ravenously hungry on 5 hours of sleep.
Sleep affects recovery: Your muscles repair and grow while you sleep. No sleep = no recovery = worse workouts.
Sleep affects willpower: When you're exhausted, you'll cave to cravings. You'll skip workouts. You'll quit.
How to do it:
Set a bedtime (work backward 8 hours from wake-up time)
No screens 30 min before bed (I know this is hard, but at the very least turn down the brightness on your phone)
Dark, cool room
Prioritize it like you prioritize workouts
Week 1-4: Track sleep daily. Aim for 7-8 hours every night.
FUNDAMENTAL 7: CONSISTENCY OVER PERFECTION
What it is: Show up 80% of the time. That's all you need.
Why it matters:
Perfection is unsustainable: If you aim for 100%, you'll quit when you inevitably miss a day.
80% gets results: 5-6 days of hitting protein out of 7 = results. 3 workouts out of 4 = results. You don't need perfect.
How to apply it:
Bad day ≠ quitting: If you overeat on Saturday, just get back on track Sunday. One day doesn't erase a week of work.
Miss a workout? Do it tomorrow. Or skip it and do next week's workouts. It's fine.
80% adherence over 4 weeks beats 100% for 1 week then quitting.
The only way you fail is if you stop showing up.
Week 1-4: Don't beat yourself up for imperfection. Just keep going.
Your 4-Week Plan
Week 1 (Baseline):
Track food (no deficit yet)
Track steps (no goal yet, just observe)
Do 4 workouts (learn the movements)
Hit protein daily
Sleep 7-8 hours
Do one stress reduction activity daily
Drink 60+ oz water daily
Week 2-4 (Full Execution):
Eat in 500-calorie deficit
Hit protein target daily
Hit step goal daily (baseline +1,000 or 7,000 minimum)
Do 4 workouts, PROGRESS each week (add weight, reps, or sets)
Sleep 7-8 hours
Stress reduction daily
Water daily
If you do this for 4 weeks, you WILL:
Lose 4-8 lbs of fat (possibly more)
Get noticeably stronger
Build habits that carry you beyond this program
Ready to Get Started? This is your roadmap. These 7 fundamentals work for every body, every time—as long as you're consistent. Want the complete system with daily action steps, workout templates, and meal tracking guides? Then go here to grab it https://donnieg.com/start