10 BEFORE YOU BEGIN

IMPORTANT STEPS

Consult with Your Physician

Be sure your doctor knows you are going on the Killing Fat program. Let him examine this book so he understands what’s involved. He may want to give you a physical if you have not had one in the last year.

There are a few people who should not try this program: children age fourteen and under; women who are pregnant or nursing; people with certain types of heart, liver, or kidney disease; diabetics; and those suffering from some types of arthritis. This should not be taken as an all-inclusive list. Some individuals should follow the course only with their physician’s specific guidance and recommendations. Consult your doctor beforehand to play it safe.

Find a Friend to Go Through the Program with You

Although it is certainly possible to get great results going through the program by yourself, you’ll probably lose more pounds and inches if you team up with a buddy—or several. You and your friend(s) should try to work out together, shop together, and share each other’s problems.

The internet also offers a lot of opportunities for people near and far to go through this program together.

Take Your Measurements

You and your training partner can best take these measurements together. Wear a tight-fitting bathing suit (a two-piece bathing suit works best for women because it reveals the entire midsection).

Weigh yourself on your bathroom scale. Using a plastic tape measure, take all the other measurements standing, with your weight equally distributed on both feet. Apply the tape firmly, without compressing your skin, and keeping it parallel to the floor. Record the measurements to the nearest .125 inch. You’ll be taking waist measurements at three levels: high (2 inches above your navel), middle (at your navel), and low (2 inches below your navel). Some individuals lose their fat at a greater or lesser degree from one or two of those levels, and you’ll want to be aware of the difference.

Do the Pinch Test

For more than forty years, I’ve measured and determined body fat percentage and muscle gain using a Lange skinfold caliper, along with the formula and tables developed by Jackson and Pollock. It took me approximately a year to get skilled at the measurements and follow-up.

You, however, can get a fair estimate of your body fat percentage by doing the pinch test. For both men and women, this requires taking two measurements: the first on the back of the upper arm and the second beside the navel. Here’s the procedure:

Locate the first skinfold site on the back of the right upper arm (triceps area) midway between the shoulder and elbow. Let your arm hang loosely at your side.

Grasp a vertical fold of skin between your thumb and forefinger. Pull the skin and fat away from the arm. Make sure the fold includes just skin and fat and no muscle.

Measure with a ruler the thickness of the skin to the nearest .25 inch. Be sure to measure the distance between your thumb and forefinger. Sometimes the outer portion of the fold is thicker than the flesh grasped between the fingers. To avoid this, make sure the fold is level with the side of the thumb. Do not press the ruler against the skin. This will flatten it and make it appear thicker than it really is.

Release the skin, record the triceps skinfold measurement on this page, and repeat to take a second measurement at the same point.
Calculate the average of the two triceps skinfold measurements and record this as well.
Locate the second skinfold site, which is immediately adjacent to the right side of the navel.
Grasp a vertical fold of skin between your thumb and forefinger and follow the same technique as for the triceps skinfold measurement.
Release the skin, record the abdominal skinfold measurement, and repeat to take a second measurement at the same point.
Calculate the average of the two abdominal skinfold measurements and record this.
Add the averaged triceps skinfold measurement to the averaged abdominal skinfold measurement. This is your combined total.
Estimate your body fat percentage from the chart on this page and record it.
Multiply your current body weight by your body fat percentage to determine how many pounds of fat you are carrying and record this as well.
At the completion of the six-week program, take these measurements again to determine your current body fat percentage.

Determining Fat Loss and Muscle Gain

Subtract your “after” weight from your “before” weight to find your total weight lost.
Multiply your “before” body fat percentage by your “before” body weight; do the same for your “after” measurements. The difference between the two numbers is your total fat loss. For example, if a man weighed 208 pounds with 32 percent body fat at the start of the program, that’s 66.56 pounds of fat. If he completed the program at 181 pounds at 18 percent body fat, that’s 32.58 pounds of fat. The difference between 66.56 and 32.58 is 33.98 pounds.
To determine your total muscle gain, subtract your fat loss from your total weight loss. In the example above, where fat loss equaled 33.98 pounds and weight loss was 27 pounds, 6.98 pounds of muscle were gained.

Fat comprises more than 25 percent of most Americans’ body weight. An ideal amount of body fat is 12 percent for most men and 18 percent for most young women. Lean, athletic men and women may desire to lower their ideal figures by another 5 or 6 percentage points.

PINCH-TEST MEASUREMENTS

Take Full-Body Photographs

There is no better way to evaluate your current condition than to have full-body photographs taken of yourself in bicycle shorts or a tight bathing suit. Digital cameras and iPhones are easy to use. Here are the best procedures to follow:

Wear solid-colored bicycle shorts or a tight-fitting bathing suit.
Stand against an uncluttered, light-colored background.
Direct the person with the camera to move away from you until they can see your entire body in the viewfinder. It’s best that they be seated 15 to 20 feet from you, with the camera approximately 3 feet off the floor and turned for a vertical, or “portrait,” format. They can zoom in as needed with the camera lens so your body fills the frame.
Stand relaxed for two pictures: front, back, and right side. Do not try to suck in your stomach.
Interlace your fingers and place them on top of your head so the contours of your torso are plainly visible. Keep your feet 8 inches apart for the front and back shots, but stand with them together for the side picture. (You can also take a double-arm biceps pose from the front and back.)
Download the digital “Before” photos to your computer. Crop the best ones tightly to 3 by 6 inches.
Take your “After” photos six weeks later, following the same directions, wearing the same bathing suit, and using the same camera.
Download the images and crop them to the same size as your “Before” photos. Your height in both sets of photos should be the same.

Check Out Your Favorite Supermarket

The eating plan in chapter 11, “The No-Fuss Eating Option,” is the simplest one I’ve ever designed. It also requires the least amount of preparation. Chapter 12, “The Cook-at-Home Eating Option,” includes quick-and-easy recipes that you can make yourself using foods you can pick up from any supermarket.

Use Measuring Spoons, Cups, and a Kitchen Scale

Most people overestimate 3 ounces of deli-type ham, ½ cup of fat-free milk, or 2 tablespoons of sweet pickle relish. Such practices lead to inaccurate calorie counting and inefficient fat loss. It is important to become familiar with and correctly use measuring spoons, cups, and food scales.

Most of these items can be purchased inexpensively online or at local stores. With food scales, however, you’d be well-advised to spend more money to purchase a battery-operated digital scale instead of the less expensive spring-loaded analog type.

Take a Multivitamin with Minerals Each Day

While you’re eating a reduced-calorie diet, you should take one multivitamin that includes minerals each morning. Study the label, however, and make sure no nutrient exceeds 100 percent of the RDA. High-potency supplements and super-stress formulas are a waste of money. It’s also a good idea to consult your doctor before consuming any supplement.

Examine the Menus, Recipes, and Shopping Lists

Glance through the Killing Fat menus, recipes, and shopping lists in chapters 11 and 12 for an overview of what you’ll be eating during the six-week program. Your results will be more effective if you plan ahead. One important concept to keep in mind is that your caloric intake will decrease slightly (by 100 calories) at the start of weeks 3 and 4, and again before weeks 5 and 6.

Get Serious, Trust the Process, Be Happy

You’ve done your tests, taken your measurements, made certain purchases, and familiarized yourself with what to expect. Now it’s time to get serious. It’s time to lose significant pounds and inches.