The Real Fat Loss Hierarchy Explained

00:00Like I just said, you cannot out-train a bad diet, and it's 1000% true. Fat loss is ultimately about being in a calorie deficit, but the quality of your food matters just as much as the quantity does. Yo, you guys, what's going on? Welcome to The WarriorBabe Show with Nikkie Stott, co-founder of WarriorBabe. And on this podcast, we talk about mindset, methodologies, and tactics that will help you lose body fat, build muscle, be strong, and feel insanely confident.

00:35I'm your host, Nikkie Stott, and welcome to today's episode, episode number 228. And today, I just want to get real raw and honest with you guys. I was inspired by something I saw on Instagram the other day that still, like, it's a narrative that still floats around the fitness space. And it's like the concept of fat loss that consists of doing things backwards. It says, like, cardio, weights, and nutrition are the way that 97% of society thinks that it should be in order to get to your goals.

01:11And really, what we're going to do in this episode is I'm going to flip that. Because you've probably been told that, like, cardio is the holy grail of fat loss. I remember that that was exactly my mindset when I first started my journey, too, as well. It was like, in order to lose fat, I need to run X amount of miles or whatever, do tons of cardio, spend my time sweating on the treadmill, barreling down, grinding away on the elliptical, and I'm going to lose fat faster. And I'm sure that is what you guys feel, too, as well.

01:43And I know that because recently I've been talking to a lot of warrior babes that are inside of our community. And they've been sharing that that is where their head was at first before they joined our program. They thought that they had to do it this way in order to achieve the fat loss goals that they wanted to and to lose the weight. And I just want to get real honest with you guys on this episode. And I'm going to flip it because that is completely backwards. And I want to talk about why nutrition is literally the foundation of everything.

02:17I talk about nutrition being the king and exercise being the queen. The thing is, is nutrition is the foundation. Weights are the accelerator. And cardio is like, think about the cherry on top. And trust me, if you are somebody that feels like you've been grinding away, you've been running miles, you've been killing it on the elliptical, you're doing it on the bike, you're swimming, I don't know. And you're feeling frustrated with your results because you're not seeing the results that you thought that you would see after grinding away on those things. Then this episode is going to be an absolute freaking game changer for you.

02:50And I know you're not the only one. I know that there's a friend, there's a coworker that could be truly inspired by this episode too as well. And maybe have light bulbs go off in their brain and recognize that this is what they're doing. And it's not the way that they need to achieve their results. And I ask that you just share it, share this episode with somebody. Okay. So first, I just want to start with a myth that most of us grew up believing. Like I said, like this was where I was at the beginning of my journey too as well. So I can resonate with a lot of you women that feel this way too.

03:23I thought that if I wanted to lose fat, then the first thing that I needed to do was cardio. I needed to run. I needed to spin. I needed to sweat like crazy. I needed to burn. I mean, how many of you guys are still obsessed with like your Apple Watch and how many calories you're burning on a daily basis while you're doing your exercise? And then maybe you'll add some weights here and there. And then lastly, if you're feeling ambitious about your, you know, efforts, maybe, maybe you'll look at your nutrition. I know when I first started my journey, the only thing I cared about was cardio. I even signed up for two half marathons in my first year of like really committing to this process because I thought that was the way.

04:02And then I was like, okay, and maybe here and there I'll add some weights. But I am going to share with you guys in the first episode of this whole podcast series, episode number one, where I walked into the gym and I walked straight up to the cardio equipment. And I know like if you feel that same way, you're not alone. But if you want any types of results of building more muscle or being more toned or changing your body composition, this is not the way. We need to flip it. Okay. The last thing I said there was like if you're feeling ambitious about nutrition, I remember that that was like the last thing on my mind.

04:33And boy, like as I'm sharing with you guys, like how that has flipped so much in the last 10 years of recognizing how important nutrition is and then sharing that with the warrior babes. And then obviously I talk a lot about it on this episode on these episodes too as well. But does that sound familiar to you guys? Like if you want to lose fat, you got to do cardio. Like this is what we all grew up believing. These are the myths that we grew up believing. And then maybe you got some weights and then maybe you'll look at your nutrition. And this approach is everywhere. And it's what's keeping so many people spinning their wheels.

05:03Literally. Like I think about all the women that are on their hamster wheel of doing the same thing over and over and over again. And they're getting nowhere. And the truth is, is that this hierarchy is completely backwards. If you're solely relying on cardio to burn calories, you're setting yourself up for pure frustration and pure burnout. And here's why. Cardio burns calories while you're doing it, but it doesn't create long-term changes in your metabolism. And if your nutrition isn't dialed in, all that effort on the treadmill won't matter because you can't out-train a bad diet.

05:41And this is where I want to like get real with you guys. If you want to see sustainable fat loss and actually feel good in your body, then you need to flip this script. The real fat loss hierarchy, it looks like nutrition, number one, weights, number two, and cardio, number three. And I'm going to break down each of these here with you guys. And this is what I saw on Instagram. I was like, oh my God, this is beautifully said. That everyone thinks it's cardio, weights, nutrition. 97% of society thinks it's that way.

06:12And it is the exact opposite. The results that I've achieved over the last 10 years, the results, almost 20,000 women inside of Warrior Babe, the ones that have committed to the process and done the work, which is not 20,000. It's definitely probably half or maybe even less than half because not everyone commits to this. Not everyone understands this. Not everybody is willing to break the stories or the narratives or the concepts or whatever limiting beliefs that they hold. Or whatever is going on in their own brain, they're not willing to accept something different.

06:44And I understand that because you have been ingrained one way for so long and you have all of these narratives in your brain that this is the way. But I hope just one of you guys hears me today and one of you guys just makes the shift. Just like, trust me now, believe me later. When I say nutrition is king, nutrition is the foundation of everything. Like I just said, you cannot out-train a bad diet. And it's 1000% true. Fat loss is ultimately about being in a calorie deficit.

07:15But the quality of your food matters just as much as the quantity does. What you eat directly impacts your hormones. It directly impacts your energy levels. It directly impacts your recovery. That's why nutrition needs to come first. Eating enough protein, it fuels your muscle growth. It fuels the cellular processes in your body. Which helps you to burn more fat efficiently. And then when you're focusing on whole nutrient-dense food to actually keep you full and they prevent you from having those cravings that will derail your progress.

07:47Then this is like the foundation of you basically like abiding by these things is what's going to get you to the goals that you want. Then you mix in weights. And then all of the like food is fuel. So it's going to fuel your workouts. It's going to fuel your recovery. And then cardio is more so like I'm not dissing cardio entirely. I'm going to get to that in a minute. But think about cardio is like your heart is a muscle too and it needs it. But that's not. It's like a tool and a resource to your results.

08:20It's not the number one driving factor. Okay. So if your nutrition isn't aligned to your goals, no amount of cardio, no amount of weightlifting will get you to where you want to be. If you focus on hitting your macros, if you focus on getting enough protein, if you focus on prioritizing whole foods over processed junk, then that is more in alignment to your goals. And that's what's going to help catapult you to the results that you want. This isn't about restriction either. It's about fueling your body the right way.

08:52So when you give your body whole nutrient-dense foods, you're giving it quality and you're giving it quantity. Both of those things matter. You're eating enough protein, which I've talked about that in so many episodes. That is an epidemic of women in the fitness industry. They don't need enough protein. And all of this, it all impacts your hormones, all impacts your energy levels, and all impacts your recovery. It all impacts, again, like this is the foundation. This is the king. I know I'm repeating myself, but I really want to drill this home. And sometimes when I repeat myself in different words, it lands.

09:22Quick break. If you're finding this episode helpful so far, it would mean a lot if you could hit pause for just a second, leave a quick rating or a review, or share it with someone who could benefit from it. Your support helps more women discover these tools to build muscle, lose fat, and feel confident. Thank you so much for being a part of this journey with me. The second thing is weights. If nutrition is the foundation, if nutrition is the king, then strength training is the accelerator. Strength training is the queen.

09:53This gets you closer to your goals. Building muscle is the most effective way to boost your metabolism. Think about it like this. Muscle tissue, it burns more calories at rest, which means you're basically like incinerating and torturing body fat 24-7, not just during your workouts. Like I said, like when you're doing cardio, that's the only time you're burning the calories when you're doing it. It doesn't create long-term changes in your actual metabolism. With weights, it's the most effective way to boost your metabolism because the muscle tissue is constantly burning calories.

10:28And so it's requiring you, like it doesn't sleep. It's requiring you to keep up with your nutrition. It's requiring you to eat enough throughout the day. It's requiring you to pretty much, like nutrition is the gas to your body. And the constant influx of nutrition is feeding all of these cellular processes and your muscle tissue to make all of these. And this is something that I mentioned in another episode that it's not tangible that you see these things happening. But I just want to get it into your brain that when you do feed your body the right way internally, all of this is going down.

11:02And so that's why I like to say with Warrior Babe 2, side note, it's like a lot of women come to us with destroyed metabolisms or just slow metabolisms or whatever way you want to have that understanding. Your metabolism is just not working with you. It's working against you. And what I like to say is like we need to heal the inside first because if we can heal the inside first, then the exterior results are going to follow. And we do it by this hierarchy of things, nutrition, weights, cardio. I just want to drill this into your guys' brains.

11:33When you strength train too, you're not just burning calories during the workout, but you're also creating like a ripple effect that helps you to burn fat even faster after you've left the gym. Like for those of you guys that have heard that when you're sitting on the couch, you're burning calories. Like I have a lot of muscle mass, right? So me sitting here talking to you guys, I'm burning calories. And that's one of the biggest reasons why weight training trumps cardio when it comes to fat loss. Then the last thing, which is cardio. Here's the thing.

12:04Again, as I mentioned, cardio is not bad. It's just that cardio has its place. It's great for heart health. It's great for endurance. And it's a tool for adding a little extra calorie burn. But it's not the star of the show. And it doesn't deserve to be the star of the show. Just think about cardio is like the cherry on top of the dessert, but it's not the whole dessert. And if you do too much cardio, like I remember the beginning of my journey because I was intertwining, doing a bodybuilding competition. And I signed up for two half marathons.

12:35And luckily, I'm a really good student. And I just listened to what my coach is telling me. Because guys, hear me out. Like my coach was a professional in the space. Who am I to go to him and say, oh, this isn't working. It's only working because I wouldn't follow what he's telling me to do because I thought that I knew what I should be doing. Which I didn't do. But I'm saying that for those of you that don't follow programs. Because you think that there's another success route. If there was another success route, you would have already been there.

13:07So like be a good student. Be a good learner. Listen to the people that literally do this for their job. They have so much more knowledge. They have so much more understanding. They have so much more experience. And so when I started my journey, of course, I was afraid of losing. Or of course, I was afraid of eating more food. I feel like that is a big fear factor for a lot of women and men, anyone in general to eat more food than what you're eating now. If I hadn't done that with my coach telling me when I first started out, like because of all of this energy expenditure I was putting out in terms of training for a bodybuilding competition and then doing two half marathons pretty close together.

13:50He was like, Nikki, you need to eat food. You need to have this amount of calories in this week. Plus, you need to have a cheat meal three days a week. And I'm like, that is like literally four times the amount of food of what I'm eating right now. I'm going to blow up. Understandable. Because I didn't, I was naive to the process. I didn't understand these things. I didn't have the knowledge to back up my reasoning. But I trusted in him. That's why I was a really good student. I was like, okay, cool. I'll eat that. And that gave me the results.

14:21That helped me get the results that I wanted. But I'm saying this all because if you do too much cardio, it can actually work against you. Because if you're not feeling your body the right way, meaning like if you're not having the foundation of your nutrition down and you're doing tons and tons of cardio, again, you can't work out a bad, you can't outwork a bad diet. It will work against you. And it will do that by increasing your cortisol levels because your body is basically under stress at this point because you're not giving your body enough fuel to keep up with all the cellular processes that are going inside of, going on inside of your body. Cortisol is your stress hormone and potentially that's going to lead to muscle loss, especially if your nutrition isn't supporting your activity levels.

14:57Meaning if you're killing yourself with cardio, if you're doing and training six, seven, five days a week, you're doing Orange Theory, you're doing all these boot camps, you're working out three hours a day and you don't have your nutrition dialed in. What happens here? Your body gets stressed out and you, again, it's not tangible. You can't see this, but you will see it in terms of you not getting the results that you want. Six months of doing this and you don't see results. It's because you're losing muscle mass. You're doing everything that's counterproductive to the process of you building more muscle and being more toned because you don't have your nutrition dialed in and it's not supporting all of this energy expenditure output that you're doing.

15:35So my advice, use cardio as a supplement, not as a crutch. Incorporate it in a way that supports your goals, whether it's like going for 10k steps a day, doing a spin class, doing some HIIT. We even have people inside of our program, Warrior Babe, that do Orange Theory, but they do it like once or twice a week because it's a supplement. Because it's that they enjoy doing those classes and we want you guys to stay doing the classes that you enjoy. Because it's how you make it a lifestyle, but it cannot be the star of the show, as I said earlier.

16:09Don't let it replace the essentials, which is nutrition and weights. Okay, so you guys know that I like to put it into practical takeaways, tangible takeaways that you can go and basically put this into practice. As I'm saying, if you're somebody that is 97% of society that is doing the opposite, which is cardio, weights, and nutrition. First and foremost, dial in your nutrition. And guys, it's only as hard as you make it. It's literally up to you. It is your choice.

16:41Every single time you pick up a food item, does this support my goals or does this not support my goals? Doesn't support my goals? Cool. You have the power to toss it out the door. You have the power to put it back where it wasn't. Pick something else up. Dial in your nutrition. Start by paying attention to how much food you are eating on a daily basis and track that for a week. And then figure out where you're lacking in what you need to be eating, which is probably mostly good protein. And then stack in learning how to track your macos.

17:13Getting more protein. Eliminating unnecessary processed foods. Just start paying attention to what you're eating. Then prioritize strength training. And you can either do this all at once or you can do this one at a time. Aim for three, five sessions per week. Four sessions per week. And do not tell me you don't have enough time to do that. Because you do. You just need to make the time. Focus on progressive overload. I've talked about that in episodes before what that is. You can literally like search through the episodes and find a title that says progressive overload. Challenge your muscles with heavier weights over time.

17:44That's what it is basically. And then add cardio strategically. Use it to enhance your cardiovascular system, your endurance. Just don't overdo it. If you're doing like a couple sessions a week, that's plenty for most people. You're doing 10K steps a day. That is plenty. And it's not about doing everything perfectly. Okay? It's about literally you just nailing in and being consistent with your efforts and what you're focusing on. If you're only going to choose one of those three things, first thing is nutrition. Focus on the consistency of your efforts.

18:15Then stack it with going to the gym. Focus on the consistency of your efforts. Then stack it with like, okay, I'm going to focus on getting 10K steps a day. Guys, literally no joke. Like that is all it takes. You don't need anything else other than doing those things. It's as simple as that. It's only as hard as you make it. If you focus on nutrition, if you focus on weights, if you focus on cardio in that order, you're going to see results that actually last. Point blank. End of story.

18:46The key takeaway here, other than the hierarchy of things in order to get you to the results that actually last. Fat loss isn't about working harder. It's about working smarter. Nutrition is a foundation that fuels your body. Weights builds the muscle that boosts your metabolism. And cardio is just the icing on the cake. It's a cherry on top. So if you've been spending hours on the treadmill, if you've been feeling stuck, it's time to shift your approach. Focus on the things that matter.

19:17Watch your body. And if you do that, you guys, so many things are going to transform for you. So if this episode resonated with you, do something about it after this. What are you going to change? That is, if you're doing any of those things backwards, focus on nutrition. First thing. That's it. And then please share this with somebody that needs to hear the truth about fat loss. Because it's not doing cardio excessively every single day. And working out for three hours a day. And being in the gym. And end, end, end.

19:47That requires all of this energy output. If you want to do it smarter, it's nutrition. Weights. Cardio. Okay? I hope this resonates with you guys. Please share it with someone that could hear this too as well. And hopefully there's some light bulbs that have gone off. I love you guys. I appreciate you guys. And I'll see you guys in the next episode. Hey, really quick. Before you go, I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference.

20:18Helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey. Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much. Thank you. Thank you.

This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.