How I Help Clients Lose Weight (3of3)
Movers and Shakers
In the previous emails, we established your starting point for weight loss by understanding your baseline energy needs and identifying where your current diet may need attention.
In this final part, we move into what actually shifts those numbers in the right direction: how you move your body, and where targeted supplementation can support the process.
Exercise Optimisation:
Exercise isn’t about “burning calories”.
It’s about changing how the body handles fuel.
This brings us to something called Zone 2 cardio.
What is Zone 2 cardio?
Zone 2 cardio involves keeping your heart rate at 60-70% of your maximum. A pace that's brisk yet sustainable. You should be able to hold a conversation, though you might prefer not to.
How often should I do it?
3-4 sessions per week is enough for most people. Each session should last 30-60 minutes. Consistency matters more than intensity, its not meant to exhaust you.
Over time, as your fitness improves, you’ll notice you can:
Go faster at the same heart rate
Recover more quickly
Feel less dependent on food or caffeine for energy
Yep...that's me...doing resistance training!
Why is it beneficial?
Zone 2 exercise helps your cells produce more efficient mitochondria, which are the energy powerhouses that convert glucose and fat into fuel.
The stronger your mitochondria, the better your body can burn energy instead of storing excess calories as fat.
Good options include: Walking uphill, steady cycling, rowing, swimming, jogging, or using a cross-trainer, as long as the intensity stays controlled.
Next…
Resistance training:
What is resistance training?
Resistance training involves challenging your muscles against an external load, this could be bodyweight, free weights, resistance bands, or machines.
The goal isn’t to “burn calories” necessarily...
It’s to:
Build or preserve muscle
Improve insulin sensitivity
Increase long-term metabolic resilience
Each session should involve working the major muscle groups through controlled movements, where the last few repetitions feel challenging but manageable with good form.
How often should I do it?
For most people, 2-3 full-body sessions per week is enough.
Each session should last 30-45 minutes.
You don’t need to train every day, and you don’t need to leave the gym exhausted.
"Consistency always beats extremes!"
Why is it beneficial?
Muscle is metabolically active tissue.
The more muscle you preserve (or build), the better your body handles:
Glucose
Insulin
Energy storage
Key point: During weight loss, without resistance training, the body will often lose muscle alongside fat.
Strength training protects against this.
It tells your body:
“This tissue is needed, don’t break it down.”
Good options include: Bodyweight exercises (squats, lunges, push-ups), dumbbells or kettlebells, barbell training, cable exercises and resistance machines.
Movement matters:
Exercise is the most powerful drug you can take to start making big shifts in your health and body composition.
Remember to start gradually. Add one or two sessions per week and build from there.
"Consistency matters far more than intensity"
Targeted Supplementation:
When used properly, targeted supplementation can help reinforce systems that are already moving in the right direction.
However...
Key Point: Supplements come after diet and movement, not instead of them.
Here are some I frequently recommend in clinic:
Berberine:
Berberine has been studied extensively for its impact on glucose metabolism.
Studies have shown berberine:
Improves insulin sensitivity
Reduces fasting blood glucose
Lowers HbA1c in individuals with impaired glucose control
Reduces hepatic (liver) glucose production
Some studies have reported berberine’s metabolic effects to be comparable to metformin in specific populations.
Think of it as metabolic signal support, not a shortcut.
Ashwagandha:
Chronic stress elevates cortisol.
Persistently high cortisol:
Increases appetite
Promotes central fat storage
Impairs insulin sensitivity
Disrupts sleep
Ashwagandha is one of the most researched adaptogens.
Recent reviews have shown it can:
Reduce cortisol levels
Improve perceived stress scores
Improve sleep quality
Support modest reductions in body weight in stressed individuals
This matters because stress-related metabolic resistance is common and often overlooked.
When stress is better regulated, appetite and energy balance often improve as a secondary effect.
Probiotics (Bifidobacterium + Lactobacillus):
The gut microbiome plays a key role in:
Appetite hormone signalling (GLP-1)
Inflammation
Gut barrier integrity
Energy harvest from food
Certain strains of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus have been associated in clinical studies with:
Improved gut barrier function
Reduced low-grade inflammation
Modest reductions in body fat or waist circumference
Improved metabolic markers
In simple terms:
A healthier microbiome supports healthier metabolic signalling.
The Series Takeaway:
Weight loss doesn’t fail because people are lazy or undisciplined.
It fails because:
Biology adapts
Signals change
And most plans fight those changes instead of respecting them
My approach focuses on restoring regulation not forcing restriction.
If you want help identifying what’s holding your physiology back, I can support you through personalised nutrition strategy, structured training guidance, and, where appropriate, advanced blood testing to give us objective data.
If you’re ready to take a smarter approach to weight loss, book a discovery call.