Nearly two thirds of gym memberships go unused. Don’t let yours be one of them. Make sticking to your fitness plan effortless with these five easy ways to boost motivation. And if you don’t have a plan yet, use ours: sign up to our free Men’s Health #5in5 workout programme to lose 5kg fat and gain 5kg of muscle in just five weeks!

1. Optimally primed

Pepper your day with casual clues – trainers by the front door at home, gym bag ready-packed in your car, protein shake on your desk at work – as reminders of your intention to train, and take time to recall how great you felt after your last workout. Positive memories of your last session send motivation levels soaring, found researchers at the University of New Hampshire. Just be sure to focus on how great you felt after squeezing out that squat, rather than how difficult it was to walk down the stairs to the changing room afterwards.

2. Log your sessions

People who report their progress to others are more likely to carry on with a training plan. But that reporting doesn’t have to be face-to-face, according to research in the Journal of American College Health. The study authors found that logging fitness activity online for others to see inspired as much motivation as regularly working out with a group. But remember: you are notJen Selter. Spare your followers an endless stream of #fitspiration by signing up for the Men’s Health Personal Trainer tool and get access to training and nutrition plans personalised for your unique strength, stats and training goals.

3. Fine yourself

Would you be more likely to go to the gym if you had to fork out a fiver for skipping it? If the answer is yes, you’re not alone, according to a handful of studies and the creators of Pact, a clever smartphone app that has users check in at their gyms via GPS and charges them for missed workouts. Each week, money is pooled from the non-exercisers and distributed among Pact users who have managed to hit their workout goals. Sign up and never skip a workout to earn money and muscle.

4. Get a training partner

If you work out with a buddy, make sure he’s in similar shape, suggests a study in the journal Science. Researchers found participants who exercised with partners similar in BMI, age, and fitness level were more than three times as likely to stick with their fitness plans as those with less compatible partners. Whatever you do, don’t work out with someone much fitter, say scientists. That sets unrealistic goals and undermines motivation.

5. Think smaller

Large goals can seem unattainable. Instead, focusing on incremental victories brings better results, report scientists in the Journal of Consumer Research. So rather than dwelling on the 15 pounds you want to lose, think about doubling your current 3-pound loss.

Dame Sally Davies, England’s chief medical officer today stated in her annual report that tackling obesity should be a national priority to avert a “growing health catastrophe”.

While the report looked specifically at women, England’s top doc said obesity was so serious that is should be a priority for the whole population. She also warned that the food industry needed to pull its socks up or face a sugar tax (do we need a sugar tax? Join the debate). 

Obesity throughout the country is an epidemic, and we need to act fast before it overwhelms our body, the NHS and the economy. It’s causing a fatal class divide and thousands of deaths. If something isn’t done, our nation could collapse under its own weight.

Men’s Health investigates what can be done…

(Lunch)time bomb

You don’t need a time machine to glimpse this fatter future. A trip to Coatbridge, Lanarkshire will do. According to market researchers CACI, this Scottish town has the UK’s fattest residents. One in five has a BMI above 30 and cabbies limit loads to two passengers. It’s no coincidence that Britain’s fat capital is also one of its most deprived areas. A map of the UK drawn by the National Obesity Observatory (NOO) shows a stark class and geographical divide. The fattest areas include the North East, where unemployment rates are among the highest at 9.6%. Earning power seems directly linked to your girth, with only 21.6% of top-earning households seriously over weight, compared with 29.3 % of households where cash is tight.

If we don’t act, our ‘fatocalypse’ will become reality. The Foresight report predicts that by 2050 we’ll have an economic and health crisis if current trends continue. If you’re one of those making up the far-too-round number, the personal consequences will be dire. The British Dietetic Association warns that risk of fatal disease increases by 1% for every pound you’re overweight. Obesity ups your risk of heart disease by 82%, your risk of type 2 diabetes doubles if your BMI hits 25 and University of Aberdeen research found a 20lb (9kg) weight increase cuts your chances of fatherhood by 10%. Harvard Medical School has even coined a new term for patients suffering from obesity-related diabetes: ‘diabesity.’

Looking at the big picture, the cost to society will be crippling. NHS spending will increase from £104 to £114bn by 2015, but in real terms it will be static, thanks to rising costs and patient numbers. Health charity The King’s Fund and economic think tank The Institute of Fiscal Studies estimate this leaves a £20bn funding gap. “There’s a gap between what we’d like to spend and what we have, and obesity comes into that,” says King’s Fund health economist John Appleby. “NHS funding is flat in real terms and the cash just won’t be there.”

While the NHS budget flatlines, obesity costs are soaring. Over 5.5m over-16s are on obesity registers, a rise of 250,000 in the past year. Research by Diabetes UK shows the impact of this in a 5.5% rise in type 2 diabetes cases in a single year. Treating diabetes costs the NHS an annual £8bn, the cost of prescription weight-loss drugs is up 13% to £47m, and obesity operations 40% to £32m. Perhaps the most shocking figure is that each NHS hospital spends an average of £60,000 annually on ‘supersizing’ beds, wheelchairs and equipment for heavier patients. All this while cancer drugs are being rationed.

Related: Are you sleepwalking your way towards type 2 diabetes? 

The predicted cost to the nation also includes the amount taxpayers will be funding in incapacity benefit for those whose obesity-related health problems mean they can barely walk, let alone travel to an office. “The consequences are so wide-ranging that no country, however wealthy, will be able to afford the fallout – whether it’s pervasive diabetes affecting 30-50% of adults or heart disease, ar thritis, cancers or respiratory problems,” says Professor Philip James, chair of the International Obesity Task Force. He points out that the fat epidemic is already responsible for half of all the increasing costs of the US health sector.

Slim chance

So far, the government’s response has been to ‘nudge’ the public into slimming down, with initiatives like cinema tickets for children who walk to school. The Department of Health says it is ‘concerned’ about the prevalence of obesity and its ‘serious implications’. A spokesman told MH that ministers were ‘working hard’ on new measures but ‘nannying’ people to lose weight is not on the agenda. “The Government’s role is not to lecture people, not to nanny them, not constantly to be legislating or taxing them,” says the DoH spokesman. Many experts argue that more drastic action is needed.

Some German politicians have already suggested fat people should pay higher taxes because of the burden they place on the health system. Or there should at least be a tax on fatty food. “A junk food tax is sound in principle,” says Paul Sacher, specialist dietician at Great Ormond Street Hospital.“ But it will only work if it’s high enough to stop people buying high-fat, sugar and salt foods. Otherwise it just becomes a tax on the poor.” And, he argues, cash raised through a tax on unhealthy foods should be used to subsidise more nutritious foods. Sacher also supports limiting advertising unhealthy foods to children to ‘minimise’ the ‘pester power effect.’

Pay as you gorge

The influential health journalist Ian Marber takes a more radical stance, calling on the Government to bring in National Insurance pay bands which reflect our individual lifestyles. Those who don’t exercise, or have a high body fat, should pay the top band. “Those who don’t drink or smoke and eat healthily should pay the lowest amount,” says Marber. “It’s like any other type of insurance. You pay according to your risk.”

How we stop the next generation from supersizing is one of the most vital issues. Children are feeding their ‘fat future’ before the age of five and parents are often to blame, argues Terry Wilkin, professor of endocrinology and metabolism at Peninsula Medical School in Plymouth. His long-term research found sons of obese fathers are six times more likely to be obese, and he stresses that we need to tackle parents to stop this ‘conveyor belt’. “Obese parents are ‘recycling’ their obesity through inappropriate feeding,” says Wilkin. The demise of family mealtimes has an impact, he argues, because we no longer understand the impact of portion sizes. It’s a theory backed by University of Wales research, which showed children who don’t have set mealtimes don’t learn appropriate eating habits. “It’s vital that we educate children at an early age, but it has to be a whole family approach – the parents buying the food need the knowledge and understanding, too,” says Sacher. Wilkin’s solution is controversial: “We should target obese couples pre-conception.”

Related: Obesity is gentic but it can be fought! 

Obviously blame doesn’t rest solely at the (partially obscured) feet of overweight individuals. Many stress that the food industry’s role in the global obesity crisis needs to be tackled. No one force-feeds us quarter pounders, but are they playing with our minds? Dr David Kessler, former commissioner of the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), warns that food chains – including supermarkets – are manipulating us so that we consume more. His book, the New York Times bestseller The End of Overeating, highlights the use of salt, sugar and fat as the most commonly used ingredients, in terms of dietary manipulation. His investigations revealed that some restaurant chains deliberately increase these ‘killer’ ingredients in starters, so we eat more throughout the meal and are more likely to develop addictive eating behaviour.

Related: 11 of the best exercises to lose weight

A matter of course?

A first step in controlling the food industry could – and many say should – be to ban the use of trans fats. These chemically-altered vegetable oils are public enemy number one, according to Professor Lindsey Davies, president of the UK Faculty of Public Health. They’re in many of processed foods because they’re cheap, bulk ingredients, which prolong shelf lives. But they have no nutritional value, Davies points out, and cause a redistribution of fat tissue into the abdomen, upping your bodyweight, even when you’re controlling calorie intake. Their link to obesity has been confirmed in research by Wake Forest University in the US. “Thousands are dying from them,” says Davies. “And we get hysterical about E. coli, which may kill a handful of people. Trans fats are contaminating food.”

If our weighty issue isn’t tackled now, we could be facing a bleak nutritional future. Wilkin believes there will come a time when there will be draconian measures, just as society came round to a public smoking ban. The Future Foundation goes further, predicting a Christmas Future where sugary foods are banned and chocolate is rationed. It’s not so improbable. In the US, education chiefs in Pennsylvania have drafted regulations limiting classroom birthday parties to one a month.

In the meantime, maybe it’s better to give that burger a miss.

There are many claims on our sympathy nowadays, so Britain’s fattest man Carl Thompson was never going to get much of a look-in. The 33-year-old weighed 65 stone when he died in June, housebound and basically bedridden. He was alone but not out of sight – tabloid infamy had confined Carl to a thoroughly modern bedlam, where newspaper readers and daytime TV viewers were invited to survey this fleshy catastrophe. Step right up! You could gasp in mock horror at Carl’s food diary, feel disgust at the rolls of fat that seemingly merged his head with his sternum, work up some moral outrage about the NHS funds spent on cleaning and caring for him… do anything but feel some human empathy for the fact that this was a relatively young man whose life had moved disastrously out of balance, and who was heading inexorably toward a miserable, early death.

You can’t legitimately sneer at many people these days, but fatties are still fair game. And they’re a boon for the sort of TV producer who spends their life looking for something that’s going to make Benefit Street look like Émile Zola. A blubbery subject can be trailed from takeaway to takeaway accompanied by comedy trombone parps; a wretched red-top Gagool whose sole accomplishment is getting booted off The Apprentice can binge her way to a few extra pounds, lose them and then claim this empirically proves the obese are just weak and lazy; a public schoolboy can switch off the suppressor on his inner Flashman by proposing a tax on the obese – generally with extreme examples drawn from northern mill towns or southern housing estates. Like most British political issues, obesity comes with an ugly, oft-denied but obviously prevalent class dimension.

Terminate with prejudice

Willpower behaves a lot like a muscle: it can be strengthened, but it’s going to tire out if you ask it to do too much. Don’t go in all guns blazing; try to change your diet and quit smoking at the same time, and you’ll only fail in both.

Keep your distance

Describe what’s happening to you in the third person, as if you’re an onlooker: “The soldier is about to capitulate and gobble the doughnut.” Yes, you will look slightly mad to any actual onlookers, but this technique helps to suck out the emotional cues that make you reach for the sugary snack.

Disguise the danger

Don’t see a Danish pastry sitting provocatively on the counter. Think of it as a small pool of brown-coloured fat that has been extracted from between your organs. See it for what it isn’t and it will be easier to defuse cravings.

Plan your defence

The ‘If, then’ rule says that when you encounter temptation, you have a preset choice that you must always commit to. So, “If I see chips on the menu… Then I’ll order a side salad.’ This will stop you being caught off-guard.

Picture the threat

Try putting an imaginary frame around your temptation and see it as a picture. Or imagine it in black-and-white newsreel footage, or in a music video from the 80s. This distance makes it less real and cuts your physical connections to the food.

Chill out

There are two parts of your brain working when you make decisions: a hasty, emotional, greedy part, and a cooler, more analytical part. You can learn to rely more on the cooler part by simply counting to 10 and visualising your end goal: long-term happiness, not a few frenzied moments wrestling a cream cake into submission.

) Dave Leather

Before: Age 19, weight 21st (133kg), waist 44in (112cm)
Vices: Eating late at night, a diet of beer and pizzas

After: Age 21, weight 14st 4lb (90kg), waist 33in (84cm) 
Victories: Men’s Health cover-model competition finalist

Dave Leather’s story is one of the most inspiring ever published in Men’s Health. Not only was he a Fat Burner of the Month, he also went on to be a finalist in the Cover Model Competition.

“I didn’t even realise I was getting fat – it happened over 10 years,” says Dave. “I was chubby as a child, but not fat. Then I went to university, ate pizzas and drank a lot – I got big. I’d cut down on food,” he says. “But I failed to lose weight because I didn’t know the difference between fats, proteins, carbs and sugars.”

He only started to burn serious amounts of fat when he got his head around the food science and started a daily training regime. “I now avoid saturated fat and try to eat 30-50g protein every three hours when I’m training hard, and five small meals a day when I’m not.”

For Dave’s full story plus all the latest nutritional science and a super-fast fat-burning workout plan, get your copy of the new Men’s Health book, The Fat Burner’s Bible, by clicking here

You’d be forgiven for associating all probiotics with bunk peddled by full-fat cats at dairy companies. But there are better, science-backed bacteria that speed up the rate you digest calories. Either buy them or cultivate your own stash to switch your gut to fat-fighting mode day in, day out. And each comes with a pro bono health boost too if you’re feeling greedy…

Kill kcals with kimchi

The Korean superfood and hipster staple speeds up digestion to stop fat hiding your abs. Start by salting cabbage and leave for six hours. Rinse and mix with fish oil, chopped onions, sugar, crushed garlic, ground ginger and chili. Let it ferment in a cool, dry place for four days.

Sleep off fat with kefir

“More melatonin is produced in the gut than the brain,” says nutrition researcher Kamal Patel. A kefir-loaded gut equals better sleep…and a healthier, leaner gut. Leave the grains (£8 rawandpure.co.uk) in coconut milk for 24 hours before drinking.

Dodge carbs with miso

The Japanese comfort soup goes to work on sugar and other baddies in your stomach that can double-time weight gain, plus it helps bolster your bones. It takes 180 days to ferment so cheat by using instant paste (£2.40 clearspring.co.uk) and soup-up your gut.

Start afresh with manuka

Manuka (Steens Raw Manuka £33 ocado.com) isn’t a probiotic per se, but you can consider it the clean-up crew as this rare honey kills off the bad bacteria lurking in your insides. Studies link bad bacs to a sluggish metabolism and a bigger waist – forgo toast and have 1tsp each morning.

Detox fat stores with kvass

If you’ve been on the boozy breakfasts, try root-veg rehab. Kvass cleanses your blood and helps detoxify your liver, which results in a faster metabolism – even for those alcoholic calories. Mix chopped beets, whey, salt and water, cover and ferment for two days.

Burn it off with kombucha

Compound your calorie burn with a pick-me-up. “A symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast or ‘scoby’ (£7.50 rawandpure.co.uk) is all you need,” says nutritionist Jessica Scott. Add it to sweet black tea and leave for 10 days. Just don’t have it at night – it makes coffee feel like Horlicks.

Looking for a delicious stop-gap that'll keep your hand out the biscuit tin? Or a post-workout pint that's more interesting than a shaker full of protein powder?MH has got you covered with three DIY weight loss shakes, created by online personal trainer Scott Baptie, designed to help you burn fat, beat hunger and breeze through your workout programme. Blitz the ingredients in a blender and down for a downsized waistline.

Berries, honey and chilli fat-burner

1 cup mixed frozen berries
1 very small pinch of chilli powder
400 ml milk
200 ml cold green tea
1 tbsp honey

Researchers at the University of California found the chemical capsaicin, which is found in chilli peppers, increases fat loss by raising your body temperature and energy expenditure. Other studies have shown that it can help suppress appetite too. Berries are an ideal addition to a low calorie, fat burning shake; they are rich in vitamins, high in fibre and some research has shown they can also improve blood sugar control, staving off diabetes. Rememeber, weight loss should also be about improving your health, not just restricting calories. 

(Related: 7 ways to avoid diabetes)

Kale, apple and yoghurt hunger-beater

1 handful of kale
1 apple, core removed
1 pink grapefruit, peeled
1 cup of water
1/2 cup natural yoghurt
1 tbsp. honey

Green juices are synonymous with foul-tasting health drinks you have to pinch your nose and suffer through, but this kale smoothie tastes as good as it makes you feel. Dark leafy greens are a great source of calcium, which research shows plays a key role in helping regulate body fat levels. However, it's the protein packed into a 1/2 cup of low-fat natural yoghurt that'll keep you trim. The protein increases satiety, helping you avoid snacks between meals, and minimises the loss of muscle most men suffer when dieting for fat loss.

(Related: How to feel fuller for longer)

Orange, ginger and green tea recovery shake

1 orange
1 scoop of whey protein
Pinch of ginger
400 ml cold green tea
Handful of ice cubes

Oranges are packed with vitamin C, which helps combat the oxidative stress that causes DOMS, and researchers at the University of Georgia also found the anti-inflammatory properties in ginger help reduce muscle soreness after exercise. Green tea, as well as giving you a much-needed caffeine boost post-gym, contains the antioxidant ECGC, which has the power to boost fat oxidisation. Recovery is an undervalued part of every weight loss programme, but with the correct nutrtion you can keep your muscles fresh and maintain the motivation to burn maximum calories every time you hit the gym.

Pass: Fried breakfast
Plate: Scrambled eggs
If your days usually start with grapefruit and coffee, don’t shift too far as diet overhauls can cause constipation. “It’s better to have scrambled eggs,” says dietitian Dr Sarah Schenker. The fat and protein will nullify hunger pangs – and the cysteine will dull the pain of yesterday’s G&Ts.

Pass: Soft cheese
Plate: Hard cheese
Your body produces enough lactase to suit your regular diet, says Schenker. Treble your dose with a holiday brie and you’re understocked, which means bloating by the pool. Opt instead for hard and aged cheeses, which are lower in lactose, and goat’s cheese, which has shorter milk proteins that are easier for your body to digest.

Pass: Sex on the Beach
Plate: Bloody Mary
At Club Tropicana drinks may be free, but dodge anything with a paper brolly. Sugar masks even strong booze, says Schenker, so you won’t realise you’re eight shots in before lunch. Opting for tomato juice cuts the sugar – and your waist, according to Chinese research.

Pass: Pad Thai
Plate: Thai green curry
Starchy noodles lead to pool-side bloating tomorrow morning, hiding whatever number of abs you’ve teased out. Swap for Thai green curry’s bloat-shrinker turmeric, which comes with a side of appetite-crushing coconut milk fats to curb your dessert cravings.

Pass: Sorbet
Plate: Gelato
You might be happy to swerve ice cream, but don’t think the fruity alternative’s
 a healthy choice. Sorbet is higher in sugar, “and it’s not satiating so you’re likely to overindulge,” says Schenker. The fats in gelato might mean more calories, but they also slow glucose absorption to avoid sugar spikes. Just set yourself a one-scoop limit.

Pass: Fish and chips
Plate: Calamari
“Don’t eat the ‘British’ food,” says Schenker. Not only does it display cultural clumsiness, it’s also stodge that spikes your blood-glucose levels. Battered squid is lower in carbs and the veg-heavy local tapas will pack more fibre and water, filling you up for fewer calories.

Tuna

This low-fat fish is full of B vitamins to support lean muscle growth. That it’s one of the most low-prep forms of protein helps too.

Wheat wrap

If you’re looking to keep the carbs down, opt for a high-fibre, seeded wheat wrap. Stuff it with plenty of protein and salad – it beats two slices of bread, hands down.

Quinoa

This pseudo-grain is a great protein source, low in fat and high in fibre. Eat hot or cold as the base for a salad.

Lemon zest

Add to salad dressings. The peel’s pectin turns into a sticky gel when you digest it, limiting sugar absorption to give you less of a spike (and subsequent crash).

Olives

It’s the phytonutrient oleuropein that makes olives so good for your heart, while the anti- inflammatories will help you recover from your midday cardio efforts.

Avocado

A convenient source of monounsaturated fats, which improve insulin sensitivity (ie you get a longer-lasting buzz from every bite).

Cottage cheese

Calcium and vitamin D combine to preserve and build muscle after your lunchtime workout.

Sweet potato

Full of beta carotene (the orange stuff) and vitamin C (the stuff in oranges), this will make your skin look brighter, as well as fill you up.

Mixed beans

Rich in fibre and low in fat, these pulses are packed with energy- regulating minerals like niacin and riboflavin. Another easy option.

Cancer is estimated to afflict one in every three people at some point during their lives – and combating it can severely damage your immune system. As such, both prior to an incidence and during treatment, fortifying your body through a dedicated nutritional regime is crucial. Use the following weekly regimen to rally your defences.

On Monday

Eat cherry tomatoes

These juicy fruits are high in flavonols – an antioxidant which fights cancer-causing free radicals in the body.

Roast whole cherry tomatoes with a few whole cloves of garlic and crush the lot into wholewheat toast for a healthy snack.

Garlic

Allicin, a compound in the bulb, lowers your blood sugar to limit overnight fat storage.

Chilli

Capsaicin fires up your metabolism, yes, but crucially it also makes dull food taste better.

Carrots

A serving equals 200% of your RDA for vitamin A, plus vit K for bone health and vit C for immunity. Which means zero missed workouts.

Sirloin steak

Go grass-fed for higher levels of CLA (for fat burning) and creatine (for muscle repair).

Salmon

Boosting your omega-3 intake enhances fat loss. Where possible, choose wild Alaskan; it packs a bit more of everything you’re after.

Brown rice

Your top source of electrolytes, replacing what you sweat out to prevent fatigue and cramps. You’ll have no excuses tomorrow.

Turkey mince

Rich in selenium and zinc for hormone health and B vitamins for an energy lift. Use it to make meatballs, chilli – whatever you crave.

Turmeric

The curcumin that gives curry its colour reduces fat-tissue formation 
by impeding the blood vessels needed for the job. Sprinkle away.

Cauliflower

This is your post-work alternative to spuds. Steam your cauli in the microwave, add a knob of butter, then puree the lot in a food processor.

Smoked cheddar with apple chutney

A medium-sized apple provides about 4g of fibre, which speeds up your absorption 
of the cheese so less fat is ushered toward your love handles. Choose half fat: the smoky flavor means you won’t miss it one bit.

Parmesan with beetroot

A strong cheese like parmesan needs to be paired with a punchy pickle. Beetroot – the world’s new favourite superfood – helps to improve your digestion,
so you’ll squeeze every gram of goodness out of your after-tea treat.

Swiss cheese with hot tomato and chilli

One slice of Swiss packs a sizeable 8g of protein. The vitamin C in the tomato helps you suck up the other nutrients in the cheese, to level out any blood sugar spikes. The chilli raises your calories burnt, obvs.

Goat’s cheese with cranberry

Goat’s cheese has half the calories 
and half the fat of cheese made from cow’s milk. Top yours with cranberry sauce for a shot of polyphenols, which a Texas University study found limits weight gain. That’s good, whichever way you slice it.

Mustard seeds

Slathering yellow paste over your hotdog won’t absolve you of your calorific sins, but it’ll certainly do more good than harm. Oxford Polytechnic Institute research has found the thermogenic properties of mustard seeds boost your metabolism by 25% and can help you cut 45 calories from every meal. Mix seeds with white wine vinegar, leave for three days and blend with sugar and salt for a homemade wholegrain mustard that packs a punch.

Cayenne Pepper

Feeling guilty after a gut-busting burrito at lunch? Don’t. The cayenne pepper in Mexican food is packed with an ingredient called capsaicin, which stimulates your central nervous system to heat your body and melt fat, according to the Journal of Obesity. Knock-up a bowl of our protein-packed chilli after your next workout for a meal that cuts fats while building muscle.

Turmeric

A Friday night curry may taste like a cheat meal, but be liberal with the turmeric and you needn’t stick to salad for the rest of the weekend. Tufts University researchers found the curcumin contained in a sprinkle of turmeric restricts blood flow to fat cells, stunting their growth. Wash it down with on ofMH’s favourite health-boosting beers for an end of the week blow out, guilt free.

Cinnamon

There are more ways to sweeten your pud than piling on sugar – and pounds around your middle. Cinnamon balances your blood sugar, lowers insulin levels and thus reduces the amount of fat your body stores after each meal. Can’t wait until dessert? Give MH’s mid-afternoon apple and cinnamon yoghurt a try to tide you over between meals.

You’ve probably heard a fitness guru declare, with biblical certainty, that “abs are made in the kitchen.”

It’s one of the more absurd clichés. The guys you see in Men’s Health, or in supplement ads, or posing down in a bodybuilding contest, built those bodies in the weight room, and then employed superhuman discipline tostay out of the kitchen while dieting down to photo-ready shape. But there’s one more part of their program, and it involves something the average meathead doesn’t like to think about: cardio. We know anecdotally that bodybuilders do a lot of it. But is it absolutely necessary?

“I think it is,” says Christian Finn of muscleevo.net, a veteran fitness expert who’s trained himself and others to get ultra lean. But it also depends on how low you need to go. “You can get ‘looking good on the beach’ lean without any cardio,” he says. “And there are folks with fast metabolisms who can get ‘abs visible from across the room’ lean without cardio. But for most people most of the time, some form is going to be necessary.”

(Related: How much fat is covering your abs - and how to get rid of it)

That brings us to the more pressing questions: how much cardio, and what kinds?

Cardio and Low Body Fat

In a recently published case study of a natural bodybuilder, the authors reported that he did five 40-minute cardio sessions a week in the final month of his contest prep. He did well: In 14 weeks, he cut his body fat in half (from 14 to 7.2 per cent) and finished seventh out of 19 entrants. But he also lost 11 pounds of muscle, which was 43 percent of his total weight loss, and higher than expected. The researchers wondered if excessive cardio created too big a calorie deficit, noting that the less body fat you have, the less there is to lose.

Another possibility is one that a lot of cardio-averse lifters worry about: endurance exercise will interfere with their ability to increase or at least maintain their strength and muscle mass. A recent study in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitnessoffers two reasons for concern:

- Strength and endurance exercise develop different fibers in different ways, only one of which will look impressive on the beach.
Both types of exercise drain glycogen from muscles, potentially leaving a lifter with limited fuel for training when he’s simultaneously cutting calories.

- You won’t be surprised to learn that the interference effect is most pronounced in the muscles you force to do double duty. Running especially has been shown to affect strength and size in your lower body, due to the fact that running induces more muscle damage. Walking and cycling are safer choices.

Which brings us to intensity. We know high-intensity interval training—HIIT—causes less interference with strength training. But that’s because it’s so similar to strength training, which, as Finn points out, “is itself a form of intense intermittent exercise,” if you’re doing it right. Intense exercise requires recovery. Two forms of intense exercise only increase that requirement, especially when you’re also dieting down to reach single-digit body fat. “It can often lead to you feeling burned out, tired, and irritable,” Finn says.

(Related: MH's five best HIIT workouts ever)

That’s why cardio exercise, for lifters, is a lot like the 2016 presidential election. You have to decide which is the lesser of two unattractive choices. But unlike the election, one of those cardio options—low-intensity, steady state walking or cycling—is clearly better than the other. “Three to five hours of lower-intensity cardio, spread across four to five weekly sessions, is usually enough to get the job done,” Finn says. But if you can do less and still get the results you want, you should.

Now we get to perhaps the biggest irony of physique training: Those abs you see on the leanest guys may have been started in the gym. They may have been enhanced in the kitchen, mostly by staying out of it. But they were finished on the treadmill. Which could be the least motivational cliché of all time.

Lou Schuler is an award-winning journalist and contributing editor toMen’s Health. Check out his new book Strong: Nine Workout Programs for Women to Burn Fat, Boost Metabolism, and Build Strength for Life, with coauthor Alwyn Cosgrove.

Let’s get the obvious reason you overeat out of the way: food tastes really good. And some of it tastes really, really good. The truth, though, is that everyone likes food, yet some people struggle to find their stopping point more than others. We asked Men’s Health Nutrition Adviser Michael Roussell to help you understand why. “Being aware of the reasons you might overeat can help you identify the behaviours that are holding you back from the results you want,” says Roussell. Use his advice so that you can fill up – without filling out.

1. You Use Food as a Reward (Too Often)

“Food is more than just calories,” says Roussell. “It’s part of your culture and your experiences, and it’s also a great reward.” And that’s all good. But it’s easy to make rewarding yourself with food a regular habit, rather than a special event.

Ever had a hard day at work and said, “I deserve a glass of wine”—and then proceed to drink the whole bottle? Ever done that more than once in a week?

“You need to be realistic about the caloric cost of using food as a frequent reward,” says Roussell. Start noting all the places you allow high-calorie meals or binge-drinking to creep in because you “deserve it.” If it’s once a day, or even once every two or three days, you’ve identified a key area where you need to adjust your mindset.

2. You Frequently Say, ‘What the Hell!’

See if this sounds familiar. You eat a slice of pizza for a snack, and immediately grab another. You hesitate, but then think, ‘What the hell, I’ve already blown my diet. I might as well eat the whole thing!’ (Researchers literally call this the “what the hell effect.”)

Try to keep a logical perspective: having an extra piece or two of pizza isn’t a big deal in the grand scheme of your diet. “You can just eat a little less later in the day, or adjust your diet a little tomorrow,” says Roussell. “Just remember that there’s a big difference between eating 300 extra calories of pizza versus 1,000 or more.” (Keep track of exactly what you eat and get daily protein, fat and carbs targets that will help you reach your goals with the Men's Health Personal Trainer tool.)

3. You’re Too Tough on Yourself

“The worst things you can do are beat yourself up when you eat junk food, or feel bad if the scale isn’t moving,” says Roussell. “Shame can drastically damage your weight loss efforts.”

For example, in one study, University of Toronto researchers rigged scales to make dieters think they had gained five pounds even though the participants had actually lost weight. Those who felt greater shame about their weight gain subsequently ate more ice cream than those who weren't as bothered by their results. Wake Forest University scientists observed similar findings.

The bottom line: “If you eat too much of a food that you really didn’t want to eat, don’t beat yourself up,” says Roussell. “Vow to do better the next time and move on.”

4. You're Distracted

How often do you just eat—without watching TV, browsing Facebook, or working at your desk?

“Multitasking lessens your body’s ability to sense the amount of food you are eating and thus how full it should make you,” says Roussell. “In fact, studies show that eating while you watch a screen of any kind leads to consuming more food and a reduced ability to remember how much you ate.”

Roussell’s advice: engage in eating as its own activity, and be mindful of what you’re putting in your mouth. Scientists have found that those who could recall exactly what they ate for lunch downed 30 percent less than those who couldn’t. The scientists say that remembering recent eating might enhance awareness of how satiating the food was, which then has an effect on subsequent consumption.

Related: 5 Of The Best Snacks For Weight Loss

5. You’re Really Tired

Lack of sleep and the ensuing fatigue has major implications on your ability to control overeating. Read: being tired saps your willpower.

A 2013 study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that not getting enough sleep can cause people to eat up to 5 percent more calories per day—primarily after dinner. Fatigue also increases stress, another driver of willpower depletion.

Focus on getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night to help strengthen your dietary resolve and curb overeating.

And for best results, try to keep a consistent sleep schedule, so that you aren’t as inclined to oversleep on the weekends. A recent Australian study found that people who sleep later than normal on Saturday and Sunday have greater levels of fatigue on Monday and Tuesday than those who rise at their regular time. 

Once the preserve of trend-aware sisters and ladies who lunge, green juices have cemented their place in the mainstream with an entire industry built on the promise of liquid panacea. And while it’s true that you can get a bunch of your RDA’s from juice, it takes more than popping a bottle or two to rack them up – and a juice-centric diet is not something MH prescribes.

Though cold-pressing preserves more nutrients than other juicing methods, it still removes the all-important fibre, which you require in order to put a cap on blood-sugar spikes (the bit you should be worried about). Fibre is what stops your liver from turning that into fat, and where there is fruit there will always be sugar.

However, you can soften the comedown by combining your drink with low-GI, high-protein foods to slow digestion, says Oliver Barnett of the London Clinic of Nutrition. A chaser of raw nuts, hard-boiled eggs or cheese will take the heat off your liver. Alternatively, opting for flaxseeds as an extra ingredient when you’re at the juice bar will work too. When it comes to juicing, eating is most definitely not cheating.

Getting your nutrition right can make or break a training plan. Follow these five tips and use the Men's Health supplements package to keep yours on track.

Mornings can be an arduous task. The temptation to have that extra five minutes under the covers and skip breakfast can leave you running out the door, tie skewiff and laces undone. Calories burned? About 50. It's a start. Or so you thought. According to new research by the University of Bath, skipping breakfast may not be the beginning to your V-shape body after all.

The study, focusing on energy balance, examined the effect of daily breakfastcompared to morning fasting and found that those who ate around 700 calories before 11am experienced better blood sugar control than those who skipped their morning Muesli. It also found that the breakfast-savvy few were more likely to expend more energy - burning around 442 kcals having eaten in the morning, which is a solid 30 minutes on the treadmill.

So instead of burying your head under the duvet to delay the inevitable, or staving off those pangs of hunger that strike halfway through your commute and carbing up at lunch, stock up in the morning to shift those unwanted pounds and satisfy your stomach. 

We know. Following a strict body weight loss plan is difficult. But what if we said you could strip the blubber with minimal exercise, cost and sacrifices to your diet? And that all these methods are backed up by peer-reviewed studies? That’s right, cancel your gruelling spin class and ditch that lump of kale: these are the shortcuts to slim you’re going to enjoy.

How to cheat your: diet

They say that you need to eat less to lose weight. They’re wrong. Simply add the foods below to your shopping basket to see the pounds fall off.

1. Chillies

This hot food staple is one of the fastest foods to burn off your blubber. Why? A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition showed that when compared to a placebo, capsaicin—the active ingredient in cayenne pepper—increases fat burning. It’s your guilt-free excuse for a curry night.

(Related: The ultimate guide to chillies)

2. Green tea

Swap your regular cuppa for a green brew won’t just change your tea break, but your body fat score too. How? The American Journal of Clinical Nutritionfound the catechins in green tea boost metabolism and increase your calorie burn by up to 4%. Say hello to your most sophisticated weight loss supp yet.

(Related: The 6 surprising health benefits of green tea)

3. Milk

Looks like the white stuff is also the right stuff. According to research published in Cell Metabolism, milk contains a compound called nicotinamide riboside, which increases the rate at which your body burns flab.

And that’s not all: because of its high protein content, chugging down a glass of semi-skimmed after your workout will grow your muscles up to 40% (yes, 40!) more than if you didn’t, according to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

4. Apples

One a day keeps the fat away, according to scientists at Pennsylvania State University. How? Due to its high fibre content, snacking on an apple 15 minutes before a meal consume 200 fewer calories. And no, downing a Bulmer’s before dinner won’t work as well.

(Related: The superfoods you need to lose weight in 2016)

5. Gum

Don’t worry, taking up this habit won’t leave you with Alex Ferguson’s physique – if you opt for sugar-free gum. University of Rhode Islandresearchers have found that chewing by itself reduces the amount you eat and speeds up your metabolism.

Need another reason? A study published in the journal Appetite found that working gum around your mouth will make you consume 36 fewer calories each time you snack because your appetite had been sated. Now that’s something to chew over.

(Related: How chewing gum will burst your stress bubble)

6.Water (before a meal)

That’s right, downing two glasses of plain old H20 before your dinner is enough to burn 15 pounds over 12 weeks. How? According to scientists at Virginia Tech University, zero-calorie water can make you partially full, meaning you’ll eat less grub during your meal.

Plus, downing a cold pint of the clear stuff (water, not vodka) after every meal is enough to raise your metabolism by 30% for 40mins, according to theJournal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. That’s a lot of burning for little effort.

(Related: How much water should I drink during a workout?)

7. Protein

If you want to lose weight then you’ve got to move out the whey, right? Wrong.The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that meal replacement andhigh protein shakes are a vital part of a weight loss plan. Don’t hold back.

Eat more, burn more. At least when it comes to breakfast, anyway. According to research from the University of Bath, eat 700 calories before 11am and you’ll have better blood sugar levels than those who skipped the most important meal of the day. It’s the best excuse you’ll have of sticking with a morning fry-up and avoiding a costly Starbucks lunch.

(Related: The 14 best breakfast foods on the planet)

8. Bacon

And they say you can’t eat like a pig and slim down. Scientists at Kyoto University found bacon is a great source of the hormone coenzyme Q1, which spikes up your metabolism when combined with a brisk walk. And here’s the best bit: the study showed eating six rashers of bacon an hour before your stroll to the office will double the fat burn. There’s no need to ration your rashers.

(Related: 6 reasons why you should eat more bacon and sausages)

9. Spinach

It might not build you like Popeye overnight, but add a bit of the green stuff on the side of your plate if you want to slim down - fast. It’s thanks to spinach’s ecdysteroids, natural compounds found in the veg that increase the levels of protein adiponectin, which makes fat cells more sensitive to insulin, and breaks down fat. It’s really that easy.

How to cheat your: training

Sure, exercising will speed up your weight loss, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take shortcuts there too. Here’s the ones you need to know about.

10. Try HIIT instead of cardio

Want to blow away you belly without logging months of mind-numbing hours on the treadmill? There is another way. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)will kickstart your metabolism like no other workout, burning over twice the calories as a lighter and longer session, according to a study from Southern Illinois University. And the total amount of time you need to dedicate to HIIT: 20 minutes. It really is the least time exercising for the biggest results.

(Related: The beginner’s guide to HIIT)

Not sure where to start? Try this simple kettlebell circuit used by Joel Edgerton:

Kettlebell snatch

-Hold the bell in your right hand, swing it back between your legs.

-Squeeze your glutes to drive it forward.

-At eye level, punch up so as not to smack your forearm.

-Do 10 reps (5 each side).

Overhead swing

- Maintaining your stance, grab the bell with both hands.

- Swing it between your legs, but snap your hips hard so bell ends up level to your head.

-Do 10 reps

Burpee

-Put the bell to one side and squat to place your hands on the floor.

-Kick your legs back and perform a press-up.

-Jump your legs back in and stand up.

-That’s one rep. Three more rounds and you’re done.

11. Listen to music

Want to instantly burn more blubber in your workout? Research conducted at Brunel University found listening to your favourite tracks will increase your endurance by a massive 15%. And if you really want to turn your weight loss up to 11 then try the Men’s Health Workout album with the heavy bass that Social Psychological and Personality Science found increases your sense of personal power to help you get the most out of the gym.

(Related: What type of music will banish work stress?)

12. Walk or cycle to work

Avoiding the gym at all costs doesn’t mean you can’t shed the pounds. Simply swap your normal boring commute for a short cycle and you’ll keep the calories burning long after you step into the office, according to researchers at Loughborough University.

Don’t want to fork out for a new set of wheels? Just avoid the car and you’ll still speed away to your blubber. Why? Research published in Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health found that you can still lose weight by opting for public transport over your morning drive. 

(Related: Lose weight the easy way with this simple cycle workout)

13. Workout at home

Gym memberships are expensive. Home workouts are free. You do the math(s). Need more persuading? Bodyweight workouts are the perfect way to burn the calories as you’re always setting the correct weight: yourself. It’s no wonder it made to our list of 2016’s top fitness trends.

(Related: Burn fat fast with this 20 second circuits)

Just starting out? Try this simple circuit (with each exercise lasting just 45 seconds) three times over:

Staggered press-ups

-Get into a press-up position with your hands staggered, so your right is further forward then the left.

-Lower your body until your chest is an inch from the ground then drive up explosively.

-Pull your hands off the floor and switch positions so your left leads, then repeat.

Pike press-up

-Get into a press-up position with your hands wider than shoulder width apart.

-Bend at the waist and lift your heels off the floor, keeping your back straight, so your body forms an upside down V-shape.

-Bend at your elbows to lower your head towards the floor.

-Push back explosively to the start position.

Rocket jump

-Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart with your arms by your side.

-Squat down halfway and jump as high as you can.

-Land softly and use the momentum to power into your next rep.

Lateral bound

-Start in a half squat position.

-Jump off your outward facing leg as far as possible before landing.

-Immediately return to the other side.

14. Exercise earlier in the day

Can’t be bothered training 5 days a week? Exercise early in the morning and you can cut out one of your sessions says a study published British Journal of Nutrition. The Reason? A bodyweight circuit before breakfast blasts away 20% more fat than a session at lunch. That leaves you the rest of the day to gloat about your results.

How to cheat your: habits

15. Sleep

Supposed to make that early gym class, but suffered a sleepless night? Give yourself a lie in. As research published in the International Journal of Obesityshows, getting eight hours shuteye will reduce your stress levels and double your chances of slimming down. It really is your dream weight loss method.

(Related: The expert guide to getting better shuteye)

16. Fidget

Colleagues annoyed by your constant posture changing and leg waggling? Just tell them you’re burning the calories. How? A study from the University of Leeds showed that those who fidgeted more often weighed less than those who didn't. Bottom line: reposition your chair all you want.

17. Play video games

Want to instantly crush your cravings by 24%? Load up FIFA instead of Netflix, says research published by the Plymouth University. Why? Spending time bossing virtual 40-yard free kicks is enough to distract your mind food, meaning you’ll eat less. Game on.

(Related: 7 reasons your should play more computer games)

18. Turn the lights off

Get slim at the flick of a switch. No, really. Research in the Journal of Biological Rhythms found sleeping in a blacked out room can speed up your metabolism while also ensuring you catch better Zs. You don’t even need to be awake to drop the pounds.

19. Escape your work chair

Hate being chained to your chair eight hours a day? Bug HR to get a stand-up desk and not only will you be able to casually see what your colleagues are up to, you could easily fight off obesity if you stand for a total of just an hour a day, according to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Break up your day and lose weight: it’s a win-win.

The fitness industry is a crazy business, especially when it comes to abs. For example, if you want to reveal your six-pack, you generally have two product choices.

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1. The too-easy-to-work method.
You know this better as "5-minute abs!" or some such hype. But if this approach were really effective, even Chris Christie would have a washboard.

2. The so-hard-it-has-to-work method.
Think 60 to 90 minutes of exercise, 6 days a week. Now if you have the time and energy for this kind of regimen, we commend you. But plenty of people are missing one or the other. And that's just reality, not a cop-out.

So we wondered: Could there be an ab-sculpting program that actually works and is doable for most people? For the answer, we turned to Mike Wunsch, C.S.C.S., and Craig Rasmussen, C.S.C.S., creators of Men's Health's newest fat-loss plan, 24-Hour Abs! The answer: "Absolutely," says Wunsch, who teams up with Rasmussen to design the workout programs at Results Fitness in Santa Clarita, California. "That's exactly how we make our living."

The plank strengthens the dozens of muscles between your shoulders and hips.

But if you jack your feet in and out as you do it, the plank suddenly becomes so much more than just a core builder.

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The quick movement of your feet provides a great dynamic stability challenge that makes your abs scream, and ramps up your heart and metabolic rate.

And you can make it even more difficult by changing up your arm positioning. This creates an unbalanced foundation, so you have to work harder to perform the same exercise.

Put it all together using the plank jack complex below. Do each of the following four plank variations for 15 seconds each without resting. Once you’ve completed the fourth exercise, rest one minute. That’s one round. Perform up to five total rounds.

In life, each of us tends to move at our own pace. Some of us walk, talk, and eat faster or slower than others.

Research tells us that different speeds come with different costs and benefits. Walking faster, for example, burns more calories than walking slowly. Those who talk faster are more persuasive. And those who eat fast tend to eat more.

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So someone struggling to lose weight might be advised to eat slower and walk faster, and to beware of fast-talking salesmen trying to push the latest supplement miracle. 

It’s no surprise that in the gym, we also lift at different speeds. The open 

What you scarf post-workout matters for building and repairing muscle. And while scientists have long known that protein should be a key component of whatever you consume to get the job done, two new studies in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reveal one reason whywhey protein stands above all others: It’s the leucine.

“Whey is a high-quality milk protein that’s a rich source of the essential amino acid leucine,” says Stefan Pasiakos, Ph.D., a physiologist with the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine. And consuming lots of leucine leads to greater muscle protein synthesis—the intricate process that helps promote the remodeling, repair, and muscle growth that occurs after exercise, the study explains.

More from MensHealth.com: The Truth About Protein

In Pasiakos’ study, military members rode stationary bikes for 60 minutes at a moderate intensity on two separate occasions. Both times they chugged a beverage with equal amounts of protein, but one drink contained 1.9 grams of leucine, while the other packed 3.5 grams. (For reference: 10 grams of regular whey protein contains about 1 gram of leucine.) Researchers found protein synthesis was 33 percent higher after the larger leucine dose. “Leucine can help trigger complex signaling networks within muscles that turn on muscle protein synthesis,” Pasiakos says.

Meanwhile, the second American Journal of Clinical Nutrition study found that consuming 25 grams of whey protein that contained 3.5 grams of leucine after a resistance training workout led to higher blood concentrations of amino acids, including leucine, than when participants downed smaller repeat doses of whey meant to mimic another type of protein called casein. The reason? Whey is digested quickly, and makes essential amino acids available sooner—leading to a greater muscle protein synthesis response, Pasiakos says.

Doing 100 reps of any exercise isn’t easy.

Doing 100 reps of burpee-pullups as fast as possible may be one of the hardest challenges you’ll ever perform at the gym. It works every muscle in your body and leaves you feeling like your heart and lungs are going to explode.

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Related: THE 21-DAY METASHRED—30-Minute Cutting-Edge Workouts That Torch Fat Fast. One Guy Lost 25 Pounds in Just 6 Weeks!

Here’s how to do it: Stand in front of a pullup bar. Do a burpee, and then immediately jump up into a pullup. When your feet hit the floor, drop into a burpee again.

As pirates on the TV series Black Sails, actors Tom Hopper (above), Toby Stephens, and Luke Arnold have to look like men who spend all day heaving cannonballs, pulling sails, and climbing ropes. 

In other words, utterly shredded. 

Strength coach James White, the toughest trainer in South Africa, put them through a grueling boot camp to help them build brawn and cut fat—in just eight weeks. 

The excess of abs in the photo above tells you everything you need to know about the effectiveness of White’s program, which is detailed in the April issue of Men’s Health.

After all, TV pirates aren’t the only ones who need to look good with their shirts off. Click to find out what it takes to get into the best shape of your life.