In a stand off between Taylor Swift and Kanye West, fighting fat could well rival it on the ‘impossible to win’ battlefield.

Whether you already know you’re going to blow it with canapés and cocktails at Christmas or you’ve been meaning to shift that tummy for quite some time, losing weight, and then keeping it off is hard.

A new study from medical journal The Lancet has found obesity rates are climbing, Australia’s now on par with America – a quarter of children and 63 per cent of adults are classified as overweight.

We’ve rounded up Sydney’s top PT’s to share their fat torching tips.

1. Start from the inside out

“Aim for a wholefood diet – think food products that don’t come with an ingredient label because they are unmistakeable (i.e. broccoli looks like broccoli!),” says Catharine Rose of Physicore. “If you do go for labelled food label, get wise about marketing tricks – sugar is commonly disguised under a host of different names (e.g. corn syrup) and ‘gluten-free’ biscuits often sound healthy and guilt-free but are usually highly processed with extra sugar or trans fats to make it taste better.”

2. Up your aerobic ante

“While high intensity workouts are shown to be effective for weight loss, you get more out of your training if there is an aerobic capacity to support your efforts and allow you to go longer and recover quicker between sessions,” says Matt Reid of Joe’s Basecamp.

3. Create a circuit routine

“Circuits are quick and easy to set up. Combine cardio machines, free weights and body weight exercises and keep the rest time between exercises to no longer than 15-20 seconds. Aim for six to seven stations and a one-minute rest in between rounds then repeat 3-4 times,” Kieran Hall of UFC Gym Sydney.

4. Quit counting kilojoules

“You don’t want to dive straight into a low kilojoule diet or consistently eat less than the normal required amount you need per day (6720 kilojoules for men and 5040 kilojoules for women),” says Reagan Tan of Third Space Health. “Your hormones react fairly quickly to a diet. We all need a minimum amount per day to get all the vitamins and minerals necessary to function.”

5. Tune into how you feel

“Do you feel tummy hungry or are you just craving something in your head? Psychologically, cravings come about to satisfy emotional needs so while carbs and sugar increase serotonin levels temporarily, it will wear off,” says Tan. “Physical cravings in contrast come from a need for energy. Drink some water (our brain can’t tell between hunger and thirst), hold off for 20 minutes and master the art of distraction, then if need be have a healthy snack and wait and see if you still need more food or if the craving is gone.”

6. Book a DEXA scan

“It measures your body composition: fat, muscle and bone density, and is a quick and accurate method for calculating your body composition (muscle to fat percentage). Weight loss on normal scales doesn’t necessarily mean fat loss. Having a DEXA scan every few months takes the guesswork out of what’s happening and is therefore an excellent way to track your progress,” says Cat Rose from Physicore.

7. Don’t punish yourself

“Food is there to nourish and be enjoyed – make 80 per cent of the food you eat healthy and relax a little with your remaining 20 per cent otherwise you’ll feel deprived and more tempted to overindulge. Note, this is not a green light to eat a dozen donuts!” says Donna Adams of The Barre Studio. “Always have healthy treats on hand – a small container of almonds, bananas or if you have a sweet tooth whip up and freeze some bliss balls.”

8.Make every session count

“Plateau happens when the body isn’t challenged enough to be forced to change. Challenge yourself constantly by picking up heavier weights on your strength days, running faster during intervals, going longer on endurance runs or pumping out some extra reps on a timed circuit,” says Veronica Wallington of the P.E. DEPT. “By making the variables different your body will constantly be trying to catch up and respond to what is being thrown it’s way.”

9. Go for groups of exercises

“There is no one magic exercise that makes you lose weight. The key is to choose a group of exercises that you can push your boost metabolic rate so you tap into fat stores quicker,” says Wallington. “Add sprint intervals to a run or spice up your gym routine with strength. I love throwing in either chest to floor burpees or kettlebell swings as both moves use the full body, blast your core and are highly metabolic.”

10. Forget the fat focus

“There are so many other goals you can set like performance and strength building, don’t focus solely on weight loss as it takes time. Having some other points to focus on makes the journey more enjoyable and keeps your head in the game,” says Natalie Carter of New Outlook PT.

The awesome person who wrote this...

Sam Bailey

Sam Bailey is a Sydney-based journalist whose passion for health and fitness and has seen her write across health titles including Womens Fitness, Womens Health, Body + Soul and Daily Mail Australia. In her down time you can find her sipping green smoothies, attempting complex yoga poses and soaking up vitamin D on Bondi beach.