Long time Burn the Fat Inner Circle member Scott DeBoer not only achieved an impressive fat loss transformation in only 12 weeks, he reported major gains in lean body mass while doing body weight resistance training. Scott has completed more than one Burn the Fat Challenge, placing in the top three in the last event. He also won the health transformation award.
Scott’s experience led him to appreciate the power of being on a team and also to develop an 11-point strategy list that works for him and could work for you too. By applying his 11-point formula, he was able to cut 5 inches off his waist, build muscle, and see significant improvements in his health markers.
To learn more about Scott’s transformation, you can read about it in his own words in his Burn the Fat Challenge essay below…
Introduction
I’ve been a member of Burn the Fat Inner Circle on and off and on since 2010, the first year there was a summer challenge. I didn’t finish that first challenge I entered way back then.
I did a few more challenges over the years since, but after a couple of rough years, I hit the worst shape of my life in 2022. Then I entered the 2023 Burn the Fat New Year Challenge.
For full transparency, of the 17 pounds I lost in last year’s New Year’s challenge, I kept only 9 pounds of it off. That means I sadly gained back 8 pounds. This wasn’t as bad as gaining back all of the weight, plus some extra, like I have in the past, it was improvement, but wasn’t an ideal outcome.
I’m now more determined than ever to not allow that kind of regain to happen again. My goal is to continue to maintain and gradually improve. In fact, one of my new goals now is to earn the consistency award in future challenges.
I was tracking body fat using my scale, which I’ve come to realize is not that accurate. Therefore, I also (unofficially) computed body fat using weight and waist measurements, which shows a much more realistic picture. If I just relied on the scale, it shows I only lost 1.8% body fat.
However, using the weight and waist measurement formula, the stats said I lost 20 pounds of fat with only a net loss of 8 pounds in total body weight. That means there was a simultaneous increase in lean body mass, which offset the scale weight. (Body recomposition – the “holy grail”).
This test based on waist circumference also said my body fat percentage dropped 7.5%. And I lost 5 inches from my waist. I don’t know how much more accurate this test was, but looking at the inches loss and photos, I plan to abandon using the scale to measure body fat. I stuck with the scale method because using only one method was part of the challenge rules.
The Burn the Fat Challenge
The biggest obstacle I had this challenge was injuries. I’ve never been so injury plagued in my entire life, and yet I still finished this time. Shortly after the challenge began, I helped my son move, and ended up injuring both my knee and back falling off a U-Haul. I then cut my heel open on an office chair (freak accident) and couldn’t wear a shoe for a week. These injuries really hit me mentally as well as physically.
I can honestly say that I would have dropped from the challenge if it weren’t for my being on a Team (Team Elvis). It’s one thing to let myself down, but knowing I had committed to a team made all the difference. I won’t do another challenge without that accountability, and it’s one of the things that makes the Burn the Fat Inner Circle and the Burn the Fat Challenge so special and powerful.
The other thing the injuries forced me to do was to focus primarily on the upper body, and pay even closer attention to my nutrition. If you get injured, you have to focus on what you can do not on what you can’t.
Because of my back and joint issues, exercise has been much harder lately. Like the last challenge, I relied primarily on body weight exercises, progressing to some resistance band exercises for my biceps and shoulders.
I tapped into the resources at Burn the Fat Inner Circle including the exercise index and the Bodyweight Muscle Program. I custom-tailored the program as necessary and was very pleased with the results. You can definitely gain muscle with body weight resistance.
When I first started the challenge, I could only do 8 push-ups, but at the end of the challenge I was doing 40 consecutive push-ups.
I also invested in a rowing machine, and I used that primarily for my cardio, because I felt it was easier on my joints (than high impact cardio). My stamina has increased, and I can jog up my stairs without even elevating my heart rate much.
My resting heart rate has dropped from the upper 80’s to the low 70’s. My blood pressure dropped below 120/80 for the first time in years.
Learning from the Past
After last year’s challenge, I said the one thing that I would do differently for the next challenge was join a team. There’s something about being accountable to others and knowing there are others supporting you, checking in on you, motivating you that makes a big difference, and to me is perhaps the most valuable thing about the Inner Circle (besides all the workout and nutrition resources). As I mentioned earlier, being on a team made the difference between dropping from the challenge and seeing it through to the end.
For me, the biggest remaining challenge is the “maintaining” of my progress. I did maintain half my weight loss last time which is better than regaining it all. But moving forward, I will be focusing much more on the “in-between the challenges” periods, because that’s where I seem to go astray. Having a challenge and doing it with a team has kept me on track. Now I need to stay on track all year round.
I’m also looking to keep things sustainable, which means not going overboard with training or overly strict dieting, which I’ve tended to do in the past.
Finally, before and after each challenge, I always go back and look at my previous challenge essays, review what worked for me and put it into a list. I make revisions based on additional knowledge I’ve gained and lessons I learned.
Here’s my current 11-point list of body transformation advice:
1. Read Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle (and continually refer to it for advice and motivation).
2. Set S.M.A.R.T. goals and continually revisit / re-read your goals.
3. Nutrition matters: quality (garbage in = garbage out), quantity (calories), and macros (I averaged a 40-40-20 carb/protein/fat ratio).
4. Get moving: cardio AND strength training, not just one or the other, and make it fun to keep it sustainable.
5. Find a good strength training program and stick to it consistently. This has become more important as I age. I used the Bodyweight Muscle program for the last challenge and plan to use TNB Turbo for the next one.
6.Don’t let injuries side-track you. Find a way to work through/around them. Don’t let them become an excuse. I saw examples in the Burn the Fat Inner Circle of people recovering from hip and/or knee surgeries still participating. Talk about inspiring. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
7. Get plenty of rest, and allow for recovery. Learn to read your body.
8. Stay hydrated.
9. Keep your numbers in context (weight, body fat tests, etc.). They tell just part of the story.
10. Hold yourself accountable, and find a support system (the Burn the Fat Inner Circle is a great place to do that). I wouldn’t have finished this challenge without the Inner Circle and my Team!
11. Forgive yourself and love yourself. You can choose to be your biggest supporter or your worst enemy.
~Scott
The Next Burn The Fat Feed The Muscle Body Transformation Challenge Starts On May 18th, 2024. See the contest calendar here. Full details will be posted online and announced to email subscribers by May 17th.
If you’re a Burn the Fat Inner Circle member and already have a username and password and would like to join a team for the next body transformation challenge, like Scott did, Click here
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