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Personal training helps stop making excuses

You know what to eat and do but you are not happy with your fitness level

Most of our clients are beginner’s in fitness when they start with us but we have a good number of clients who have been pursuing fitness for years, even decades and are not happy with their results.

They come in and when we talk to them, it is pretty evident that they have been reading up, have been in the trenches. Still when you look at them or their performance it does not seem to measure up to their knowledge.

So what is the problem?

In many cases it is accountability. What are you accountable to, who are you accountable to? When we have people write down when they train and what they eat, it  becomes obvious quickly that most people lack consistency. They train alright but they are busy at work and they miss a training session here and there. Missing one training session = not a big deal but missing one of 3 a week = 33% of your training in a month. You won’t be successful this way. With nutrition it is the same way. If you have a cheat meal you will still rock your goals but if you have whole cheat days or a cheat meal each day [which basically comes down to 2 whole cheat days counting breakfast, lunch and dinner] you are not going to make it.

What is your What?

It is much easier to stay on target if you are working towards something you really desire, and sadly weight loss is often not enough.

It might be: you wanting to prove to yourself that you are not the weak person that you were in high school or college, your first race, an active vacation with heavy duty hiking, you name it, the sky is the limit. In a few cases it can be health or fitness but I have seen it primarily work for people who have had a big scare like a doc telling them they are going to die if they keep it up. Even then unless they truly feel bad the chances are high that it won’t stick. They are training away from something, which can work at times. It is better to find something positive to train towards.

Who is your Who?

We train better if we are accountable to someone, at all times. with the good and the bad. It can be a personal trainer, it can be a friend, a family member, a dietitian, it even can be your online social media community. Find the person that is right for you. This person might change over time and you might find other people who can fill that role.

Powerful Combination

A combination of both will have the most impact. You will have most likely the most success If you are working with a person [i.e. personal trainer]  and you are working towards a specific tangible goal at the same time.

 

Have an awesome day,

Michael

Fitness Success with the personal trainers at Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting

Why Behavior Goals Are Better Than….To Accomplish Fitness & Health

Outcome Based Goals

Behavior goals are typically better than outcome based goals. The reasons for that are simple. You can develop new habits and you are mostly in charge of your actions. Outcome based goals especially when it comes to big goals like losing 30 lbs  or gaining 20 lbs of muscle are difficult to time exactly. Behavior goals are much easier to set.

Our fickle bodies mess with our head

Our client’s goals range from losing xx lbs of fat, to gaining xx lbs of muscle mass, to running xx min/mile faster, hit the golf ball xx yards further. We like to use numbers and they are a great goal to accomplish but not optimal goals to strive for.

The reason is that we have minimal control of our body’s reaction to training, hormone levels, stress, etc. Our bodies are individually different and what might work well for one person, will not work well for someone else. Sometimes it takes a little bit longer for your body to adjust while someone else takes to it right away.

That does not make outcome based goals a complete disaster. It is just difficult to put a hard timeline to it. Yes, most people can lose 8 lbs of fat per month and do great, if….everything aligns. They do not have excessive stress levels, they sleep, their hormone levels are within the normal range, etc. You see a lot of things have to fall into place that we cannot directly influence.

Use outcome based goals in a loose fashion and give yourself room to improve. Be a little bit more conservative.

We are not powerless

That does not mean that you are hopelessly victimized by circumstance. Quite the opposite, behavior goals are geared to aligning “the stars” in your favor. I usually recommend not taking up more than one, maximum two habits at a time, unless you truly are a go-getter. You can always add to each new habit after a 1-4 weeks depending on how much time you need to adjust.

Behavior Goals To Ultimate Fat Loss / Fitness Success

  1. Eat until your 80% full (fat loss)
  2. Eat plenty of veggies with every meal
  3. Eat sufficient protein with each meal
  4. Time your starchy carbohydrate intake to after your training session (fat loss)
  5. Sleep > 7 hours/night
  6. Have “me time”.
  7. Work less than 55 hours/week
  8. Accomplish your goals 80-90% of the days during the month

Go set your behavior goals and see an amazing transformation happen. If you would like us to help you, go check us out at Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting. 

Have an awesome day,

Michael

 

Changing Nutrition Is Not Easy For Everyone! – A RANT

This blog is kind of a rant. It is a rant against being self-righteous. We need to pull back because here are some of the things we say to others and most

Habit Changes take time and will include setbacks
Habit Changes take time and will include setbacks

importantly to ourselves:

“You just need to cut down on the portions!”

“You are so lazy, just get up and work out!”

“Just quit drinking soda!”

“Why is that person so overweight?”

To a person with anxiety: “Just relax!”

These are just some of the things we say to ourselves, about others, or to others. Here is a newsflash. Do you really think that they/we don’t know that already? If it was that easy for us to do just that, I am pretty sure we/you/they would have done it already.

Life is more complicated

What comes easy to one of us, might be much more difficult to someone else. Our own personal experiences, fears, addictions, passions, believes enable us in different ways to cope with life. Sometimes food is one of those coping mechanisms. Whenever that is the case [which quite honestly, is quite common] we need to understand that millions of people in the USA have the same problems.

Compensating with food

Sometimes we need time to be alone with ourselves. We are so used to headsets, music, videos, books, anything that drowns out our little inner voice. Sometimes it is important to feel the pain, feelings, etc, that we associate with with wanting to compensate with food.  We need to experience it with compassion knowing that we are not alone with it.

Life does not go in a linear way. It never has and never will.

We need to understand that our coping mechanisms have evolved over decades. If we want to change them it will take love, compassion, hard work and the willingness to fail, just to try it again. We will have road blocks, there will be tough times when we lose a job, a partner or simply when we have a fight, or a bad day at work. We don’t succeed every day all day long, nobody does! It has nothing to do with willpower but with forming a habit. Nobody has enough willpower. We simply form habits which takes time. Time during which we may fail, again and again. Just don’t quit.

My Call To Action

This is my call to action: Whenever you see someone who obviously, or not so openly struggles bring them the benefit of the doubt. You don’t know what that person has going on in their life. If it is you, then call to mind the things that you have had to deal with in your life. Meet yourself with compassion and give yourself a “reset button” after you fail.

Just hit the reset button and restart the computer called “LIFE”. Start again and move on.

We cannot change anything in our past. But we can reshape the future, slowly. It takes time for new habits to form, new ways of life.

Judging is normal

You might think now: “What the heck?” He jus told me to be less judgemental. Well, good luck with it. Just like anything else it is a habit. We have learnt it over decades. You cannot just “not be judgemental” anymore. Just acknowledge when you are doing it, smile and move on, knowing what you are doing and work towards acceptance.

“Japanese: DO”

“Do” in japanese means way, ergo Karate-Do, means the way of Karate. It basically tells you that this is a journey. You won’t just get to the finish line and be able to yell: “Heck, I made it!” It is always work in progress.

Yours in health & fitness,

Michael Anders

Head Trainer Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting

Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting can help reduce your stress level

5-Strategies To Alleviate Stress

The short version

  • Even a few minutes of meditation can help you reduce your stress & anxiety levels
  • Deep breathing activates relaxation in the body
  • Scheduling 7-8 hours of sleep can help normalize your hormone household and stress levels
  • Cardiovascular exercise can have a relaxing effect on the body
  • Mindfulness reduces anxiety and stress.

What is stress?

Stress is normal. We all experience it. It is a physical response to triggers that upset you, unbalance you or threaten you. It is our body’s response to a perceived threat and puts us into the ‘fight or flight’ mode. It prepares us to protect our life.

In today’s world most of the stressors we experience are not of the ‘flight or fight’ category but rather an angry boss, family member, work, traffic, etc. Our bodies cannot differentiate between those different queues and because of the often chronic stress situations we are stuck in we start feeling the negative side effects of prolonged stress exposure.

What you can do to alleviate stress:

The number one goal is to eliminate stressors. If we can clear the air with our family member or boss we have problems with, change our jobs, leave home a little bit earlier etc, we are making good progress.

Sadly, we do not always have that option. At times we are unable to make immediate changes. In that case the following steps might help you reduce your stress level:

  • Meditation, even a few minutes a day can help you with restructuring neuronal pathways and reduce stress and anxiety.
  • Deep Breathing activates our parasympathetic nervous system which is responsible for relaxation, digestion, etc. Try it out! Breathe deeply in through your nose, filling your belly and lungs with air. Then breathe slowly out. Repeat this 3-6 times and you will feel significantly more relaxed.
  •  Sleep: Our society is often proud of the fact that we need little sleep. Little do we know. Sleep is necessary to process what we experience and reset our hormone household. Sleep deprivation is definitely not the way to go. Now everyone has different needs and the older population among us often has trouble sleeping. Make sure to schedule sufficient time, reduce light pollution in the evening hours and get rid of the TV in the bedroom.
  • Cardiovascular exercise can also stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system (after you are done, that is). Try 20-30 min of an easy to moderate walk, jog, etc and see how you feel afterwards.
  • Mindfulness – We are often caught up in the future or the past. Exercises like meditation, tai chi, yoga etc, can help us focus on being more mindful and in the present. You can practice that with almost anything that you are doing.

I am looking forward to helping you! Check out our specials to get started.

Michael

Be Inspired–Be Great!

Last week we talked about the importance of motivation. Today I am going to talk about the importance of being inspired. If you are inspired the motivation is there, it is simply just there. Get inspired by Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting

Webster’s Dictionary puts it as follows: inspire, inspired: 1. To guide or affect by divine influence. 2. To fill with high emotion: exalt. 3. To stimulate to creativity or action.

In our work with our clients we are seeking to inspire, because we know that this is the ultimate success. When we can inspire a client, success comes almost effortlessly. The effort involved might still be a sacrifice but now you have something that you are striving towards, that drives you from deep inside.

Many of our clients have that drive from deep inside. Some just love their game of golf, soccer or tennis; others like running or lifting weights, while others are passionate in general about health and fitness.

If you want to succeed and keep succeeding look deep inside of yourself and find what inspires you. It could even be inspiring others to a healthier lifestyle and wanting to be a good example.

If you are inspired about something your eyes are glowing when you talk about it, you are excited, you might not be able to sleep, you want tell people about it. If you are currently working out but afraid to tell someone that you are doing it, chance is you are not inspired to work out. Look deep and find out, why do you work out. That will create a little flame inside, which can create a fire. A lot of our inspired clients have lit a fire in other clients.

It is important that you find yourself. Don’t be what you think you should be but who you truly want to be.

Be Inspired – 5 Steps to find your Inspiration:

  1. Write down every evening 1-3 events and activities you liked and why you liked it
  2. When you work out take note on what you really enjoy and what you don’t.
  3. Take an hour and write down how you want to be remembered. Create a VISION of you.
  4. Create a Game Plan to put that vision into action.
  5. Review it regularly and make sure it still represents you. We change over time. Maybe you need to adjust it.

Have an inspiring day,

Michael

Lack of Motivation?

That is actually the biggest challenge a trainer faces. Training plans are comparatively easy. I know what the physical goals are and I know what to tell my client to do in order to accomplish it. This is all for naught if you are unmotivated. Correct?Depositphotos_5160906_xs

You would think that people are motivated once they start working with a personal trainer but that is not necessarily true. Many just go through the motions. They do what is right because they think they should not because they want to.

At this point we need to understand what led the person to come to us.

To begin with:

  1. Do you work out because a family member or a friend told you to?
  2. Has an authority told you to start training/losing weight, like a physician?
  3. Are you trying to fulfill a nebulous beauty ideal that society tells you is important?
  4. Do you have a bet going?
  5. The list goes on…

What is the problem with these health or fitness goals?

The problem with these goals is that you often really don’t own them; because they are not yours, they are someone else’s. You are not truly passionate about them. Yes, you might want to lose the weight but maybe not because it is important to you but because you think its what everyone else wants for you. People work out for many different reasons and often don’t get anywhere.

Sure don’t get me wrong the correct nutrition and the proper training are important. Most people do know that veggies are good for you and that bread, pasta, cheeseburgers, and pizza pile on the pounds. So why is it so hard to lose the weight? Eating disorders and food addictions are one part of it but assuming that you don’t suffer from that, why do you have a hard time achieving your goal? Is it lack of will power?

According to research willpower is not the problem.  Willpower seems to be a limited good. If you exert it a lot, eventually you will run out and eat more or stop training.

The real problem seems to be that you don’t own your goals.

Own Your Goals

Some people are super successful, they are driven and they reach their goals in no time. You can even reach your goals if they are, as mentioned above, not entirely your own goals, but often the success is only short term. Within days or weeks people are back to their old habits.

Owning your goals,  what really drives you, what is important to you and not someone else will help you really make the jump.

It will be easier to make decisions that lead down the right path because YOU want it, not a doctor, or a friend, or society or a bet or….

  1. Sit down for 30 min and think of what you really want.
  2. Write down WHY you want it
  3. Review it and walk away from it for an hour
  4. Is it still what you really want? Are the WHY reasons really why you want it?
  5. Make some short term goals that are relatively easily accomplishable. Success breeds more motivation. It can be just making one change in your nutrition, or  work out 2×30 min per week. You name it. It should be doable.
  6. Have success and then take the next step on your journey. Once you have made your first change, add another a week later.  
  7. Taking little steps each day will go a long way.

If you Fail, Fail Forward!

Who do you know has failed in the past? Maybe someone who has smoked and has tried to quit many times. We all fail, all the time. The question though is what we make of it. There is nothing, absolutely nothing you can do about the past and let’s face it your control over the future is rather limited too. So stick to the moment. Reset the button, and start again. If someone laughs at you, laugh back and say: “Well, I got knocked on my butt but I am getting back up and taking charge again. No matter how often I get knocked down, I know what I want and no matter what I will make it!” I have a chocolate addiction. I cannot stop once I started. I was sick yesterday. I was thrown of my routine. I head was stuffy. All day long I watched TV and stuffed my face with chocolate. Today is a new day. I am back on track…for now. That does not mean something will not derail me again but I know that I will get back to it.

An Example

Know what you really want. Like my client Pam, who has been working with me for a long time but it also took her a long time to really, really know how badly she wanted to reach her goals, why she wanted them. and that she could actually do it!

She is all in now and she is kicking butt.

Before when she had a setback it would take her weeks or even months to get back on track. Now it does not even take a day. Her challenge is her nutrition and she is doing great because she owns  her goals now.

I know you can do it. You just have to figure out, why you want to do it, what drives you and nurture it!

If you need help with your goals and passions, give me a call and we support you 100%

Michael

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Rob’s Fitness Success Story

This is Rob Wilder’s story. He has been working with me for about 8 years he has had some extraordinary successes. He is healthier and fitter than he has ever been. Rob Wilder Head

How It Started

He had been training on his own when Rob’s wife Annelle had suggested to her husband that he might be able to improve his training with a personal trainer.

The Setup

Rob, already a fitness aficionado, used to be an avid golfer but had hurt his back in the process. Since then he had started lifting weights regularly, reading up on fitness, strength training, and nutrition and was well versed in the topics by now. After meeting me he agreed that setting him up on a training plan every couple of weeks would be beneficial to optimize his already impressive training regimen.

The Increase

After working together like this for a couple of months Rob decided that more one on one personal training would be beneficial to maximize his results and make sure he was doing the exercises correctly. He started working with me one time a week and slowly increased it over the years. Today we are working together 4 days a week. The training is intense but we keep it fun. Besides having become friends, Rob has accomplished things he never thought possible.

The Challenge

Rob is highly intelligent and he has challenged me as a trainer on more than one occasion. He would come with articles, books, you name it. His understanding of training exceeds far that of the average person and more than once challenged me to read up more about a topic. His dedication to fitness and willingness to try new things, pushing the envelope not only have made him a better athlete, fitter person and overall healthier but it has also made me a better trainer. He has reminded me why I am doing this: my passion to help others be their best.

The Success(es)

The successes that have accompanied Rob’s training are numerous and can be attributed to his willingness to give his best and tenacity. He has lost more than 21 lbs. of body fat since the start, and has done 21 chin ups in a row. Over time our focus has shifted. We started paying more attention to max strength. Big lifts like deadlifts, squats, chin ups with added weight, and bench pressing with few repetitions entered the arena. Just last week he did step ups on a box with 120 lbs. added weight and deadlifted from a low rack position with 300 lbs. That is more than any our clients have ever accomplished and the man is 65 years old!

The Dedication

Rob has a dedication to training and healthy living that is matched by few people. We work year round 4 times a week with each other and when I take a week off to go on vacation you can be sure he works with another of my excellent trainers.

Aside from some minor injuries here and there (pulled muscle, etc.) his training has been injury free and his back that used to bother him is not an issue anymore.

It clearly shows what someone can accomplish if they put their mind to it and when they are passionate about it and all in.

Rob is not just fit for his age, he is fit for any age! He is stronger and has a better endurance than about 95% of the male population in the US. Age is not as much a factor as people like to sometimes think!

 

If you need help with your training or if you like to see what your potential is,  give me a shout. The only difference between average and extraordinary is believing and working for it. Everyone can do it!

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Make a Change! Get Rid of the Negative Things in Your Life

Many of us hang on to “stuff” way too long, days, weeks, months or years after we pretty much know it is not working for us anymore. The reasons are plentiful.

Change At Shape Up Fitness & Wellness ConsultingWe are afraid of change

Change does not come easy to us. We don’t know what really is on the other side. Are we going to get the job, the life, [insert what you want]. Is it really what I want? Do I burn bridges if I make changes. These are just a couple of the thoughts going through some of us. It is okay to be afraid. Everyone is afraid of something, the difference is the following: The person who is not afraid disregards a built in warning system, the person who is afraid but after taking his or her fear into account and takes that leap of faith is brave or courageous. It is not that we are not afraid, we just use the fear as what it is, a warning system Turn down the volume a little, but still incorporate its message into our planning.

We want to make it desperately work

Sometimes we just cannot let go. It is so hard to admit that something is not working for us anymore. We might associate it with having failed. It could not be further from the truth in most cases. We do not control life. The things we are actually in control of are very limited. I have been in relationships too long, held on too long to a training plan that was too difficult for me and many more things. I am guilty of trying to make it work.

There is nothing wrong of putting an effort into making something work, finding a solution to a problem. But we do need to reassess the situation periodically and decide if all sides involved are putting an effort in, or if said efforts are successful. It might be time to move on.

We are afraid to fail

Failure and trying to make something desperately work are often closely related. What if I change and I fail at the new thing? I will be left with nothing! Maybe for some of us that rings a bell.

This probably is one of the biggest ones for me. I am afraid to fail but really underlying of it all is not being worthy enough, being a valuable, lovable member of society. Well, I learned that just to be mainstream is not really who I want to be, or rather who I am. I don’t want to be average, I want to be good, even excel at the things I have a passion for. Like Edison said: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10000 ways that won’t work.” Every successful person in life will be criticized, judged and put down. The person will fail. The difference between that person and perhaps you and I? They get up and do it again, like a child that learns how to walk. It falls, bumps its head, over and over again, but in the end it prevails and gets back up and finally walk. Maybe we need to be more like children and less like adults. Get up and do it again!

We are afraid of the unknown

What is going to happen if we make a sudden change in our life? Is it going to work out exactly as we planned? Am I going to get what I wanted? Or am I getting more than I bargained for? Yeah, we can go to fortune teller but in the end, no one really knows what is going to happen. The big unknown is probably one of the biggest fears for some of us. There are some ways though that can help you ease the change. Make small changes at first, take small steps that are not as frightening. Feel the empowerment of success and how it feeds your desire to do more. In the end you won’t be able to completely eliminate the unknown, but people who actively seek to change their life to the positive seem to have a tendency to get something that is close to what they seek 🙂

It is easier to just go on

Well, that sure is the true for me! Sitting at home in front of the TV instead of going to work out, find a better job, follow your passion, [you name it], is so much easier than investing into the actual doing. The TV is mindnumbing, books or video games can be a great escape. The excuse of being lazy is also great to not admit some of the reasons up and above. This is an excuse I have used at times in my life. I was addicted to video gaming, I gamed for 40 hours a week while being married, having a business. I was addicted to the escape it provided. While gaming I did not have to face the struggles of the business, the financial fears, etc.  After years of doing this though, I became increasingly discontent. I just could not go on any longer, having my life go by me, me as an observer just watching. I finally made a cut. I feel more alive now then I ever have. Life is not easier, but it has been worth the change. I have a successful business, I am the fittest I have ever been, and am the happiest I have ever been, I have surrounded myself with people who love and accept me the way I am.

 

What can you do?

You might have been able to see yourself in one, some, or all of the reasons for not wanting to change. Find the things in your life that hold you back and change them, get rid of the negativity, divorce it! Take small steps, take big steps, it all depends on you and your game plan.

Make a list

  • What is that holds you back! Write the 3 most important things down
  • How would you like your life to be? List 3, highest priority first
  • How would you feel if you had these three things accomplished
  • How do the things that hold you back affect the life you would like to have
  • How can you change the things that hold you back in order to minimize or eliminate their impact on your success?
  • Write down a strategy on how to accomplish your goals!

I hope this has been helpful.

If you need any help with transforming and discovering your best, give me a call!

Michael

Time to say Thank You!

It is time to say thank you, at least for me it is. In Germany Thanksgiving does not really play a role and even here it seems to be controversial with some folks. People mention settlers and Indians and what not.

To me it does not matter. It does not matter what the history of it is but rather what I make of it. To me it is about an opportunity, an opportunity to say thank you to those that are in my life that enrich it with theirs and sometimes seem to make it more difficult. You might think that I am nuts but I am a firm believer in that every person surrounding me has something to teach me. You might think I am wrong and that is okay but it is true for me.

I moved to the US in 2004 with the intention of having my own personal training studio at some point. People back in Germany told me I was crazy and asked me when I would be back. My own dad had asked me when I started studying sports science why I was not studying something that would make me some money eventually and provide me with financial safety. For some time it looked like life proved them right, I had to bring things to the pawn shop to pay for medical bills and it did not look good.

Today I have a personal training studio and 4 awesome employees who bring joy into my life every day. I have friends who support me and believe in me and my vision, who have helped me accomplish what I have achieved so far.

It is easy to say thank you to those that support you and hard to tell thanks to those who don’t but do understand this: You are shaped by those around you, just like you shape others. The person who tells you that you suck or will fail might bolster your willpower and discipline, the person that tells you that what you are doing is not worth it might test you to see how passionate you really are. We cannot change people but we can choose how we react to circumstances and other people.

If you want to lose weight and your spouse keeps bringing bad food into the house, don’t blame her or him, stand firm, be proud of what you want to do because you know your life is your own responsibility. Nobody has to make you happy, support you or do anything for you. They choose to do it just like you choose to take responsibility for your own actions.

  • Nobody is forcing your mouth open and force you to eat what is unhealthy.
  • Nobody forces you to stay up till late then complain the next day at work that you are tired and stressed.
  • Nobody forces you to stay at a job you hate. You can change it, or at least your attitude.
  • Nobody owes you anything if you are an adult but you do have the right to change, to transform your life today.

Also know this:

  • You shape your environment and yourself!
  • Obstacles are made up by your mind. Have you ever seen people accomplish things they should not be able to? Most likely you have and it is because they truly wanted it and believed they could.
  • You are great until you diminish yourself.
  • If you believe you can or believe you cannot, you will always be right!  – Henry Ford

 

Don’t get me wrong, it is difficult for me as well, sometimes. But today I want to say thank you:

  • to you who doubted me,
  • to you who harassed me,
  • to you who belittled me,
  • to you who tried to sabotage me,
  •  to you who supported me,
  • to those that allow me to help them transform their life,
  • to you who loved and still love me,
  • to you who see potential in me,
  • to you who I am allowed to love.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Michael Anders

 

Head Trainer Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting

Relentlessly to Success or Injury?

It does not matter what your passion is. If you run, do martial arts, lift weights, it really does not matter. Some things will get you better and some things, well they will get you first hurt, then X (insert slow, weak, whatever is that you don’t want), consequently you will gain weight and be unhappy on the couch eating chips!

You might think I am kidding, hardly! Look at your history, that of your partner or friends. Now you can avoid that trap quite easily by training smarter not harder. Here is what you have to do!

  1. Vary the volume of your training. Don’t increase your training volume by more than 10% per week and use every 4th week as a week with lesser volume (not necessarily lesser intensity).
  2. Vary the intensity of your training. Your body appreciates a change in pace. If you are a runner change the goals for your runs, don’t always do the same distance, pace, etc. If you lift weights train in blocks. Train 4-6 weeks at a certain intensity (i.e. 5 reps w/ 2 min RI) then change it to something else, always depending on your goal.
  3. Change modalities by cross-training, changing exercises, etc.
  4. Don’t do trash training. You know what I mean, training to compensate for bad eating, “easy running days”, etc. Train with a purpose. Each workout should have your main goal in mind whatever that is. Ask yourself,  how will this training bring me closer to my goal.
  5. Be consistent, train when you said you would train and don’t double up when you missed a training. You are not stacking! It will lead into overtraining on the back-end.
  6. Injury – If you are injured don’t stop training unless it is medically required. You can keep training but you ALWAYS have to follow the paradigm: If it hurts don’t do it. Most of the time, ignoring pain and working through it does not make you harder, it just shows that you are not being smart. Your body gives you pain signals for a reason.
  7. Being smart and missing a training session because of injury or over-training does not give you the permission to eat crap. Sorry, because that is the time you really should eat well because your body needs it. You are what you eat, so if you eat junk….
  8. Have a plan in place. How do you know you are getting where you want to be, if you don’t even know what it is and what you need to do to get there? Yeah, I know you know what you need to do, blah, blah, blah. Stop making excuses, sit down and make a plan, lay out a strategy. Would you lend anyone money who cannot show you a good business plan? So why do you think you are going to achieve anything without planning for it?
  9. People don’t matter. If the dude next to you lifts more weight, good for him. If the gal runs 30s faster per min/mile good for her. Stick with your plan.
  10. Rest, rest, rest! Your body does not get stronger, faster, bigger, skilled without rest. Training is a catabolic process, rest is the anabolic process.
  11. 8 hours of sleep….I know you don’t have time for that. Then make time. What is important to you? Get off the couch, walk away from the TV and go to bed. Your family, you and your co-workers will thank you if you have more sleep.
  12. Be relentless, be relentlessly smart. Rework your training plan, review it. Have a professional help you. Most of the time it is the people who are persistent that succeed in our personal training and not the ones with the most talent.

 

Michael Anders

Head Trainer Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting

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