Top 5 Do’s and Don’ts for 2009
Saturday, January 10th, 2009I guess I was born to be a personal trainer. While most people are content to read the latest fantasy novel or watch soap operas in their free time, I love putting together training programs. I wish I could break it down into a formula and I might just do that one day and produce it in a nice software package, but for now I admit a lot of the way I piece together programs is intuitive. I think in terms of balance and proportions (I’m doing some chest work here, so I need some back work here, but I have this imbalance on my right side so will do single arm movements and put the weak side first) … and it’s a lot of fun.
As I put together my program for the first quarter this year I reflected on a not-so-successful 2008. I have to admit I’ve been the poster child for inconsistency … I’ve created momentum a few times but then let vacations or work projects or other things derail me. Don’t get me wrong … I’ve been training and eating healthy for nearly a decade now (that means I’m behind, because when I started I had twenty years of bad habits to make up for) and I never stop, but I haven’t exactly finished everything I’ve started.
I was doling out some advice to someone the other day when it struck me that it’s time to get back to the basics and not be one of those "do I as I say, not as I do" coaches, but to eat my own dog food. Part of that was reflecting on how to make 2009 the most successful year yet … and I came up with a list of 10 items to focus on: 5 things to avoid, and 5 things to do.
So why be selfish and keep them to myself when you can benefit as well?
Here are my top 5 things to avoid as you embark on your healthy journey and work on those New Year resolutions this year:
1. DO NOT fall for those silly diet pill scams. I run Google ads on my site, which is an “open” ad network. I don’t have a lot of control over the ads, although I can block certain ads if I don’t want them to show. I found out this is getting harder and harder because people set up these campaigns with 500 different websites. It seems the world is convinced that you can drink some goofy tea and shed weight. OK, so the tea isn’t the only big lie out there … there’s pills and potions and network marketing systems and a million other ways you’re supposed to go on auto-pilot. Think about it. If it were that easy, we’d all pay to go on auto-pilot. It’s not.
2. DO NOT go on a diet. I know it sounds strange and you’ve got to shed those pounds, but I’m begging you not to diet. Maybe it’s just semantics so we’ll need to get our vocabulary straight: a diet is that program you go on to lose weight. You hate it and plug your nose when you try to eat the food or down the shakes and you can’t wait for your special “no holds bar” meal or day but in the back of your mind you just think, “If I can just hang onto this long enough and lose the weight, then I can get back to normal eating.” What is normal? Normal today is type 2 diabetes, obesity, and a myriad other conditions that debilitate and make our quality of life miserable. We have lots of medication to prop us up and keep us able to pay taxes longer, but we’re not enjoying the quality of life we deserve. You need to find something that’s for life and that means it can’t be a diet that you’ll switch off. Fortunately, I’ve got a cure for this one … just tap into my 5 Keys to Healthy Eating.
3. DO NOT get all ga-ga over that huge weight drop you have on the first week of your program and then get frustrated and think you’re doing something wrong because the weight loss slow. As I mention in 10 Fat Mistakes, the average female can expect to lose around 0.5 - 1.5 percent of their body fat each week, and the average male is a bit luckier at 1 - 2 percent. That’s doing it all PERFECTLY. If you are losing more, don’t get too excited: is more than likely water weight and a bit of muscle as well. I’m sorry, but those are the cold, hard facts … usually when you start a new program, you do two things: one is you cut back on sodium because most programs focus on more whole, less processed foods, and two is you cut back on carbohydrates because the fad today is to focus on getting more protein and most programs suggest fewer calories as well. The sodium releases water your body was retaining to dilute the sodium levels in your body, while the lower calories and carbohydrates release water from your muscles that was bound with carbohydrate in the form of glycogen. It all looks good on paper but it’s normal to have a big loss and then taper.
If you want to get the jump on what is practical to lose and how to lose it, read Your Real Metabolism.
4. DO NOT throw out the scale. I’m tired of people telling me muscle weighs more than fat. Does 1 pound of muscle really weigh more than 1 pound of fat? Sorry, I know it’s a trick question, but let’s do a reality check. You are what some people call “skinny fat” and have about 10 pounds of fat to lose. Fine. I’ll buy that your scale weight isn’t going to go down, might even go up. There are plenty of people close to their target weight who can get away with talking up the density of muscle (the true statement is “muscle is denser than fat”). However, most people have a LOT of weight to lose … and in Vegas the odds would be in my favor because statistics say 2 out of 3 Americans are overweight and in a room full of 10 I’m going to meet between 2 and 3 who are obese.
Let’s do a big reality check. If you have 30 pounds to lose, for the scale to stay the same you will also have to gain 30 pounds of muscle. I’ve been in the fitness industry for a long time. Let’s forget the freak show muscle mag covers for a second and focus on bodybuliders who enter natural bodybuilding events. Forget wheter or not the events are successful at testing for steroid use or not, just consider these are the most massive, muscular physiques. They make their money by building muscle so I’m going to guess these bodybuilders probably have access to the most knowledge, training, and possess the best genetics for building muscle mass.
These top trainers are happy to gain … drum roll please … 2 or 3 pounds of quality muscle in a YEAR! That’s right. Now, we know that people gain more muscle when they start a program, but the claims that you can gain, say, 20 pounds in 12 weeks are just preposterous.
Don’t believe me? How about a little common sense. I was 178 when I was shredded. Let’s say I was the most knowledgeable bodybuilder in the world and did everything perfect, and was able to gain just 1 pound a month. Doesn’t sound like much, does it? I mean, this wouldn’t even register on the scale … unless I weighed every month. I’ve been training for 8 years now. Had I known what I was doing, I could be .. 12 x 8 = 96 pounds heavier, or shredded and muscular at 274 pounds. Does that make sense to you? It doesn’t to me … the top bodybuilders in the world who DON’T enter “natural” competitions weigh in at around or below 300.
My point is that if you have 30 pounds to lose, I doubt you are going to gain 30 pounds. So while your scale won’t move every week, it doesn’t lie - it tells you the truth: how much you weight … and over time, it SHOULD go down.
5. DO NOT give up. Look, I’ve been at this for awhile and I’ve seen people succeed, and people fail. I’ve met very few people who figured out what works for them the first try. It took me a year to find the right combination and balance in my life to make it work for me, I know others who have tried for years and years before they had their “ah-hah” moment and suddenly transformed into the person they deserve to be. So how long is long enough? Most people get fired up the first week when they drop, get disappointed week two when their weight loss slows, and then give up after the third week. What if the breakthrough was just a week away?
Listen, if you’re doing this for right now or next week or to look good for a wedding or beach, I can’t help you. Good luck and enjoy the diets and fitting into your clothes and then wondering why when you shed so much weight you’re still afraid to take off your shirt (here’s a hint: you lost it the wrong way). I’m not doing this to be on the cover of a magazine, I’m doing it to enjoy life and live it as healthy as I can be. That means a long term focus.
I’m convinced that the only way to fail … is to give up. Even if you don’t see the results you want, keep trying until you figure it out.
I wanted to get the negative over so that we can focus on the positive. Here are my top 5 things to do this year:
1. DO set a clear vision of what you want and dig deeper than just “lose weight.” The process I talk about is finding reasons, not actions. So you do this drill: what, why, what, why, what, why.
What: I want to lose weight.
Why? So I look better.
What: I want to look better.
Why? So I feel better about myself.
What: I want to feel better about myself.
Why? Because I don’t like who I am.
What: I don’t like who I am.
Why? Because I don’t have energy or feel healthy.
What: I don’t have energy or feel healthy.
Why? Because I’m not eating the right foods or exercising on a regular basis.
You see … this drill can continue for awhile, but the goal is to find out what you REALLY want and why you REALLY want to change. Maybe it is to look good on the beach, but often there are deeper reasons and those become the key to how you can succeed and why you might sabotage yourself.
Learn more about The Decision and How to Change your Mindset.
2. DO tap into a community for support. I make my goals public on my blog, to you, to my co-workers, to my family, and do as many people as I can. I love the support on our own forums and tap into other networks as well. You’ve probably heard it said that someone can learn a lot about you by the company you keep. I’m saying ditch your friends who don’t live healthy because I want you to inspire them with your own transformation … but it’s important to find new friends or groups of people who can encourage and support you in your journey so you don’t do it alone and go to others for advice. My good friend Tom Venuto built an incredible community called the Burn the Fat Inner Circle to create a community that encourages health and transformation.
3. DO find yourself a mentor/coach. It may be a knowledgeable friend, a personal trainer at the gym, or someone online. I could go on and on about the importance of coaching. Because of my various projects, I don’t actively coach myself but am always available to support you in our forums and through our Question of the Day. Even the most successful trainers I know (myself included) hire their own coaches to continue to learn and grow.
4. DO track your success. I don’t care if you use something fast, easy, and free like FitDay.com, or a more comprehensive tool like I use to shed weight (DietPower: How I Get Ripped with Confidence). I’ve put calculators on the site and some people just boil it down to a spreadsheet. The point is simple: you can’t improve something unless you measure it. You need to Measure Your Success and know where you stand so you can make the right adjustments and tweak your program to be successful over the long term.
5. DO write specific goals and read them daily. “Lose weight” is not a good goal. “Lose 20 pounds by March 1st” is a much better goal. “Build muscle” is weak, “Bench press my body weight” is more specific, “Bench press my body weight by April 1st” even better. Sometimes when the day is challenging it takes having that little piece of paper to remind yourself why you are doing this.
I think goals should be more than just the statement. They should have several parts: the goal, the reason you have the goal, the habits you’ll drop to achieve the goal, the habits you’ll start to accomplish the goal, and a personal mantra.
For example …
GOALS
1. Run my first marathon (all the way) by December 2009
2. Reach 200 pounds by June 1st 2009
3. Fit in my 31″ leather pants by August 1st 2009
REASONS
1. I want to start a big project that takes me outside of my comfort zone and see it through to completion
2. I want to reinforce my healthy habits and raise the bar of excellence in my life, and the side effect of that will be shedding some of the weight I gained as the result of slacking off
3. My wife bought the pants as a gift when I was heavy into bodybuilding, and she deserves to receive the gift of me putting in the effort to make that goal a reality
HABITS TO DROP
1. Eating junk during the week
2. Skipping workouts with the excuse “I’m too tired”
3. Drinking too much wine on the weekends
HABITS TO FORM
1. Work out consistently
2. Read my goals every day
3. Go to bed early so I wake up more easily in the morning
MANTRA
I’m getting out of my own way to be the person I deserve to be.
Hey, thanks for your patience and taking the time to read this. I hope it helps you create the best year ever!
Warmly,
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