Today you may have woken up and decided that you don’t like what you see in the mirror and you want to make a change. Great! This may be the first, fifth, tenth time that you’ve decided you want to lose weight and get healthy, but things just didn’t work out before.
I’m sure you went online and searched “How to get in shape” and about a million articles popped up saying you can get fast results with minimal effort. You probably got overwhelmed, maybe a little intimidated, closed your laptop and decided, maybe I’ll start tomorrow.
Now think back to the last time that you wanted to get into shape. How successful were you? What made you fall off the wagon? Congratulations, you already know what method to get in shape doesn’t work for you. If you ran on the treadmill for hours, ate only fruit and vegetables, tried endless WRC classes, and you’re not happy with your results, it’s time to try something different.
This isn’t to say that this time will be any different, but that’s entirely up to you and how much effort you are willing to put in. The reason most people don’t achieve their goal of getting into shape is because of a lack of patience, poor diet and not feeling like real change is possible.
Patience is a virtue, as they say, and I myself have very little of it. However, when it comes to any fitness goal, you have to have patience. You need to create a goal for yourself and know that most results take 6-12 weeks to achieve in the gym. Yeah, that’s right, 6-12 weeks. It’s a long time, but when you break that time down into specific goals for each week, you’ll achieve your goals quicker than you think. The online articles promising you “Abs in 30 days” or a “Bikini ready body in 2 weeks” are full of BS. Everyone is in a different stage of their fitness goals, and those articles can’t guarantee that everyone will have a “bikini body” at the end. Be patient with yourself; don’t be hard on yourself for not seeing finished results in two weeks, because you’re not going to. So sit back, relax and enjoy the ride to a healthy life.
Now the one thing you can be hard on yourself for, and what I’ll definitely be hard on you for, is nutrition. You’ve heard it a million times and I’m gonna say it again: you will see no change in your body without proper nutrition. Getting into shape is 80% diet and 20% exercise. I know that you know this, but I also know that, regardless of that fact, you’re still expecting to get into shape while eating poorly. Eat that protein, munch those fats and indulge on carbs. Wait, but doesn’t fat make you fat? No- to the -O. You need fat to survive. It keeps your joints lubricated during exercise and is our main source of energy! Healthy fats like avocado, olive oil, salmon and nuts are all necessary for us to thrive. Proper protein, fats and carbs are what are going to help you build that muscle and get into shape. Nutrition collectively doesn’t mean a no sugar organic everything, no dairy, vegan lifestyle. It means portion control, creating a colorful, leafy plate and being mindful of what you are putting into your body. If your body is well nourished on the inside, it will be glowing, full of energy and growing on the outside.
Change is a scary thing, and a lot of times people think that change is impossible. The only way that change would be impossible is if you allow yourself to believe that. There is nothing that you can’t achieve in your life if you’re willing to work for it. I know that the gym is a scary place; there’s bulked guys to your left, screaming during every rep, and their friends behind them spanking their ass to go harder, slender girls to your right pumping iron harder than you thought possible, and then there’s you, looking in the mirror wondering why you belong there. You belong there because, just like everyone else, you want to make that change in your life. It may feel impossible to walk into a place like that, feeling like you’ll never look like one of them. But with the right attitude, any goal, any desire, any intention you have is more possible than you even know. Take the first step; don’t let the fear of failing stop you from starting. Your goals are just as important as anyone else’s.
I want all of you to achieve your goals of getting into shape. Have the motivation to move through the long weeks of training, find delicious and healthy recipes to help you thrive and believe in your ability. My ideals can seem strict and this article barely scrapes the surface of why someone isn’t getting into shape. Time factors in, drive, motivation, resources, etc. Make a plan, set your goals, and let the hard work begin!