How NOT to get results (from exercise)

Some people join the gym with great intentions and when things don’t go their way, they leave with bad intentions and go back to attacking their favorite pint of ice cream instead of the weights.

In my role as a Personal trainer, I’ve seen people come in for a while, quit and then come back heavier than before.  I’ve also seen people train exactly the same for years and years and look like they’ve never picked up a weight.

It’s similar to not watching Days of our Lives for 6 months and then picking it right up where you left off because nothing has changed.

The whole point of training is to make a positive change, not spin your wheels and then quit. What a waste of time that is.

If you or a loved one want to take your health and fitness seriously, do exactly the opposite of what I’m suggesting below. And if you’re doing any of these things, please stop it immediately.

1. Focusing on the scale

There’s nothing wrong with weighing yourself everyday but when you use this as your only method of progress, you’re leading yourself down a road of pain and regret.

Because weight can fluctuate by as much as 1-5 pounds daily, depending on factors like water retention and digestion.

If you’ve been eating better and exercising consistently and  your scale weight doesn’t reflect that, your body composition may have changed for the better.

However, you wouldn’t know because you’re constantly staring down at the scale.

2. Not having a goal

 There’s a quote by Zig Ziglar that goes “If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.” After going through countless client assessments and hearing the same generic responses such as,

“I want to lose weight.”

“I want to feel better.”

“I want to look better.”

“I don’t recognize the person in the mirror anymore.”

This is an okay starting point, but it doesn’t really tell you or me anything. The question is why do you want it? When you find your why, you have some real skin in the game that can sustain you through the tough times.

However, it you have no time for self-reflection and you love spinning your wheels, don’t worry about having a goal.

3. Consistency? What’s that?

It takes a while to get unhealthy, out of shape or overweight and yet some people (and certain TV shows) think you’ll get your body back in 6 short weeks of killing it in the gym and in the kitchen.

However, when you look in the mirror and see the same person you’ve seen before, you get discouraged and quit because you think this exercise and diet thing is way too much hard work.

The hard truth is that it takes time, effort and consistency to reach your ideal self and this doesn’t happen, in 4, 6 or 12 weeks. It’s a process that lasts the rest of your life. Let that sink in for a moment.

4. Hopping from program to program

When I started taking training seriously, I’d rip out workouts from magazines, hoping it would make me look like the guy on the cover.

And I did this over and over and guess where that got me?

However, I’ve now seen the error of my ways. The truth is the grass is not greener on the other side and that program you see with all its bells and whistles is not better than your current program.

Newsflash, you have to give your current program a chance to work.

Nonetheless, if you want to keep running on the spot, jumping from program to program and keep looking the same, please be my guest.

Finishing up

Getting results is hard and change is tough. But you’ll make it more difficult on yourself in the gym if you’re not measuring your progress, don’t have a goal or you lack consistency.

It’s better to keep going through the tough times because the only way to fail this health and fitness thing is to quit.

And you’re not a quitter, right?

Email-shanemcleantraining@gmail.com