Not creating good habits from the start.
Getting lean is EASY… once you get into the necessary habits.
Be strict on yourself early and stay focused for the first 4 weeks of any new nutrition protocol and create the habits necessary for success. It might be tough at first, but those first 4 weeks are the most important to your success. Saying “NO” to cheat meals, not missing workouts, not skipping meals & getting enough sleep, etc. As much as it may seem that your goal is far far away when you start, just keep telling yourself that this is the most IMPORTANT time for your long term success.
Make the few small sacrifices from the start, and your journey will be so much less stressful, and less of a chore as it will simply be habit.
Being more concerned about your appearance than your health.
If your body is healthy, it will function better, feel better, recover better, and your mind will be much more clearer and focussed. Too many people are only focused on looks.
Overdoing it.
Less is more sometimes. Strategic progression is better. Work hard, work smart, and don’t pummel your body into the ground. If you do, your mind will also find itself having to dig out from a hole. Stress and the feeling of being overwhelmed are inevitable. Our body’s need time to recover and recovery is when we grow and lose the most fat so it is critical that you master this part of your lifestyle.
Restricting your food choices.
Variety is the spice of life right? Well it is exactly the same when it comes to dieting as well. There are so many different foods that have essential nutrients which are necessary for basic bodily functions. It is especially important to make sure you are rotating your proteins and fats. Variety also helps to prevent binging. Make sure you give yourself a few different choices and you will find you start enjoy your food more and “dieting” becomes less of a chore and more of a lifestyle.
Not varying your protein sources.
As above, ONLY eating egg whites and chicken breasts is a recipe for disaster. Your body needs a variety of different amino acid profiles in order to function to it’s full capacity, detoxify itself, produce neurotransmitters, etc. Wild meats have the best nutrient profiles. However they are also not the easiest cuts to come by therefore organic is your second best bet.
Eliminating fats.
You MUST eat fat to lose fat! Your body needs fats to survive and to prosper. Use them wisely. Variety is a good idea here as well. A well balanced nutrition plan has plenty of omega 3, 6, 9, MCTs, and even saturated fat.
Failing to optimise your sleep.
As stated before if you train, you must recover. If you’re not sleeping at least 8 hrs on average, you can assume that your body isn’t recovering and your cortisol levels are consistently elevated. This is not what you want.
Not strategically progressing your workouts.
On a 12 week program, you should be planning to make things harder each week. Just slightly. Increase you volume, limit rest periods, add intensifiers and/or finishers bit by bit. Too many people go all in too soon and put themselves in a vulnerable position. Eventually your body will stop responding to what you’re doing and you’ll have nowhere to go.
Listening to too many people
There are heaps and heaps of different ways to get someone into shape. All of which MAY work. However this doesn’t mean that they’re optimal. You may be beating your body into the ground, begin hating your life, and be destroying your metabolism with many of these plans, so please use caution when looking for a program for yourself…
Ideally choose one SMART person (or place), and follow their plan. If it doesn’t work, learn from it and move on.
Thinking fat burners will do the job (looking for a “quick fix”).
Do not be under the assumption that fat burners will have some miraculous fat burning benefits. What they do is artificially stimulate your thyroid and leave your body in ruins once you stop using them. Want a secret? The best fat burner is a pair of gym shoes.
Taking too many stimulants.
As well as the reason mentioned above, stimulants will also take a toll on your adrenal glands and lead to adrenal overload. This can lead to cortisol staying elevated over long periods of time. Bad news for fat loss..
Not adjusting calories according to workload/output.
It’s a good idea to adjust calories according to your energy expenditure during that particular day. If you’re doing two hard weight sessions, you’re going to more likely require additional carbs that day as oppose to Sunday rest day yes?. Logic applies.
Too much too soon.
Going from 0 to 100 when you first start a nutrition plan is a guaranteed way to run yourself into the ground and ensure failure. Make the smallest incremental changes you can whilst still seeing changes day by day and week by week.
Alienating your support network.
As humans we need people. We have all been guilty of closing ourselves off from certain people who may not understand our goals or what we want. I’m all for getting rid of toxic people in your life that are only going to bring you down, but make sure you’re not making decisions you will regret. Sometimes a dieting/depleted brain isn’t rational.
Relying on supplements.
Humans need FOOD. Whey protein and carb powders are tools. Not life sources.
Trying to follow the latest fad diet you found d on the internet instead of relying on hard work to get you there.
I could name a few recent diets that have caught peoples imagination because they seem to get you to your goal with less “perceived” effort and work.
Science is constantly looking for the BEST possible scenario to get you there fastest. The people creating the fads though are marketers. Work hard and stick to mastering the basics.
Not getting comfortable with being uncomfortable.
You should understand, IT’S GOING TO HURT. You NEED to become okay with this!
Find the joy in getting outside of your comfort zone and realise that it will make you better in the long run. Trust me, as you become more and more acclimatised to being outside your comfort zone that “comfort zone” will increase and you will start finding that the trivial tasks in life that most people find difficult, will no longer seem challenging.
Not understanding what detoxing is, as well as limiting your toxic load.
Detox, and avoid adding additional toxins being present in the body. Toxins also have a massive affect on brain function, and neurotransmitters which control everything from your mood & energy to motivation.
Blindly following someone who has limited knowledge.
Just because someone has been in or is in good shape, or has gotten someone else in shape in the past, doesn’t necessarily mean they know what they’re doing. you can get anyone to lose weight by feeding them 2 grains of rice and some ice cubes. This doesn’t mean it’s optimal for your health and performance though and quite frankly I don’t know anyone who just wants to waste away. If you’re PAYING for a service, it should be optimal for YOU not generalised for the masses.
Not asking enough questions.
If you don’t know why, ask!
It’s absolutely critical that you: A) learn, and B) know that there is a reason behind your plan.
Not keeping track.
Keeping a journal or record is one of the most under valued tools for achieving a goal on the planet. I guarantee this will help you to keep motivated, and stay on the fast track to being shredded. Sounds like a lot of work, but it’s merely a matter of creating the habit. It takes no more than 5-10 mins a day!
Failing to incorporate more full body workouts (HIIT, strongman sessions, targeting multiple body-parts).
The more muscles you can incorporate into a workout, the more fuel you’ll be burning.
Getting stuck in the, “one body-part once a week” mindset.
For most people (like 99%) this is just not enough to grow or make progress (unless you’re new to training). Your muscles need to be stimulated regularly AND you will burn more calories the more often you stimulate muscles. An exception is being a pure mesomorph where you don’t put on fat and gain muscle with ease.
Not having enough rest days.
Your nervous system and adrenals need days off. Take them weekly.
Justifying bad habits and/or creating bad habits.
“I worked hard today”, “it’s only today”, “it won’t hurt just this once”. The truth is, no it probably won’t hurt just that one time. But that’s the bad part. Cause when you justify it once, you’ll just keep on justifying it again and again. I guarantee you! Create good habits and stick with them!
Overeating certain foods.
So many people get stuck in a routine of eating the same foods over and over again. This can quite quickly lead to intolerances and inflammation.
Not spacing out your workouts.
3 hour workouts are way too long. Instead try doing cardio in the afternoon instead of after your weight session, or try splitting body-parts so that you train more frequently rather than longer.
Example: chest & back in the morning, HIIT session at night – this is hard for some people due to their schedules etc., but it’s still ideal.
Training too long.
Your energy will diminish massively. Your intensity will drop, and you won’t burn as nearly as many calories.
Training too slow.
Cut the chit chat and the texting/facebook & instagramming get on with it!
Keep the workout intensity high. Keep track of rest periods so you can use them as a tool for increasing the effort and workload of your workouts.
Under eating and so impeding performance.
To lose fat, you’ve got to rely on hard, intense workouts. Regularly undereating will leave you sluggish and unable to train at maximum effort.
This is a fine line that you need to toe on a day to day basis. Too many calories and you will get bigger or fatter, too few and your performance suffers. This is why recording what you do and eat is vital. Cycling nutrients has also been shown to be one of the best ways to make continuous progress.
Not “finding the joy” in what you’re doing.
Any able-bodied person better realise it’s a joy and a privilege to be able to train, and being able to eat great food. Too many people spend their lives complaining about “having” to do something that they choose to do.
Not enough people “enjoy” cardio, all you need to do is find a reason to appreciate it and find then you will find the joy. E.g. a time to be alone, improve yourself, get shredded, improve your heart function, and you have the time and ability to DO IT! How amazing and blessed are you!
Being grateful.
Taking time to find the gratitude for the things you are, have, and do, will take you a long way towards leading a happy life. It seems simple, but focusing on gratitude will change your life.
Sex.
Will NOT affect performance (unless its marathon sex).
Have sex. Often.. It’s good for you, it makes you feel great, and creates a better relationship with your partner.
Not setting big-enough goals!
“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.”
Zig Ziglar
Goals that make you stretch, make you reach, force you to get uncomfortable will therefore create a better version of you.
Not believing in yourself!
Nothing in life is outside of YOUR reach. Only YOU can control your outcomes. Small victories will add up to large ones in long run.
Not taking control of your situation. (“if I get in shape” etc., puts the control outside yourself).
The words you use can set the tone for whether you succeed or fail. So make sure you take control of your words and take control of your situation as well. Failure is not an option. You do whatever it takes to get it done! Live by this and you’ll will achieve more than ever before!
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