New Year, New Me, How To Make It Last

The joys of the New Year are over. a lot of people have decided to get fit, lose weight and become the new version of themselves - the bombardment from these super easy and effective fat burning pills or supplements, or even shakes, that will slam pounds of muscle to you within weeks or, worst of all, personal trainers/coaches claiming to have the most effective system or approach ever, showing transformation photos with previous clients but you aren't getting the full story.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't think it's a bad thing people starting the new year with new hope, new ideas and want to be better, of course that's a good thing. I love seeing people make these positive changes and realise the true value of their health. It inspires me, but in many cases people don't sustain this, which is down to many factors, but for me there are 5 main reasons:-

1) You have burnt out - what I mean by this is you have joined a gym, slamming cardio even if you hate it, eating just enough calories to survive and notice big changes fast, but very soon it stops dead, you are eating even less, training even harder and not losing any weight. Answer - do things slower, understand it's a marathon not a sprint, workout how many calories you need day to day to stay the same weight, then deduct 250-500calories, this is more than enough to help most people lose weight. Ensure that your diet is varied and uses whole natural ingredients, and drink plenty of water. It's that simple - to improve your progress use exercise to increase your calorie deficit, but pick a sport or activity that you enjoy, if you like walking go walking, if you like lifting weights then lift weights, if you enjoy it you are far more likely to do it more often.

2) The cost of eating healthy and gym membership is too much.

Answer - Yes it's not cheap, I'm not going to tell you otherwise, but can you put a price on your health and wellbeing??? I can't - not having colds or feeling run down and being on my best game 95% of the time is priceless to me, but there are options so looking at bargain sections in supermarkets or food providers online, even enquire at your local butcher or fruit and veg stall for deals on regular orders, gym memberships aren't essential for progress, if you run, walk or cycle get outside, even take advantage of one of our home training plans, where you use body weight and minimal equipment for really challenging workouts.

3) Putting all your faith in to a bs supplement and expecting it to get you where you want to be with little to no work.

Answer - It's a lovely pipe dream but that's all it is, forget the testimonials or clever marketing it's BS! Look at it this way, if they invented a tablet that melts fat ,gets you ripped, and you don't have to exercise much, or watch what you eat, do you really think they would sell it for £9.99!! NO they would want a few more zeros on it, so don't buy into the lies, some things will have some benefit, but not to everyone, so stick to the basics, real food and hard work, you won't waste your money or time that way.

4) For some reason you stop having the time to do the work, ANOTHER BS EXCUSE!

Answer - For most beginner and intermediate trainers, shorter workouts are more effective, even if you only have 50mins, that's a 10min warm up, 30mins of hard intense effort, and 10 mins cool down/stretching. It's that simple - possibily even shorter, by having a plan or program, it helps with logging results, tracking progress and keeps you time efficient, everyone I know can find 30-50mins, 2-4 times a week, so stop with the lame excuses.

5) Buckling to pressure and comments from friends and family, a few examples would be, haven't you got bored of that rubbish yet, ooohhh you're too thin now, your obsessed, it's taking over your life, you looked better before.

Answer - All I have to say is IGNORE what anyone else thinks, it's your opinion that matters, how you feel, more often than not people are envious of what you achieve, or don't want to see you succeed. This isn't in every case and sometimes people take a while to adjust to your changes. At times you may go too far, body dismorphia, anorexia and bulimia are serious issues that can happen if health isn't your main focus, so FOCUS on being happy and healthy no matter what the scales or people say, don't give power to others to have control over your life, and I promise you that the people who said 'why are you doing it' will soon be asking 'how did you do it'.

So if you are serious about a long lasting change for the better, remember, start off simple and slow, invest in yourself, your health is worth it, don't buy into the supplement rubbish, don't use silly excuses, you always have time and, finally, do what's right for you - be strong enough to know what's right or wrong for you. This is a sure fire way of increasing your chances of success and reaching your goal. Speak to a personal trainer or even invest in their services, as it will save you time and money in the long run and cut most of the bs. I hope this help and makes 2019 your year of lasting change