Diet, Exercise, and Consistency

CONSISTENCY IS THE KEY TO SUCCESS When was the last time that you obtained something that was of value without hard work? My guess is that it rarely if ever has happened. I have heard more times than I care to count the phrase: I've tried everything to lose weight, and it just won't come off. What I want to say to them this is: 'Okay, tell me the last 100 actions you've taken to lose weight' (really the goal should be to lose FAT, but I digress). A common response would be, 'well, I haven't done a hundred things'. 'Okay, tell me the last 50'. 'Well, I haven't done 50'. 'Okay the last 25'. At this point, the point has been made, and they see where I'm going with it. The thing is, they haven't done 100 things, 50 things, 25 things, or even 5 things usually! Here's what most people have done:

1) Started a 'diet'. When I say 'diet' there was no structured plan, they didn't have a breakdown of macro's (carbs/fats/protein), and rarely do they even have a caloric goal. They just try to 'eat less'.

2) They set a goal to lose X lbs. (I'm not a big fan of this, and I'll go into why in a different article).

3) They go to the gym, walk on the treadmill for a half hour, try and work on a machine or two and head home.

4) The weekend comes along, and they fall off the wagon, and gorge, and when it comes time to weigh themselves, they haven't loss any weight. DIETS DON'T WORK they say! I CAN'T LOSE WEIGHT! In actuality all that has been done is they have developed poor habits, and frustrated themselves because they didn't have a plan. They have also convinced themselves that diets don't work, and they can't lose weight.

Here's the deal, the absolute most important piece of a body transformation is this:
CONSISTENCY. Consistently following a properly calculated diet, consistently following a properly laid out exercise program which entails resistance training and typically cardio (however depending on your goals, cardio may or may not be necessary, resistance training though ALWAYS is). I don't mean to beat up on those that have tried to lose fat and failed, I commend them for trying. I think it is great they have taken the initiative that is the first step. Heck, I was there myself a few years back. I would go to the gym five days a week, during the week my diet was on point, but the weekend came, and I would indulge a little here, a lot there, and guess what happened? I didn't get the results I wanted. I convinced myself that I couldn't lose the weight and get the body I wanted because I was cursed, or my body just didn't want to lose it or that I had poor genetics. Now, I know how full of garbage that is, and I was in complete denial. At one point, I decided enough is enough.

If somebody else can get ripped, so can I. So guess what happened? Over the next 14 weeks I went from 18% bodyfat down to 7.1% bodyfat. I didn't miss a single gym session. I didn't half-ass a single gym session; I didn't stray from my diet once. I wrote down everything I ate. I hit my calories and macros. In a word I was CONSISTENT and guess what happened? I got results! I don't say this to toot my own horn. I say it to impress upon you the importance of being CONSISTENT. It is frustrating that it took me 32 years to realize this ever important principle, but I'm just thankful I was able to figure it out. So I ask each of you this:

Can you honestly say to yourself that you are giving it 100%? Both with your diet and in the gym? I'll let you think about that for a bit. My next article will discuss HOW to design a diet & workout program. Till then, train hard, & stick to your diet.