Get Results from Diet and Exercise
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One of my 3.5 readers recently wrote me:
Lately I've had a hard time with food and working out. I feel like I'm doing well with both, but getting no results... so obviously I haven't really kicked in my metabolism with what I'm doing. I need to figure it out. At the gym last night they told me I've been going there 2 years.
It is frustrating when we do not get results from our diet and exercise, especially if we are eating well and working out regularly. If I had an effective answer for "how do I keep on keeping on when I don't see any results?" I could sell 100,000 books this year. (That is on my to-do list, stay tuned, yiieee!). I do, however, have a possible answer as to why you have not seen any results. |
Want guaranteed results from your diet AND exercise efforts? Set a goal, keep a fitness journal and consistently take tiny steps over time. You will see results. Look it is so elementary I even made it into a pseudo mathematical formula!
G + J + St = R
Write Down Your Goal
First let me print something in bold because this is the most important paragraph I will write today.
You must write down your fitness goal. You must keep a fitness journal to record what you eat, your workout details, your weight and relevant body measurements.± You must eat well AND exercise. You must do this consistently for 2-3 years.
If you do exactly as I recommend you are guaranteed to lose weight and increase your level of physical fitness. Having trouble with a goal? Try this one:
I will lose five pounds by November 31, 2007.* Write it down and keep it somewhere you will see it every day.
Depending upon how much you weigh, five pounds might not seem like much. You might want to lose 25 pounds. Stick with me here. For one thing, this is not a race. And remember I am talking about permanent changes. In other words this is five pounds gone – forever! Moreover, goals can be adjusted. If you lose the five pounds by August then you will simply increase the original goal or create a new one. Just be sure you have truly hit the goal. If you weigh in five pounds lighter on August 1st, stick with your original goal. At the end of August if you are still down at least five pounds then you have a 30 day track record and it is safe to celebrate and set a new goal.
Our bodies make permanent changes slowly. I experience this now as I am trying to build new muscle. In January of this year I set the following goal: I will increase the size of my arms from 13 7/8” to 14 /4”, without gaining any body fat, by November 31, 2007. My fitness journal has been invaluable in tracking my progress and making adjustments to my habits when necessary.
Keep a Fitness Journal
What is a fitness journal? It is a snapshot of your body on any given day. Start it today. Do not worry about recording every little detail or even using it every day. Getting fit is work but we do not want to scare ourselves off. Remember what I said about trying to do everything overnight. Don’t. Do not rush, ease into your journal.
Star with a tiny step. Journal your weight once per week. Next tiny step. Each workout day, journal what you did. This can be as simple as: June 19: Walked 1 mile. If you get a cold, make a note of that. If you happen to have blood pressure, cholesterol or other test results, journal them. Just write stuff down. There is no wrong way to do this as long as you are building a picture of your fitness level over time. The fitness journal is about YOU. If you do not find yourself interesting enough to keep track of then we have bigger problems.
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Upon reviewing my fitness journal I determined that my arms had not grown for quite a few months. I also saw that my protein intake was marginal at best so that I was not giving my body the help it needed to grow new muscle. My first tiny step was to eat one extra low fat, protein-rich meal per day in order to start bringing in more of the nutrients my body would need to build new muscle. This extra meal quickly became a habit and then I readjusted my split system workout so that one day, at least once per week, I focused my training on arms. |
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I have followed this routine without fail all year. You know me, I work hard. And when I say that I work hard, lifting weights is only part of “the work”. Grocery shopping for specific foods, preparing meals, making time for meals, getting eight hours of sleep each night and planning new exercise routines are all part of the work. I must to give them priority in my life.
Anyhoo, 2007 is half over. What have achieved so far with all of this effort? Well, since January I have added 1/4" to my biceps, without gaining or losing weight. I have also been able to increase the intensity and duration of my workouts. If I make these same types of gains in the next six months I will be quite happy.
Tiny Steps
In our culture of instant gratification, tiny steps are often dismissed. When it comes getting more fit, either you believe the infomercials or you believe in hard work. If you believe in hard work, keep reading.
Since we change slowly it works better to consistently take tiny steps as we work to transform ourselves. A tiny step is easy to see and record. A tiny gives us a measurable victory. A tiny step gives our body and mind time to adjust and form new healthy habits. Most importantly, multiple tiny changes add up to big changes!
Be honest about the fitness changes you want to make. Write these goals down. Do they sound big? If your fitness goals are big then you must not try to accomplish them overnight. My rule of thumb is anything less than a year is overnight. Look at a two-to-five year time frame for big fitness goals.
What is a tiny step? Good question. If our goal is lose five pounds by November then our first tiny step might be to
Inspiration Happens
One other thing. Be on the lookout for inspiration. We all want to be inspired and know that we are not alone. Some people are further down a path we would like to take.
When I saw Carrot Top last year I was blown away by what he has done with his body. I immediately put Carrot Top's photo in my office. I did not do this because I want to be Carrot Top or have a body just like his. Comparing myself to someone else is not healthy. Nope, I put Carrot Top’s photo on my wall simply because I was inspired knowing he did the work and saw the results. His photo helps to serve as a constant reminder that if I do the work, over time, I will see results.
Moral of the Story
Do not try to make a bazillion changes at once. If you are going to the gym and not seeing results then recalibrate, set a new goal, proceed with tiny changes.
Recalibrate: Weigh and measure before starting work on your new goal. Going forward, weigh yourself not more than once per week if are trying to lose weight. You can measure yourself at every workout if your goal is to build muscle.
Set a Goal: Set a new goal or examine your existing goal and adjust it if necessary. Then, WRITE IT DOWN. I, Cameron Scholtz, will weigh ___lbs on December 31, 2007. You must write down your goal on paper and it must be placed in a location(s) where you will see it every day. For extra help give a copy to your best friend or whomever in your life gives you support.
Tiny Steps: Make tiny changes to help you toward that goal. Here are some ideas for your first tiny step.
- Walk one extra day per week.
- Extend your aerobic workout by 10 minutes or increase your weight resistance training by 1-2 additional exercises.
- Every morning or night before, prepare a healthy snack for 3pm -- and eat it at 3pm.
You will get better and better every day. On June 19, 2008 you will look back through your fitness journal and a big smile will grow across your face as you realize just how much change you have made.
± I also occasionally use a digital camera for a visual record. If you want to do this great. But it is not a substitute for a fitness journal. The journal is a must.
* If your goal is muscle size, endurance or something other than weight loss then set it accordingly. Err on the side of being to easy. After you get the hang of writing down your goals and keeping a journal you can begin to set tougher goals. Tiny steps.