Melbourne Personal Training

Here’s a brand new product I’m launching for April.

It’s for everyone who wants to get started with resistance training, strength training, body building, body sculpting, aesthetics, composition, whatever you want to call it!

First of all, in case you missed the other 8 million times; here’s why you need to be doing weight training!

Whether you are trying to get BIGGER, or trying to get SMALLER… other types of exercise are only going to bring you so far. I get a LOT of clients (especially online PT clients) who are super active, probably more fit than I am (!) but not seeing the results that they really want – until I get them to start weight training!

In the very simplest terms, rather than just trying to burn off calories; with weight training we are forcing our body to UTILISE those calories to build the firm, toned, attractive physique that we want. Once we dial in our nutrition and consume the appropriate amount of calories to maintain our goal weight, the body HAS TO reduce fat stores in order to keep building muscle. So imagine being at your goal weight (especially if you’re looking to lose weight) but still with the same ratio of fat to muscle that you have now – still a bit squishy and a bit jiggly. Not such a great result, right? But with weight training, you will end up at your goal weight with less fat and more muscle tone.

Perfect, right?

Here’s the thing. A good program should cover all of the natural human movements. I’ve talked about this a LOT in the past on the blog and in all of my products and programs.

To recap, we’re talking about:

• Horizontal and Vertical Pulling Movements
• Horizontal and Vertical Pushing Movements
• Bending / Extending at the Knees
• Bending / Extending at the Hips

We also add in a whole heap of what you might call secondary or accessory exercises to complement these, and we can custom pick these exercises to address weakness or short comings (whether real or imagined!) in our physique. This includes correcting postural issues and so on.

Here’s the issue though. When we talk about “bending at the knee” (lets say barbell squats), a lot of people just can’t walk into the gym on day one and get this movement down. It’s a natural human movement that all humans in their natural habitat (lets say if we were cave people or something) would be doing every day… but with modern western (especially office work) lifestyles… not so much. And as for bending at the hips (think deadlifts)… forget about it! These are arguably the most important exercises to get stuck into, but you need to work up to them sensibly.

SO, that’s what this introductory program is about. We start off with bodyweight exercises as well as resistance machines, and progress to free weights and cable systems. We utilise various specific exercises to prepare us for the big compound movements described above, by engaging the supporting muscles as well as working on improving our range of motion to perform these exercises in a safe and correct manner. So, we divide our time between working on form and function with body weight movements, and working on strength with the resistance / leverage machines. Once we’re ready, we start doing both at once with the classic bodybuilding / power lifting exercises.

So, that’s three weeks on the introductory program, and then we move on to a customised version of one of my more advanced programs, adapted to suit your requirements.

I have some room left over so just for fun lets have a look at the “big three” compound exercises we’ll be working towards. I only film myself if I’m going for a personal best attempt… you’ll start off a bit lighter than this!

First off our Horizontal Push exercise; flat barbell bench press. Enjoy my sister’s commentary on this one!

Next up, bending and extending at the hips. Deadlift!

This is a great lift to practice for OHS reasons, so you know how to lift things safely at work, home or anywhere else.

Finally just for laughs here’s an ATTEMPT at a personal best squat that was a little bit over ambitious! I did manage ONE rep!

Scared off by the big lifts? Don’t be! As I say, we work up to these gradually. Besides, this stuff is so much more fun that it looks! You’ll love it I promise.

Prices?

Ok here are your options;

1. Budget Plan: 2 sessions per week for 3 weeks, then 4 sessions the final week.
   Total of 10 sessions: $500
   If you REALLY want results, do everything again on an extra 2 days without me.
2. Extra Value Plan: 4 sessions per week for 4 weeks, and I’ll give you a $4 discount each session.
   Total of 16 sessions: eh call it $735.
3. Super Special Plan: 4 sessions per week for 5 weeks, save a total of $100!
   Total of 20 sessions: $900

Of course, if you can’t actually get to Brunswick to train with me you can always order the exercise program card for only 10 bucks!

Want more?

Weight loss clients, I will give you my No Bullshit, No Excuses e-book usually priced at $150 for absolutely free! Read up on this one, it’s weight management FOR LIFE with no stupid crash diets or any scam products! Worth it’s weight in gold!
Weight gain clients, we’ll get your nutritional requirements sorted too!

Think of this as a one off investment to get you started. By the end of the 4 (or 5) weeks you should be perfectly confident to continue training unsupervised. But of course if you want to keep training with me, that’s awesome too!

You can’t possibly imagine how happy it makes me when the testimonials keep rolling in!

Here’s the latest one;

No Bullshit, No Excuses! It works just like I said it would, and it is EASY.

Getting back to the whole “well, that’s easy for him to say” thing that I’ve been harping on about for the past few entries… I don’t seem to get so much of this any more. I’m getting more of the people who just want me to tell ‘em what works, so they can get stuck into it. That’s how I like it!

Generally speaking though, it’s a common thing for people to assume “this guy is a trainer, he’s never had to lose weight. He’s been an athlete his whole life! How can he possibly understand what it is like for me?”

Right?

It’s probably fair enough that people might be offended to be told “oh, it’s easy!” when they’ve tried really hard in the past and not been successful. Here’s the deal though. No matter how hard you try, if you’re doing stuff that does not work, you can’t succeed! What I’m trying to get across to people is that the stuff that actually does work, is not that difficult. You just have to stick to it!

There’s actually a really really good trainer who works from the same gym that I do, and I guess he got tired of hearing this sort of thing and so he deliberate put on like 50kg of fat, then got rid of it all again, and he’s just published a book about the whole experience. Since then a whole heap of people have kind of ripped off his idea and done the same thing… I guess so they can say to people “Well actually I DO know what you’re going through, because I’ve done it myself not long ago”.

So, I don’t take anything away from anyone or try to diminish anyone’s experience or achievements in any way, shape or form. But as far as me having it easy and being a life long athlete… I’ll tell you some amusing stories;

Remember tee-ball? It’s like baseball or softball, but with no pitcher. The ball just sits there on a tee. In school I was such a natural athlete, I would actually STRIKE OUT in tee-ball. Every time. That’s why I chose weight training in the first place, because I needed to get into shape and it seemed like something I wouldn’t be too unco-ordinated for. Why did I need to get into shape? Oh… chronic asthma, overweight, they cut out half my thyroid (you know, the thing everyone else blames for their weight problem) because it had a whopping great big tumour the size of my fist in it…

So, right there is enough to dispel any notion of it being “easy” for me. Throw in shift work as well for good measure. More to the point though, the information just wasn’t out there back then like it is now. Or at least, if it was out there, I never knew about it. Ironically while now I get told how easy it must have been for me because I’m so lucky, back then all I ever got told was “you can’t do it as a vegetarian, you will HAVE TO start eating meat”. In fact to this day I still get told that, usually by guys who’ve just asked why my arms are so big. Figure that one out!

So despite what you might have thought, it wasn’t actually all that easy for me. But it’s easy NOW, and it will be easy for you as well because you have the benefit of me training for however many years, doing a lot of things wrong, and a few things right. Taking on bad advice about what’s necessary in training, even worse advice about what’s required with nutrition, but eventually disregarding that bad advice, and ending up with just the stuff that actually works, that anyone can do.

I’ll say it once more.

Don’t just take my word for it. Read the testimonials on this site from real people just like you, who only needed someone to tell them straight out “forget all this stuff, it’s not important. Here’s all you need to pay attention to” and got great results right away. Not “quick fix but you’ll end up back at your starting weight anyway” results either like all the scam diet products out there. This is “no bullshit and no excuses”; easy to understand, just as easy to implement.

Bottom line: success in weight management whether for health or body aesthetics is simply a matter of adopting the correct approach and sticking to it as best you can. I usually FINISH these entries with a “bottom line” but this time let’s get it out there in the open right from the start.

I was talking last time about how it’s real easy to assume that everyone else has got it easy and you’re the only one behind the eight ball, and my suggestion was that regardless of circumstances, the people who actually want to succeed will seek out the correct advice and then follow it as best they can. And generally speaking that’s usually enough, even if the situation is less than ideal. A less than ideal situation doesn’t necessarily make success impossible, it may just mean slower progress, if anything. If you are on the right track, you’ll get there.

So, I created this program called “No Bullshit, No Excuses” and made everything SO SIMPLE that anyone can stick to it, achieve their goal of a healthy weight range and be lean, toned and terrific. Why it is so simple is because I have thrown out everything that is untrue or just unhelpful, and what we are left with is just the bottom line; if you consistently eat within the range of calories required to maintain a healthy weight, you will inevitably reach that weight. NBNE is a 15 page e-book but really, that’s what it boils down to. I give you a choice of my very best resistance training programs that will get you lean, toned, strong and attractive as well. You can do some cardio if you want but I don’t even think that’s necessary.

So anyway, you can buy the program and I’ll spend the money on food but even if you don’t buy the program there’s enough free information in this blog and if you follow the advice that I give you… you’ll be just like all the happy people from all over the world writing testimonials and messages to put on the site, saying “I saw results right away” or “I lost 10cm right away” or “I lost 5kg and it was easy”. All without crash diets, meal replacements, scratching your head thinking “well gee what AM I allowed to eat?” or anything else that’s remotely hard to understand or difficult to implement.

Of course if you’re training with me in person you’ll get all this information anyway. I’m not trying to double dip here!

So anyway, pretty easy right? Easier than I ever had it, that’s for damn sure!

More on this subject tomorrow… I’ll tell you all how I got started and how it definitely was not a walk in the park like might have thought!

I write about 8 million blogs a week about how and why ANYONE out there can get into great shape and be happier and healthier quite easily with just a little bit of effort 40 seconds at a time. But I guess maybe… perhaps that’s not entirely correct.

I’m certain there’s a lot of people out there who might read one of my articles and think to themselves “well, that’s easy for HIM to say… but he doesn’t know about my [insert dreadfully unfortunate circumstance here] and how it’s so much harder for me than everyone else”.

So, in the interests of fairness and keep things balanced, I decided to list all of the LEGIT reasons why you might not be able to successfully get into shape. I’m not necessarily saying “the next Mr or Ms Olympia”, just ordinary every day goals like being in a healthy weight range with a lean and attractive (that means TONED) physique.

Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin…

1. You do not actually want to get into better shape.

That’s IT, right? Seriously. People who really WANT something, find a way to GET it.

It’s easy to look at other people and assume that they have it easy. How would you know? For all you know they might be hitting the gym in their one spare hour between working two crappy jobs to make ends meet. For all you know, gym might be their only break from taking care of their sick child. You don’t know what medical or emotional condition they might have had to over come to see results from exercise… for that matter it could be a medical or emotional problem that forced them into the gym in the first place.

There’s PLENTY of people out there exactly as I described, doing their best in spite of less than ideal circumstances. So, pull yourself up the next time you find yourself resenting someone for being “a skinny bitch with a perfect life” or whatever. Maybe go ask them how easy they’ve got it, instead.

Some people get a rougher deal than others in life but I put it to you that almost anyone who’s achieved some level of happiness and success in life will tell you, they had to scratch and claw and fight for every ounce of it. Ever known someone who had a god given talent for music or art or some other thing that should have given them a great life, but they squander it by being a screw up / unreliable / dishonest or whatever? And yet other people who will tell you they had “no natural ability whatsoever” managed to make something of themselves by sheer determination and perseverance?

It’s true that a lot of the time it is human nature to not appreciate what comes easy to us, while the things we had to fight for mean all that much more to us. So again, when you see someone in great shape… look, the actual TRAINING part actually doesn’t require any special abilities or physical attributes. It’s making the commitment, being consistent and sticking to a plan that separates the winners from the whiners.

“The only thing that is keeping you from what you really want is the story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t have it.” – Tony Robbins

I would put it to you that rather than listing off all the reasons why you CAN’T do something about getting into shape, list them all off and then say “BUT I AM DAMN WELL GOING TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN ANYWAY”. Visualise it, being the sort of person with that level of drive and determination. Wouldn’t that be something? Make it happen.

I’m pleased to report that these days I am almost exclusively attracting PT (including online PT) clients who actually want results. People who come back to me after just a week or two and tell me “I did what you said, and it is working already. I can FEEL it and I can SEE it already”.

Have a look at my personal training testimonials; no one is saying “oh god it was so hard but I guess it was worth it”, everyone is saying “it was actually pretty easy”. Nothing about this is actually difficult. Eat within the correct range (not too much, not too little) of calories, balance your macros (proteins, carbs & fats) appropriately, and lift some stuff up and down. OK the lifting is SUPPOSED to be difficult, but it’s only for 40 seconds at a time.

That’s probably enough of a rant for today. Stay tuned because tomorrow I am going to tell you why this is actually going to be a LOT easier for you than it ever was for me. Real talk!

People are saying all sorts of nice things about the advice I’ve been giving them.

Are you ready?

Five kilos the easy way, eating whatever you like. Sounds pretty good am I right?

Again, like I keep telling everyone; Eat the right amount (not too much, not too little) and hit your macros! 40/40/20 is easy enough and a good place to start. You don’t have to starve or go without!

It’s nice when people ask for your advice. It’s even nicer when they ACT on that advice and get great results. Best of all is when they come back for more advice and recommend you to their friends!

You can’t really put a price on being healthy, happier, and most importantly of all, having an amazing body.

Unfortunately though… you CAN put a price on how much you can afford to spend on PT while still meeting your every day financial obligations such as oh… I don’t know… bills, groceries, rent and so forth. Well, maybe you’re a super successful career person and now you want to be super successful in getting into amazing shape as well, and money’s not really an issue… lets talk! But for everyone else, here’s how to make it work on your budget.

We get more bang for the buck in two ways;

Get the best possible results.

To get the best possible results from training, some of it is down to your trainer, but mostly it is down to you!

1. Make sure your training plan suits your goals.
   There’s no point focussing on cardio if your goal is increased muscle mass, right?
2. Try your very hardest in training.
   Don’t be one of these people dragging their feet through the workout because they’re embarrassed or whatever. The body of your dreams is there for the taking. Grab it with both hands! Training with me, you only have to try hard for about 40 seconds anyway, and then rest for a minute. Piece of cake! Wait… forget the cake. That’s a bad analogy.
3. Hit your nutritional targets!
   I cannot stress this one enough. It’s not the old school “nothing but boiled chicken and brocoli” approach, but you still gotta make sure you’re eating in the right range to support your goal physique / healthy weight range. That’s a “no less than this – no more than this” range of calories. Hit your macronutrient ratios too. This is real easy these days with free apps available on the internet and on your smart phone.
   Remember, you can’t out-train a bad diet!
4. Train more often!
   You can’t really expect a huge change in body composition from hitting the weights just once a week, can you? And especially if you keep cancelling your session due scheduling conflicts. You need to LOCK IN at least 2 sessions a week and when I say LOCK IN, I mean they do not get cancelled for any reason. More sessions is even better, we’ll talk about how to afford more sessions next.

Actually reducing the cost of Personal Training.

Obviously a trainer is trying to pay the bills and put food on the table (in my case, rather a LOT of food) just like anyone else. And generally we’re proud people who think our time and expertise is valuable so haggling on price doesn’t usually go down so well. But with that being said, here are some good ways to save.

1. Buy more sessions, train more often.
   Most trainers will give you a discount if you buy a “pack” of sessions as opposed to just one at a time. If you plan on training with a PT regularly, this is definitely the way to go.
2. Refer a friend.
   I don’t know if other trainers do this, but I think they should. Sales and marketing is a pain in the arse and I hate it! I just want to be in the gym with people!
   So if you’re a good client, and you have a friend who’ll also be a good client; here, have a whopping great big discount!
3. Share sessions with a friend.
   Similar to above… most trainers will let you train with your friend, partner, colleague or whoever. It might not be “two for the price of one” (hey, it’s harder to train two people!) but it’s still a pretty huge saving. Plus your friend is there! That’s extra fun, motivation and support.
4. Get a program you can follow without the trainer.
   Are you following me here? There’s nothing wrong with asking a trainer to take you on for a couple of weeks so you can learn the program, and then continue without him/her for a while until it’s time for a new program. Or alternatively, ask if you can do 2 sessions a week with the trainer, and get some extra stuff to do at home or in the gym on the other days.

Number 4 above is the big one. The vast majority of trainers will be happy to give you homework if you ask for it, and should be able to explain WHY you are doing each exercise and so forth. Once you’ve learned the program and can perform the exercises, the trainer is there to keep you motivated, share your enthusiasm, help you to keep progressing, and make further changes to the program as may be necessary. But really, if they have done their job you should be thinking “well I guess I don’t NEED to keep having PT, but it’s enjoyable and I can afford it so I’ll sign up for more!” On the other hand if you’ve been training for a while and feel like your PT has kept you in the dark and you still don’t know what you’re doing… you should consider finding a new trainer!

Part 2, of 2!

If you missed yesterday’s entry about Too Much Exercise On Too Little Food, I’ll kill time for a few minutes while you go and catch up.

So, we were talking about giving our body a clear message of what to do with the calories that we give it. Remember?

Ok then, I’ll continue.

A resistance training program tells your body to build strength and lean mass. Carbohydrates are utilised as fuel and for recovery, proteins are utilised to build muscle. So when we consume calories to maintain a particular weight in the healthy range, we end up at that weight, with a lean, firm and toned physique. As all of the fuel we put in is being utilised, there is none left over to go into fat stores, and any existing fat stores will be reduced. In very simple terms, your body realises “I can only support this amount of body weight, but I still need more muscle. The only way I can do this is to reduce fat”.

It makes sense right? And the end result is… same weight, less flab. More tone.

Don’t believe anyone who tells you you can’t lose fat and build muscle at the same time.

Of course you can. You just have force your body to do it. However, (and I’m happy to say!) that doesn’t actually mean tortuously long, unpleasant work out sessions on starvation rations. It simply means suitable nutrition to support the results expected from an appropriate choice of exercise.

At the time of writing this article I’m personally maintaining 80kgs while becoming noticeably more lean from one week to the next. AND I eat pancakes most days!

But anyway I digress.

The results I described earlier assume that you are fuelling yourself appropriately with enough protein, carbs and fats making up the required amount of total calories for the day. Now, this next part is important so it gets it’s own line;

Even when you are trying to lose weight, there is still a MINIMUM amount of calories you require each day.

Again, it’s not a matter of “less calories, more weight loss”. It’s a matter of eating the right amount, somewhere between “no less than this” and “no more than this”. And as we add more exercise (or do the same amount but with improved performance) we actually need to start adding MORE calories. Not less, MORE.

What happens if you don’t?

The human body is designed to adapt and survive. When you are highly active and not adequately fuelled, the message the body gets is very simple; CONSERVE ENERGY. The more you reduce intake and increase activity, the more stubbornly your body holds on to those remaining body fat stores.

Once your body realises that you expect to (for example) run 4ks in the morning, lift weights in the afternoon, and whatever else in between (school, work, social life) on a stupidly low amount of calories; it has no choice but to slow everything else down and conserve energy. As a result you feel sluggish the rest of the day, are more prone to mood swings and so forth. You body simply does not have the resources available to function optimally, and this includes mentally and emotionally. Which makes for all the more frustration when the strategy is ineffective and does not result in the body changes you desire. In short, all you are really doing is making yourself miserable. Right?

Bottom line: If you’re a highly active person doing cardio or endurance training, weights or other resistance training, other physical activities such as dance or sport; you can’t do it while limiting your calorific intake to the minimum levels required for a sedentary person.

Train, eat, rest, ENJOY.

Part 1 of 2, all about Over Training While Under Eating. I’m not sure why everything I have to say requires two or more entries lately!

Lately I’ve been doing a lot of online PT as well as just answering people’s questions and trying to work out why they’re not getting the results they want for all of their hard work in the gym or where ever else they choose to exercise. What’s very nice is that people are following the advice that I give them, and within as little as a week or two they report back to me with improved results and better progress than ever before.

It’s interesting to note that in almost all cases of people who are already training but frustrated by a lack of results, the advice I give that makes all the difference is about the same; you are not eating enough, and in particular you are not eating enough carbs.

Wait, did I really just say that?

Isn’t that about the opposite of what the entire world is telling people about weight loss and nutrition? Yeah. It is the opposite! Regardless, it’s the correct advice and the people who follow it have all been very glad that they did.

Check the testimonials if you don’t believe me! Here’s one now.

Oh look, here’s another one.

Before we go any further I’ll make sure you understand; I am talking about people who have been training for some time, are VERY active, but aren’t seeing the results in the mirror that they expect. Fitness improves, performance on the track improves, but as far as getting closer to their goal physique their progress has stalled.

So… in the past few months I’ve become quite passionate about solving this issue of people (women in particular and especially the younger ones) who are under eating while over training.

I’ll say that again; they’re eating too little, and exercising too much.

Again that’s the opposite of what you ever expected me to say, right? But like I said in my video for “No Bullshit, No Excuses”; it’s not about doing more and more exercise on less and less calories.

Remember this; you’re the boss and your body will do exactly what you tell it to do.

Ever have one of those bosses who would tell you one thing, when really they wanted something else? Or maybe you’ve had an employee or co-worker who couldn’t follow instructions and would keep doing the same thing no matter how many times you explained to them “not like that; THIS is what I want!”

Out of these two opposing analogies, people who aren’t seeing the results they want from training probably identify pretty closely to the latter one. You keep telling your body to burn off the fat and get lean and toned and it just refuses to do it, right? Wrong. You’re the boss. You might want your body to be lean and toned, but if it’s not happening, it’s because you are telling it something different.

Now a few of you are probably quite offended by now thinking “this guy has no idea how much I do, how hard I try and how much I go without to keep my calories low, and he’s trying to tell me I don’t actually want to get lean and toned?”

Nahuh. I know you want to get lean and toned, but that’s not the message your body is getting. Get it?

Let me try to elaborate on this as best I can.

With some maths based on age, gender, height and activity level, we can determine the amount of calories required to maintain a particular weight, reasonably accurately. As far as body composition (amount of fat vs amount of lean mass) though, there’s a little more to it. The bottom line will always be total amount of calories required to maintain weight, but within this figure we need an appropriate ratio of calories from protein, calories from carbohydrates, and calories from fats.

Coming in a close second in terms of importance is … you guessed it… EXERCISE. We need an appropriate exercise program that tells the body what it needs to do with those calories.

It’s simple really. No exercise means your body has no reason to burn off or utilise the calories you put in, so it stores them as fat. Particularly if you are consuming in excess of maintenance requirements and even more particularly if there are a lot of “junk” calories in there.

Read on for more about Over Training While Under Eating.

Once again here is your advance warning; I’m not writing your usual bullshit media articles on this subject, tip toeing around the issue because “OH young people already feel too much PRESSURE to be thin”. What a load of garbage.

I’m repeating a little of what I already covering in the previous two entries, TO MAKE SURE YOU GET IT. There’s some new insights as well so read up and take it all in!

Like I said the other day; almost all people want to feel attractive and take pride in their appearance. Fat, skinny, muscular, athletic… whatever body type a person has, MOST of them still brush their teeth, go to the hair dresser, the waxing salon, the tanning studio, dress up in nice clothes… maybe they also get tattoos and piercings, and so on. Maybe you don’t do ALL of those things, but I’m certain you do at least one or two. Why? Because it’s normal to care about your appearance. It’s not because you feel pressured by society, am I right?

So despite the politically correct bullshit we’re supposed to think, people do want to look their best, and they feel happier and more confident when they know they are looking good.

I would suggest that young people DO feel a lot of pressure from society in a lot of areas (do well at school, get into Uni, get a good job, make lots of money, turn that music down), but unlike most of these things, the desire to want to look your best comes from within.

The only problem is that people don’t have the knowledge, motivation or support they need to go about changing from out of shape, to in great shape. But I’m dong my best to change all that because that’s what I do.

Body Image; Work To Your Strengths.

This part is important and especially for the girls out there. Beauty comes in many forms. I don’t know if I believe that it’s actually true that every time we compliment a supermodel for being pretty, a million teenage girls get depressed because they don’t have the same body type, face shape, hair colour, or whatever… I mean…. really? Come on, girls. It’s not like there is only one way you can look to qualify as “pretty” and everything else is “ugly”.

If you’re healthy and have a good, fun, positive attitude that’s going to add up “attractive” in most people’s eyes. The idea that men all have a “type” (and that ALL men like the same type) is far from accurate.

So, rather than worry about what you’re NOT, work with what you’ve got;

For example; if you’re naturally thin, work on adding some muscle for a firm, toned, LEAN and attractive body. If you’re naturally bigger, you can maintain your curves in the right places while improving your body composition, again resulting in a more attractive figure.

Like I said, work with what you’ve got. The idea is to be trying your best to be the best version of yourself… not to be more like someone else.

And of course, it goes without saying… we’re also talking about being HEALTHY here. Looking and feeling better is really just a by-product of doing things the right way in regard to food and physical activity. More on this shortly.

Identify Your Goal.

Make no mistake; your number one goal & priority in life is to be HAPPY & healthy. Getting an education, a good job, making an honest living and knowing right from wrong, those are all important things too, but the reason they’re important is because they make it a lot easier for you to have a good & happy life. So, being happy is always the most important thing, and absolutely everything else is merely a supporting item.

So if you’re not happy, do something about GETTING happy.

Your health is another crucial element in achieving a happy life, so of course good nutrition and physical activity go along way towards this. Along with the improved confidence and self esteem that comes from looking your best, as we already discussed.

Once you get started, you’ll be amazed how much better “I still have a long way to go, but I am doing my best!” feels, compared to “I’m not very happy, but I’m not doing anything about it”.

Think “Body Composition”, not “Weight Loss”.

This is SUPER important. Do not forget that the object here is to be healthy and feel good about yourself. Don’t obsess about the numbers on the scales too much. Obviously we went to end up in what is considered a healthy weight range… but don’t confuse this with “weigh as little as possible”. Remember that as far as actual body weight goes, factors such as improved bone density and lean mass (aka muscle) can offset fat loss… so how your clothes fit and what you see in the mirror can be a far better indication of progress than the numbers on your scales.

Develop a winner’s attitude.

Be realistic. No one is going to stick to their plan 110% of the time. If you have to miss training for some reason, or you eat a bit too much one day… that’s fine. Don’t beat yourself up over it, just get back on track again tomorrow.

Start to see yourself as the type of person who does what it takes to succeed in life. Allow yourself the occasional slip up. Successful people aren’t successful because they never make a mistake and everything goes exactly to plan… they’re successful because they try their best, keep on trying and never quit.