Getting the Most Out of Your Fitness Program – Fitness Goals

There are several reasons why people fail when it comes to their fitness goals. I hear people all the time who feel they have done everything in their power, but aren’t getting the results that they wanted from their fitness program. However, as a professional certified personal trainer, I always wonder what is missing in their overall plan. People often start out with the best of intentions, but lose their drive, focus or put on blinders for a variety of reasons. How can we ensure success with our clients or our own goals?

Ensure Success With Your Fitness Program

• Consistency is key – Many people start a fitness program with unreasonable expectations of themselves and when they fail to keep them, they stop all together. Start off any plan with an appointment with a personal trainer. Professionals will make a plan for you that won’t overwhelm you, overstress your body or create overuse injuries. Plans should be made based on your current fitness level, physical health, lifestyle and age. The plan should follow the FITT principle which stands for Frequency, Intensity, Type and Time. The most important part of any plan is consistency. Don’t miss any work outs once your plan has been set up , if you need to postpone one for something urgent, then fit it in the same day.

• Accountability – Make yourself accountable by booking an appointment in your schedule and sticking to it. Make sure anyone working with your schedule knows that work outs are non-negotiable. When you are new to exercise, hire a personal trainer, and book appointments. Your trainer will help you to make fitness a habit. Once you start seeing result, motivation to see more will help keep you at the gym. Making a date with a training partner also helps to keep you accountable. One of you will always be motivated to get out there and be consistent.

• Nutrition – The biggest issue I see with clients is their nutrition plans. We often hear the old adages “Weight loss is 75 percent diet and 25 percent exercise.” or “Abs are made in the kitchen, not in the gym.” People often overestimate or underestimate their caloric intake. When you initially start your nutrition plan, find an app or computer program, which gives you an exact break down of your calories and macronutrients. You will notice I do not say diet because nutrition is a lifestyle not a temporary plan. Ensure you have made an appointment with a nutritionist for this part of your plan. Nutritionist will give you the exact macronutrient break down that you need to be following to attain your specific goal. Infofit can help with their Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) test. The RMR test will give you the exact amount calories you need to be consuming. Another thing to remember about food is … there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Even if a particular food is “good for you” calories still count. Monitor how much you are ingesting.

• Plateaus – Your work out plan needs to be revised every 3 to 6 weeks. Our bodies are efficient machines and will adapt to any given stress. We can only expect gains for a few weeks then we need to switch up the plan. Your personal trainer will give you ways to adjust your current program (change the reps, sets or intensity) or they will change the angles with which the exercise is being performed. After 4 weeks the exercise plan should be switched up and new exercises are introduced. Change ensures our body never has the ability to fully adapt to the plan. Your personal trainer will split up your plan into macrocycles, mesocycles and microcycles. Discuss the over view for the year so plateaus do not become part of the reason you are not getting results.

Have Fun with Your Fitness Program

The best news: there’s a way to get past the reasons you aren’t moving forward. Make sure you see your physician to rule out any metabolic disorders that may be stopping you from getting results. Hire a certified personal trainer and nutritionist to help achieve fast efficient results. The biggest thing to remember is to have fun! Fitness should bring you pleasure! Good luck and much success!

Cathie Glennon, BCRPA-SFL