Have you hit a plateau with your training?
Have you lost your desire to go to the gym?
Have you stopped seeing results with your physique?
Maybe you need a new training program to follow. Maybe you need to seek out the expert advice from an experienced and educated Personal Trainer. Maybe you need to take a few days off from the gym and recharge both your mind and your body.
Or Maybe, you just need to start training a little harder…….
The Cold Hearted Truth
Let’s be honest. Most people who are training in gyms these days are not training intensely enough. I know that there are some of you reading this that believe you are training hard and maybe you are. If you’re one of our clients, then don’t worry, you most certainly are training hard enough, as we don’t allow you to give anything less then 100% to your workouts each and every time you set foot in the gym. However from what I see on a daily basis from others around me, simply put, when it comes to training, there is a serious lack of effort being used in today’s society.
Whether it be sitting on a piece of exercise equipment for a prolonged period of time scrolling though their Instagram newsfeed on their phones while they “rest” in between sets, or taking gym selfies in the mirror, or striking up a 5-10 minute conversation with other gym members DURING their workouts, I would describe the training intensity that I see being used these days, at lackluster at best.
The Perfect Program
Unfortunately we now live in a time where most people are always looking for the next best thing. And when it comes to building muscle while losing body fat, there will always be these same people looking for the latest and newest ways to achieve success with their physiques. So they seek out “The Best” Training Program online. Or they hire the most expensive and most popular Online Coach/Trainer on social media that they can find. And usually after a few short weeks of realizing “The Best” Training Program is really not that great, or that their Online Coach is really just sending them copy and paste answers and feeding them generic garbage that they themselves could just find online with a click of a button, they become frustrated and quit.
Don’t worry though, these people are usually creatures of habit, and after a few weeks off from training and exercise, will usually return to their old patterns of looking for that next best coach or latest training formula to reignite their passion and motivation to resume training at the gym again.
Burning My Own Bridge?
Look, I’m an Online Coach and I design training programs for clients on a weekly basis. However when I design a training program, I don’t claim that it’s the best and guarantee that it will deliver results. I create a customized plan that is tailored to the individual of whom I’m working with. Anyone can follow a program, however how much time and effort that they decide to put into that program will ultimately depend on how hard their willing to work.
For example, I can give two different people a barbell back squat in their training program and ask them to do 5 sets of 12-15 reps per set with a drop set on the last set. Now the first person might decide to do all 5 sets to the best of his or her ability and take minimal time in between sets to rest. Whereas the second person might decide to do all 5 sets, but they might also decide to rest 3-5 minutes between each set while periodically checking their phone or chatting with their gym neighbour performing another exercise right next to them.
Two different people. Same exercise. But I can guarantee you that over the course of 3-6 months, the first person who is busting their ass and giving every single set 110%, is going to achieve far greater results with their physique.
Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself
I’m a firm believer that if you want to be the best at something, then you need to work with the best people that will help you achieve your goal. And when it comes to transforming your physique and improving your overall health, working with a professional or a team of professionals that have a track record for success, will save you lots of time, frustration, possible risk of injuries and even long term expenses.
With that said, not everyone can afford the assistance of a reputable Personal Trainer/Online Coach, or think that they can just join a low cost “Boot Camp” designed for the masses that will help them build muscle and lose fat efficiently. Well, I personally believe when it comes to your health, you get what you pay for. And any so-called “expense” should be viewed upon as an investment if you’re receiving quality service and useful information.
Regardless if you are working with a Trainer or training on your own, there is one thing that I think we can all agree on and that is, that maximum effort will always produce maximum results. Therefore I think it’s important to remember that before you go spend your hard earned cash on the latest training formula or weight loss gimmick, to sit back and assess as to what you yourself have been doing on your own to get to where you’re currently at today.
If you’re not happy with the way you look and don’t like how you are feeling, then a change needs to occur. But that change needs to start from within first, before even the best of the best trainers in the world can help you. No training program or diet plan will work unless you’re willing to work with it. Go to the gym, put your blinders on and stay focused on what you want to achieve. Keep your phone in your locker or put it on airplane mode when you’re in the gym. Save your conversations with gym friends for either before or after your workout, not during. As for selfies, if you’re someone who takes selfies while training in the gym, then obviously you’re not serious about your training and therefore aren’t serious about achieving results. In which case, keep taking your selfies I guess…….
As for the rest of us, let’s stay focused and get to work! Perhaps if more people trained hard it would motivate others around us to do the same.
Get fit, stay healthy, keep training as intensely as possible, and enjoy your results!
Yours in Good Health,
Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit Performance