Due to the rise of the internet, the way that people seek out, gather, learn and retain information has changed dramatically over the past twenty years. Instead of calling someone, enrolling in a course or going to the library the first place we go to learn something or find a product or service is the internet. In many ways the evolution of the internet and especially social media has benefited us as a society immensely as both have made it much more convenient and easier for us to communicate with one another, become more knowledgeable about our surrounding environment and the world that we live in and allow us to save time on completing the simplest of tasks such as banking and shopping which can now both be done online with the click of a few buttons.

Unfortunately as always with the good also comes the bad. Unless you’ve lived under a rock or in a cave over the past ten years then you already know of most of the adverse and conflicting byproducts that can result with the overuse of both social media and the internet. Therefore I won’t bother to go into much detail about this. However with so much information given to us for practically nothing on a daily basis through online networks, tutorials and websites I’m beginning to wonder – With all this unlimited information (both good and bad) being delivered to us, are we beginning to lose our own common senses?

When it comes to training, nutrition and the human body I consider myself to be someone who uses facts and science to help identify the issues, implement a plan, create a strategy and design a program that will allow my client to achieve the results that he or she is looking to accomplish. Whether those results are solely for aesthetic purposes or for improving overall health and well being, or even a combination of both, I have to be able to make sense as to what I am doing with a client and why am I doing it. Therefore I don’t just follow diet advice from a friend who just lost twenty pounds in four weeks or suggestions from a local bodybuilder who just won a national level show with regards to training and supplementation. Unless either of these people have a background in biomechanics or at least a general understanding of how the human body operates there is no chance I would ever listen to anything they would ever recommend to help my clients achieve their health and fitness goals.

Therefore I rely on the facts. And to learn the facts and to be able to separate them from the fiction, I have to research, study and then research some more. And when it comes to human anatomy and how the body functions as a whole, this is exactly what I do. I read information from reputable sources, I educate myself by going to lectures given by sports doctors and I listen to other highly respected and knowledgeable fitness professionals within our industry. You wouldn’t call your plumber for financial advice and you wouldn’t call your financial advisor to come and fix your toilet. So why should your health and fitness be any different?

So what am I saying? I’m saying USE YOUR COMMON SENSE! Don’t just listen to everything that you read about dieting and training online. There is ALOT of bad information out there given by people who have little to no understanding of how the effects of severe dieting can create a hormonal imbalance or how following a specific training program can actually cause more harm then good for each different individual. Even if you are working with or taking advice from some of the top personal trainers, physiotherapists, chiropractors and doctors make sure that you educate yourself to the best of your ability. This is after all your health that we are talking about.

As I always say – Nobody will ever know your body as much as you do. What I mean by this is that you are the only person that knows how you are feeling on a regular basis. You are the only person who understands what you can do and what you can’t do. It’s easy to get side tracked or take some unsolicited advice from the guy with the ripped abs or the girl with amazing glutes but you need to remember what worked for them may not and most likely WILL NOT work for you.

Be an individual not a follower. Create your own formula or at least enlist in the services of a professional that you trust and respect to help you design a plan and then follow it. Don’t get caught up on in all the small details and overcomplicate things. Keep it simple and direct. If you want to lose weight then YOU CAN make it happen. If you want to build muscle then YOU CAN make it happen. And most importantly if you want to be true to yourself and do things on your own terms for your own health then YOU WILL make it happen.

Yours in Good Health,

Nick Cosgrove