6 REASONS WHY YOU ARE NOT REACHING YOUR GOALS!
Constantly I hear of or see people not progressing in the gym or achieving the body they envision. This can be the result of many different aspects but the following are some of the most common reasons I see for why you are stuck spinning your wheels!
- Your consistency sucks!
- Pretty simply put getting results in the gym comes from consistency over time. This consistency is both in the gym and in the kitchen. Now, when I say time, I do not mean 1 day, 1 week or hell even one month.
- If we are talking about lean muscle tissue gains this can be the culmination of effort and consistency over months or even years. The consistency of eating that meal or training when you do not feel like training is the difference between 5lbs. and 10lbs. of muscle gain in one
- Pretty simply put getting results in the gym comes from consistency over time. This consistency is both in the gym and in the kitchen. Now, when I say time, I do not mean 1 day, 1 week or hell even one month.
year.
- If we are talking about fat loss the idea of consistency is just as important day to day and week to week. One slip up with an excessive amount of calories can set you back days or in some cases an entire week. Consistently hitting calories, cardio and workouts will be the only way you see CONSTANT progress!
- Your patience sucks!
- One of the biggest downfalls I see from both weight loss and muscle gain individuals is patience. Let me tell you what I tell most clients that have this issue. If you are 50lbs. overweight did you end up putting that weight on over 2 weeks or was it more like 2 years? What makes you think that 2 weeks of consistency will turn back what you have done over 2 years?
- Also, on this subject, muscle gain takes even more patience. Sure, as a new lifter you will gain lean muscle tissue fairly quick. But, if you are an experienced lifter lean muscle tissue gains are slow and gradual. For instance, it took me an entire year of heavy lifting, consistently eating until I was sick and pushing my body to limits it had never been pushed to in order to put on 10lbs. of lean muscle tissue.
- Your effort sucks!
- Effort is something that I see lacking a ton in the gym. Majority of people go in and go through the motions expecting to see results from simply doing enough. This is a common trend I see not only in the gym but across all aspects of life. But, I digress on that subject and will focus on those in the gym. Understand that when you go into the gym you are only there for 45-60 minutes. Take the time to focus in, shut the world off and execute what you have planned for the day to the best of your ability. Which brings me to my next point and probably one of the most overlooked aspects of making progress in the gym.
- For goodness sake STOP TEXTING during your workout and focus on YOU and the goal at hand! There is always time for selfies and texting AFTER the workout is done. PUT IN THE WORK!
- Your plan sucks and you don’t track anything!
- Go into the gym with a plan set in mind or even better on paper. Find a program that interests you in the goal you have at hand. There are many places to find programs and even a simple google search can help you to find an 8 week or 12 week program to follow to help you reach your goal. The key is to have a goal and for goodness sakes track how you are progressing on the program you choose! Write down or track the weights you are moving and the reps you complete. Make little notes in your training log. (something like this set was hard, weight was too easy, etc.)
- This goes back to the old saying that everyone knows and is cliché as hell. FAILURE TO PLAN IS PLANNING TO FAIL!
- Your nutrition sucks!
- I put this further down in the list than I probably should have but I am pretty sure everyone understands that if your nutrition does not match your goal you will NOT reach the goals you have in mind. I don’t care how much time you spend in the gym if your nutrition is shot then so are your goals.
- DO NOT UNDERCUT your calories. Probably the number one issue I see with most individuals that come to me for help with nutrition, no matter their goal, is their calorie intake is too low. If you undercut your calories this can be as detrimental if not more detrimental than over eating in some cases.
- Your rest sucks!
- A key factor that contributes to all of your goals being met is the amount of time you rest. This not only includes sleeping but, also includes days off from the gym and fully understanding how to listen to your body when enough is enough. I am the biggest culprit of this one as I am horrible about listening to my body when it is time to shut it down. My mindset was always push it until the damn wheels fall off. This is and a few other reasons is why I pay someone to do my programming. If it were up to me I would end up pushing myself into the grave. If you are anything like me we all need help on when to back off!
I can promise you that if you start to take into consideration all 6 of these points you will begin to see progress in the gym. Take the time to understand that the goals you have are all within your reach but, you must first ask yourself which one of these points applies to you. If it is all 6 then you definitely have some work to do! The positive point is that if all 6 apply you also have the chance to correct those issues and see the greatest amount of progress in the gym you have ever had! Look at this list as an instructional manual to help you improve and recognize the issues you have that are holding you back!