Keep it simple and consistent

Reading fitness headlines daily can either be confusing, motivating, or if you are like me, irritating.  I find myself shaking my head and rolling my eyes whenever I gaze upon a new and improved method on how to diet or train.  Like Arnold and his boys did not have things figured out in the 70s already.

My attempt to elaborate on what to avoid and what to emphasize will be kept short and sweet in this article, because again, if you are like me your attention span will not allow to last long enough to read the latter pages.  The solution? Well the heading says it…

When breaking it down for clients on how to reach their goals and what to focus on, my checklist remains the same for all. Regardless if you are 12 weeks out from show day or you are the bored housewife trying to shake of the Tuesday morning wine and sushi.  Identifying your goals and then assessing your current condition would be primary.  Planning out your availability to exercise and your daily limitations (lazy people love that phrase) will follow in order to start setting out your plan of action.  When determining your BMR and how much muscle we have to feed in your current state, we work out your caloric intake and nutritional markers, match that with the type of exercise program customized to your body that you are going to follow and then … well then the blueprint is in place.

Most people treat their fitness goals like a bank heist, a very lazily thought through bank heist... they bust through the front door with guns blazing.  Demanding results with an impatient unconvincing aggression. Goodluck.  I advise you do a staff and security headcount a few weeks prior, work out your backup plan to match your escape path, follow the route you mapped out so you can avoid camera detection on your way to the bank volt which you hopefully already know the safe codes for.

Translation? Well my point is to respect the system and have patience and precision in your approach.  That first approach I see most people take leaves them caught out and unmotivated after 2 weeks.

Fuelling and recovery is everything, whether you are blessed with Hercules genetics or not.  Your homework to approach a gym session is important. Ensuring your body is fuelled for the task at hand, knowing what to expect from your session and having a clear goal should be matched with your best efforts in intensity.  After all of that you can couple your relieved smile and endorphins with a nice recovery nutrition plan until we rinse and repeat.

Obviously, there is a lot of room for modifications and experience will shift you into different progressive pathways forward.  You would need to fund this project through consistency and effort, and like I have always said, that requires absolutely zero talent.  This initial phase is what I will describe as simple and basic rocket science.  There is a lot to it but allow your routine to take you there and unlock the next level of your journey.  Adjusting calory intake, training intensity and recovery methods will soon follow. The most colourful protein powder and that flashy arm strapped iPod might be there and waiting in the future, but for the love of cheesecake…. Earn your way first!

Armand Smuts

Founder of Grounded Fitness