You're getting ready to finally buckle down. Your mind is in the right place, dedicated 95% of the time sticking to your nutrition plan, you are going to hold yourself accountable to a minimum of 3 days a week exercising, 4-5 if possible. 

Let's do this!!

Now, you go online to figure start thinking planning out your workouts, when you're met with 1,000 different workouts and programs that all claim to be the best to burn belly fat, lose 10 pounds, DETOX your body (anything promoting losing fat via detox is a SCAM). It feel like a never ending corn maze and can be overwhelming.

There are a lot of training protocols. A lot have different benefits, and some information can be downright bad.

1. When unsure, enlist the help of a professional don't make the mistake of going after someone who is simply 'insta-famous'. just because that particular person is in good shape does not necessarily mean they are qualified to help someone else. You want to make sure the personal not only has adequate credentials, but also has a good history of CLIENT success. Again, do your research. Make sure this isn't just someone who worked with someone for 10 weeks, or 1 contest who was already in good shape. Look for the before and after similar to what you want to achieve.

2. Stick to it! Just like when you first start a nutrition program, if you don't have a history of training, you can expect to see some decent changes right off the bat. This will be for almost any program that you start INITIALLY. The real test will be after the first 4-6 weeks, when there is no more water weight loss, your body and muscle have acclimated somewhat to the exercise, THEN track your progress. How do you know if something is working if your don't track (I have written about the importance of this before). While everyone is always looking for the fastest results possible, getting in shape is a marathon, not a sprint. It takes time.

3. Make changes! In due time...

I always looks for the science in everything I do. There are certain mechanisms in all of our bodies that work the same, for energy, fat loss, muscle gain, etc. That means I build muscle in exactly the same way that you all do. So why isn't there 1 clear cut training program that is simply THE BEST? Besides all having different raining goals, all of our bodies are still different is different ways.

Just like nutrition, you need a training program that is sustainable. This means that you will always be able to get all of your workouts in (don't set yourself up for failure and start a 6 day a week program if you know there will be times you can only fit 3-4 in, do a 3-4 a week program). Also making sure exercises that are both doable in regards to have the right equipment, and that your body is able to. Starting a program that have many ballistic movements is obviously not going to be the most conducive if you have degenerative disk disease.

Once you have a really good sense of how your body responds to different types of workouts, rep ranges, frequencies, etc, you can modify as needed to continue to progress. The same workout will not continue to yield optimal results. As your fitness level increases, you get stronger, and get leaner, you need to adapt your workout to your new level of fitness.

4. This ties all 3 points together. There is a HUGE difference between simply exercising and putting you time in, and actually training. Your body is smarter than you, it will adapt to the stress you put it through. Just putting your time in and doing unstructured exercise to burn calories will get you no where quick. Once that initially couple of pounds is gone, you don't see any extra. I know a lot of people who are fairly active that cannot lose weight. Why is that? Even though they may burn more than the average person in their demographic, their body has adjusted to that level of activity. Think about it- if you start walking 2 miles a day, eventually that same 2 miles is the 'norm'. It will become routine like walking up a flight of stairs and will not elicit the same metabolic response. It is so simple, if you do not keep adapting your workouts to your new level of fitness, you will not keep losing weight. I am beating a dead horse here, because it seems some people need to be reminded.

I challenge everyone to consider enlisting the help of someone if even for only a 'change up'. You can always learn some new tricks that can be beneficial. This could be to break out of that plateau, learn new methods of training in changing goals, or even 'just'  looking for a new challenge to ramp up progress. I consider myself very knowledgeable in the fitness field. I have been very successful in my own endeavors and have helped many reach new levels, including achieving personal goals and doing well in competitions. Having said that, I have worked with many different coaches in the past myself for the reasons above. Learn new strategies, a fresh set of eyes to diagnose technical issues, and I also want to learn as much as I can, and continue to pass that along and help as many others as I can!

Cheers to all of us becoming the best versions of ourselves that we can!