New Year’s Failure
Big News
My dad has dropped 15lbs so far since he started working out – way to go dad! By the way, he did this while only averaging 2 workouts per week, and NO aerobic exercise whatsoever. This is because a.) he is consistent, and b.) he gets help form an expert (a humble one at that:-)).
Also, my “Fat Ass to Bad Ass” article was just featured in Mike Robertsons newsletter for New Year’s. Click here to check it out.
Quote #16
“Half-ass effort yields full-ass results.” – Josef Brandenburg
Quick Tip #16: The Best Bargain In Fish Oil
It’s called “Flame Out,” and you can get it here (www.metabolicdrive.com). All fish oil capsules are about the same size, BUT the omega-3 fatty acid content (the stuff that you actually want) can vary dramatically. A single serving of Flame Out (same number and size capsules) is worth 3-4 servings of just about every other fish oil on the market – 3-400% more active ingredient is well worth an extra $5-6 per bottle.
Recipe #16: Pan-Seared Salmon with A Citrus Mint Sauce
You all can thank our wonderful and amazing guest chef, Dr. John Berardi, author of Precision Nutrition and Gourmet Nutrition for this month’s incredibly yummy and quick and healthy recipe. Click here for the recipe.
New Year’s Failure
The Top 6 Reasons People Fail To Drop Fat In The New Year
2007 is gone, and 2008 is here. Are you leaner and/or more muscular than you were last year? Have you achieved your physique goals? Unfortunately, statistically speaking, for 95-98% of you, the answer is NO! Here are the top 6 reasons why people fail in their New Year’s weight loss resolutions.
#1. Unrealistic expectations:
Almost everyone is trying to drop too much fat too soon, and trying to change too many habits too soon. This results in great short-term progress, followed by a complete relapse. Sacrificing sustainability for instant gratification is a complete waste of time. That is, if you drop 10lbs in 2 weeks, but then re-gain 10 over the next 5 weeks, you didn’t actually accomplish anything. You just wasted 7 weeks. If you had taken your time, and gone to work on your actual lifestyle (vs. going on a diet), then you could have dropped 7lbs of actual body-fat (instead of weight). And, if you had done this the right way you would have a good chance of keeping it off for life.
Even when people are trying to make habit changes, they often try and go too far too fast, and then give up around week #2.
Try this instead:
- *List the top 4-6 habits that you need to change (here’s a good list:
-Begin a smart exercise plan 3 days/week
-Begin eating a healthy breakfast of eggs and fruit (no bread) daily
-Stop getting second helpings
-Stop drinking your calories (replace alcohol, soda and juice with water, seltzer, diet soda, Crystal Light, green tea, and actual fruit)
-Make your final meal of the day low carb – animal protein (fish, steak, etc.) + veggies + small amount of healthy fat
-Adopt the “one or none” rule – that is either you have one alcoholic drink, or you have none - *Pick one or two that will give you the most bang for your time and energy investment
- *For 2-4weeks only focus on creating those one or two habits
- *Put everything else on maintenance
- *After you’ve made the new habit a regular part of your lifestyle, then you can move on to the next one on the list
- *Over time you will have created a lifestyle that will not only take the fat off of you, but will also keep the fat off of you. Sure, it will be slower going in the beginning, but how well have the quick fixes worked in the past? Didn’t you just regain all of the weight anyway? How long do you want to keep it off this time?
#2. Lack of commitment:
Paradoxically, many people are both excessively ambitious and inadequately committed. A big part of lack of commitment is taking on too much in the first place. Human beings have limits to how much they can change at one given time – frankly, it’s a pretty small number like 1 or 2. Even with a good plan, like the one above some people will still half-ass it.
For example, you decide that 3 smart workouts per week on M, W, and F is the best new habit you can develop. That is a good assumption, as you can realistically expect to drop approximately 1lb of fat per week with no changes in diet with one of my workout plans, IF you are consistent about doing it as it is written and on non-consecutive days (i.e. Tue, Thur and Sat). Click here for the free plan I put up last summer.
Your new workout habit must become an actual priority. That is, it must become more important than something else like watching extra TV, sleeping in, etc. It’s got to get scheduled, and it has got to get done, ESPECIALLY when there are conflicts in your schedule – that is how you build a real new habit.
#3. Making things more difficult than they actually are:
Mark Twain said, “I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened.” Most of the “problems” that people have exist only in their imaginations. Now, emotionally they are as real the roof on your house, but in reality, they’re just make believe.
Why does a regular exercise routine have to be so hard? It doesn’t. It’s not, unless you make it something difficult in your mind. I workout between 4 and 5 days per week, and I essentially never miss a workout. I do not miss them on account having a term paper to complete. I don’t miss them because I need to run my charity. I don’t miss them because I need to complete one of my two newsletters. I do not miss them because I’m tired and was only able to get 4-5hrs of sleep the night before. I don’t miss them because I attending some really fun social event. I don’t miss them because someone else screwed something up and I had to clean up their mess. I don’t miss them for bioanalytical chemistry finals. I don’t miss them for any reason, except maybe the flu.
NO, it is NOT because I am so “hard core,” or so disciplined, or anything like that. Its because of what I LOVE. I love the feeling of being fit, healthy and energetic. I love the way it looks to be really fit. I love making progress – lifting more weight, getting bigger, getting leaner, more athletic, etc. I love making progress and feeling good almost all of the time. And because of what I LOVE, I don’t even let the thought of missing a workout for ANY REASON WHATSOEVER creep into my mind ever.
The question is not, “how can I fit this workout in with everything else I have to do?” Because ~80% of that other stuff that you think that you “have to do” doesn’t really matter. If you didn’t do it, 1 week later it wouldn’t matter and no one, not even you, would care. But, missing a workout, that will matter each and every single day of your life. That is something that is actually important, not just urgent, not just habit, not just something that you do because you’ve always done it that way.
#4. Poor Goal Setting
In 1953 Yale did a study of their graduating class, and found that about 3% had written goals with plans for their achievement. The others had notions, wishes, goals in their head, or no idea where they were headed. In 1973, Yale followed up with the class of 1953 and found that the 3% with written goals and plans were worth more than the entire other 97% combined.
#5. Failure To Measure
If someone does set a specific New Year’s weight loss resolution like, “I want to drop 20lbs,” when do they check in? Next New Year’s when they’re hammered and feel bad because they suddenly remember that they didn’t drop that 20lbs. You need to answer the question, “How am I doing” every week with a number. This is NOT even remotely difficult or time consuming. It takes less than 2 min to measure your waist (guys), or measure your waist, hips and thighs (ladies), and compare them to last week’s numbers.
#6. No or Poor Plan
The cliché “If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail” is very, very true. Just because it’s a cliché, does not mean that it is somehow irrelevant.
Want A Plan That Is Guaranteed To Work?
Why waste your time trying to reinvent the wheel, when someone has already figured out a 16week fat-loss plan than will ensure that you continue making progress the WHOLE TIME? You’ll see exactly what exercises to do, how to do them, how many times to do them, how long to rest, what to eat, etc. to AVOID hitting a plateau and to keep the fat melting off for 16 FULL weeks. Don’t let 2008 be just like 2007. Get the body you want and get it this year. Click here to check it out.