Blog Archives
It’s Not About a RIGHT Answer – It’s About Asking WHY
In terms of dieting and working out there are a lot of RIGHT answers.
However, there is very little understanding about WHY certain things are correct.
Take for instance this question “How many exercises should be included in a workout?”
A correct answer could really be anything. You could say all you need is ONE exercise.
But you could also say you sometimes need 15.
It just all depends on what you are trying to accomplish with the workout.
Same goes for diet.
I’ve told you I’m not a huge fan of “Paleo” baked goods. And I have my reasons WHY.
And honestly it isn’t so much the baked goods as the fact that most people don’t really understand WHY they are even doing Paleo that irritates me.
Everything with diet and exercise sort of circles back to WHY with me.
Why are you doing something?
Do you understand the studies and rationale behind what you are doing?
Since there is no one right answer, you have to pick the right answer for YOU. And you can’t do that if you just choose something and follow it blindly.
You can only truly find the right thing for you if you understand the reasoning behind what you are doing – the WHY.
Nothing irritates me more than people who just follow the fads and never ask WHY.
Understand WHY you are doing something people! There are lots of things that can work and if you don’t understand why, you probably aren’t going to pick the best option for you. You are simply going to pick something you’ve heard works for others!
Heck you might even end up doing something that sets you back because you don’t understand the rationale behind it!
So this week, think about your program.
Do you understand WHY you are doing what you’re doing?
And ask yourself, “Is it really working?”
Because if it isn’t working and you don’t understand why you are doing what you’re doing, you may not know how to change things for the better.
So start doing some research. Figure out the WHY behind your program so you can change things as needed and start really progressing toward your goals.
Do you know WHY your program is set up the way it is? Is there a method and rationale behind it?
And is it helping you reach success?
The Five Pillars of Health
Being healthy is about more than working out or eating well – it is about balancing what I call “The Five Pillars of Health.”
These five pillars are:
- Diet
- Activity
- Sleep
- Vitamin D/Sunlight
- Stress
When you do your best to get the most out of all five pillars, you will be healthy. Ignore one and all of your hard work with the others may go to waste.
Being healthy is all about BALANCE.
Let’s take a look at all five pillars and how they each contribute to us being healthy.
Reaching Your Goals – Focus on one thing at a time
I’ve frequently talked about the story of the tortoise and the hare – about how small steady changes over time lead to great, LASTING results.
About how sometimes, if you go all in, you end up feeling too deprived, which leads to failure and you possibly even ending up worse off than when you started.
BUT going slow and steady isn’t always easy and it doesn’t always mean moving forward.
Sometimes it means admitting you just can’t handle more than one change at that time even if that means your progress stalls for a bit.
I’ve actually had this discussion with a number of clients recently. They are busy, stressed and want to make changes, but mentally just can’t handle more on their plate.
That’s when you just have to give yourself a break and pick one thing to focus on.
Sleep deprived? Diet not where you would like it to be? Can’t seem to get in a rhythm with your workout routine?
Pick one and focus on it and leave the other problems for another day….Even if it isn’t the biggest or most “important” change you need to make, it is a change!
Sleeping more may not seemingly give you as quick or as direct a result as say dieting would in progressing toward your weight loss goal, but it will eventually move you forward.
It is a step in the right direction, no matter how slow the direct results may be.
And that step, even if it is small, will create forward momentum.
Forward momentum because you know you did something toward your goal. Forward momentum because you gave yourself some breathing room and only one thing to focus on. Forward momentum because you took the stress away of having to do everything all at once.
Forward momentum because one change spurs more change and often gives you the energy you need to keep moving forward.
There is nothing wrong with admitting you can’t do everything at once.
Most of us can’t even though most of us want to.
Give yourself a chance at success. Be patient and don’t rush your goals.
Focus on one thing at a time!!
Man Bicep 