The “Personalization Method” that Will Change the Way You Approach Fitness
I’ve been running 30 minutes every day for months. Smashing the push ups every morning, and crunching my abs out 4 times a week! But still, changes are barely noticeable.
Sounds familiar right?
This type of repeatable scenario lacks a significant element. The Personalization.
No matter your fitness goal, repeating what others are promoting or what method is trending without establishing the robust fundamentals for yourself will not get you anything but disappointment and self-doubt.
Our body types are uniquely different. Whatever works for me might not work for you, and I mean your entire routine, not only exercises but diet, workout, intensity, frequency, duration, and even the timeframe to accomplish your goals.
So, before you crack on or blindly follow “The magic diet plans” or “The top life-changing exercise programs” let’s create your own methodology.
1- Let your body decide.
As I mentioned earlier, our bodies are all different. We vary in our strength, our metabolic rate, our food tolerance, and our metrics. So instead of copying others’ diet or exercise, know your body and let it decide.
To start:
Monitor your eating habits and weigh yourself regularly.
Take an experiment period of one month to notice how your body reacts towards different types of food and portions. (This might sound dull but it will save you time and money later on)
Some observed reactions are instant and some appear on the scale every time you weigh yourself.
Eliminate or reduce what upsets your body. It can be a whole family of macronutrients, or a specific ingredient.
Manipulate your portions or break down your large meals into smaller meals.
Check your body composition regularly and compare it until you get it right.
A body composition test will give you visibility on the percentage of fat and lean muscle in your body. Follow a balanced exercise routine. (A combination of resistance and cardio exercises.) Revisit your body composition in six weeks’ and compare those percentages. Did it work? Can you notice a tangible change? If not, reevaluate your exercise program and your diet routine. It’s clearly not working for you.
Repeat this process until you get it right. Getting to know your body and letting it decide will help you significantly in Step 2.
2- Create a lifestyle.
In step number one we eliminated all troublemakers and time wasters based on our own evaluation. Now it’s time to create a well-balanced lifestyle that’s sustainable long term.
To do so:
Make it a goal, not a consequence.
Aiming to create a lifestyle will ease the restrictions for you. You don’t really want — all of a sudden — to crave the food you like or to waste your day exercising. Instead, eat what your body appeals in a moderate amount and do your personalized type of exercises 3 times a week. By doing so, you’re approaching a healthy, less strict, and sustainable lifestyle.
Break your goals down:
One of my favorite TED Talks of all time is How to Achieve Your Most Ambitious Goals by Stephen Duneier. His method was a life-changer for me. Stephen breaks down his big goals into smaller and doable ones. The same applies to fitness. One of the most common reasons why people give up on their fitness goals is the impossibility of achieving it due to their misestimation. Don’t be prey to that, instead, break down your goals and take one step at a time. Perhaps going to the gym as a start can be goal one. Walking any distance once a week can be goal two. Drinking a glass of water instead of sweetened fizzy drinks can be goal three. The list goes on, but just keep it simple and doable and progress over time.
3- Focus on intensity instead of duration
Intensity burns calories builds strength, and boosts endurance, while duration burns only time.
It doesn’t matter how long you do a certain activity, what really matters is how intense it is.
If you’re doing resistance training, increasing intensity will push your muscles further and will stimulate its growth. Leveling up your intensity when you cardio will double the amount of calories you burn. So, next time you work out - no matter what this exercise is, challenge yourself, push your boundaries, and break your own limits.
4- Focus on the form, not the count.
The reason behind working out is to activate a certain muscle within its range of movement. Understanding the origin and insertion of every muscle you’re working is important to ensure that you’re activating the muscle with the right form. I see many people, just bouncing from a machine to another, sweating themselves out but their form is off. Hmm! Try to avoid that. Spend some time before heading to the gym researching and understanding what type of muscle is highly involved in a certain movement. This will help you decide what exercise is efficient and worth your energy and what’s not. This task is only a one time exercise and after that, you will double the results. Practice the form with light weights and once you master it, go heavy!
5- Don’t neglect your muscle
Whether you’re a female or a male, looking to lose fat or getting a muscular shape, your muscle is the enabler to achieve your fitness goals. And It’s the indicator of how quickly you can do that because muscle is metabolically active- which burns more calories during your resting time, which will help you maintain and control your weight in long term time.
6- Appreciate every progression you make
Monitoring your progression, as we mentioned in step one is a huge leap towards change. But it doesn’t stop here. You must appreciate and recognize what you’ve achieved. This will fuel your motivation and keep you going. Don’t worry about how big or small your achievement is. Any achievement is proof of progression, and now it’s only a matter of time.
Final Thought:
When it comes to your fitness- nobody else will help you but YOU! There is no such thing called a perfect diet for everyone, there is no magic drink that will shred your shape off in one month, there is no a healthy unified method to suck your fat or pump your muscle. Understanding your body and knowing the reason behind every move you do will save you time, energy, and money while steadily approaching your fitness goals. Be consistent, patient, and create a lifestyle rather than a temporary solution.
