The Top 4 Fitness Mistakes You’re Making
They’re not what you think.
1. Doing Too Much At Once
It’s December and you’re getting ready to set your New Years resolutions. Again. You promise yourself, “this time will be it”. You decide you’re going quit smoking, start exercising 6x a week, go paleo, and meditate 20 minutes a day.
You can already see how this story ends, right?
The first few days (maaaaaaybe weeks) you’re committed AF. You nail your new routine. You’re feeling great. You’re a new person- man!
Then, work stars to wear on you. You arrive in late, having skipped breakfast, and there’s definitely-not-paleo-donuts at the conference table during your meet. You decide, “What’s one doughnut going to do?” So you reach over, grab it, and stuff that delicious hole-less piece of food in your face. Then you grab another, because, I mean, why not? You already ruined the day, right?
Fast-forward a few hours, you got home late from work and have zero motivation to workout. You choose to skip it, because “there’s always tomorrow.”
Next thing you know your well-intentioned resolutions all went down the drain. You decide changing is just too much work right now and you post-pone your goals to next month…or, now that you think about it, maybe next year?
Except, it doesn’t have to be this way. Instead of trying to change a million behaviors at once, choose one. I know, I’m well aware you fellow perfectionists and overachievers are cringing right now; so let me pose you one question: how has doing everything under the sun worked for you so far?
Chances are, not so great. So, why not momentarily put your old beliefs aside for just a little while (you can always come back to them later) and let yourself practice mastering one thing at a time for a bit? You down? Perfect. Here’s how it goes.
Choose one behavior (the one you think will have the most impact) to focus on for at least 2 weeks. As those weeks go by, track said behavior and reflect on it daily. How well is it working for you? What adjustments need to be made? How can you modify the behavior to adhere to it even more?
Continue repeating said questioning until you feel you’ve mastered it. What defines mastery? Your ability to perform the given behavior without having to give it much thought or put forth much effort into it.
2. Focusing Too Much On The Details
Details are sexy. Trust me, I know. It’s incredibly easy and thrilling to get sucked into the most recent über specific fad. Crossfit, Orange Theory, tracking macros, eating paleo- you name it. All of these protocols tell you exactly what to do and give you incredibly specific details to live by.
But, what about the “how”? Do they actually teach you how to move and eat?
Details are important, but only once you’ve established a strong and solid foundation to build upon.
Before you worry about how much weight you’re lifting, learn how to move well. Before you focus on what you “should” be eating, learn how to eat regardless of what food is in front of you.
Master the basics. Then dive into the details.
3. Getting Lost In The Outcome
When you set goals, what do you think of? Most of us shoot straight to an outcome: deadlift 300#, lose 10#, run a half marathon, wear a size 4 pants, etc. As enticing as these goals are, they cause us to focus on things we can’t really control. No matter how hard you train or how “clean” you eat, you actually have no say in exactly how many pounds you lose. Shocked? I know, I was too.
The flip side to this is setting behavior goals. Why? Because that you actually have full control over. You choose how many times to workout or how often to meal prep. This creates greater accountability with yourself, as well as giving you more data on whether or not you’re putting in the work to reach your goals (regardless of the outcome). As an example, you can shift this outcome goal of “deadlifting 300#” to “deadlift 2x a week” (now a behavior goal).
4. Seeing It As A Short Term Fix vs. A Lifestyle
“Once I’m done with this plan, I’ll be good. I will be ‘fitness-ly’ fixed.” Or will you? Many of us go into different fitness endeavors with the intention of it being a quick-fix. Something we’re going to partake in for a limited about of time, until our goals are achieved, and then resume our regularly scheduled life. But that’s not the way it works- or rather, it will work with the utmost perfection if your goal is to hold on to those results for as long as it took you to achieve them, or (in most cases) less.
The moment you adopt a fitness routine or eating regimen with the intention of it being a short-term solution, you’re fucking yourself over in the long term. How? You risk slowing down your metabolism significantly, getting injured, becoming burn-out, etc.
Yes, there is a time for taxing short-term solutions (i.e. cutting weight for a meet, overreaching in training, etc.). But there is no room for it (especially at the beginning of your journey) when your goal is to achieve a certain physique and be able to maintain it.
Conclusion
Fitnessing isn’t easy. So you might as well give yourself a leg up by actually focusing on the behaviors that will give you the greatest return in the long run. Yes, progress will be slower. Yes, it will be worth it.
Ready to change your mindset once and for all? Grab “Get Out Of Your Way” here.
