One size fits all? Don't fall for it.

Now I know by the title, the first thing you are probably thinking about is t-shirts. You know the ones. You go to a show or event, and they have "one size fits all" give-a-way shirts. You get it and it's an XL. Sure it fits a lot of the people, but if you are bigger than an XL you are out of luck. Also, if you are one that doesn't like to swim in their shirts, you are out of luck too.

But that is not what this post is about. No, it's about cookie cutter/one size fits all exercise programs and diet programs. You see them everywhere. Heck just stay up late one night and watch paid programming. In 30 minutes you are bound to see infomercials advertising some kind of exercise program or new diet craze/supplement. But much like clothing, it may not really fit you!

Sure these programs work for some people. But everyone is different. Everyone has different needs when it comes to their diets and their exercise. Now some people that "work" for these program producers will talk about modifying to fit you, but that is BS. You can't take a person that suffers from extreme back pain and have them do HIIT and Plyometrics, it's going to cause more harm than good, even with modification of moves. The same with taking a vegan and putting them on a regular meat and potato diet. Or lets go even a step further, you can't put everyone on an IIFYM (if it fits your macros) diet. IIFYM is really popular right now. Sure, it works, but again only for some people. Are there studies that show that it works? Yes there are, but there are also studies to show that IIFYM is absolute garbage and is only popular because of one or two PHD's in the fitness industry boasting about it's the best way to diet.

The whole point of all of this, is if you buy a program from TV or the store, you may get results, but you probably wont get the results you want if you get any at all. You need to get something tailored for you. One final note, make sure to read the fine print on the infomercials you watch, it will state "results shown are not typical". Just some food for thought.

It doesn't get easier

I know, that isn't really a reassuring title for a post that should be motivating. But this isn't really a motivating post. This is about the cold hard facts of being on your journey to being healthy. This is about the obstacles that are out there when coming from the side of food addiction. If you are trying to lose weight, then you likely have a relationship with food other than just to live.

Just think about other addictions out there be it alcohol or nicotine. When you decide to quit, you can actually separate yourself from those temptations. Sure, you are still going to crave those things for a while, but you don't actually have to be around them. Well that is unless you like to torture yourself. But when it comes to food addiction, you can't not be around food. You have to have food to survive. Over the years you have probably used food for many purposes. I completely understand that too. Food can be used for comfort, celebration or just pure enjoyment. Somewhere in our history, we linked other things to food besides survival.

Sure, we still eat to survive, we don't have a choice there. But do we really need chocolate cake or cookies? What about pizza or gourmet hamburgers? Now I am not saying that you have to leave all those things behind. Heck, I like to enjoy some oreos, ice cream, pizza and burgers every single week. But those cheats make it very easy to fall off the wagon and re-link food to enjoyment and not survival. The link will never go away. We can't separate ourselves from it, and it's a constant struggle.

I really wish I could tell you that it gets easier as you go, but it doesn't. All I can recommend is for you not to completely deprive yourself of these foods, but limit them to just one time a week or every other week. Like stated above, even one cheat meal can throw you back into a downward spiral. Remember to eat to fuel your body. Plus, eating to fuel your body doesn't have to be gross bland food, you can make it taste good, and something that you might enjoy. You don't have to have chicken and rice everyday, change it up, use spices and seasoning. Don't be afraid of salt either. Often times when you remove all salt, your body starts to crave things, and then you will binge on different unhealthy items just to try and satisfy that craving. Keep you diet balanced and keep positive.

Food is not the Enemy

When it comes to changing your lifestyle, it's easy to fall into the wrong way of thinking. Most of us that are switching our lifestyles are making huge changes in our diets. I know I sure did. The biggest mental issue to get over when this change starts, is how we look at food. Quite frankly this mental issue can stick around through your entire journey, even after you have done a complete transformation.

Think about it. You spend your time counting calories now. You start thinking if you consume less calories you will lose weight faster and get fit quicker. You begin to think of food as the enemy, you even become scared of food. Food is the single most important thing in your transformation! Food is what fuels your basic life functions. The human body needs 1200 calories a day to sustain healthy functions. To people that are scared of food, that seems like a lot. That 1200 goes really fast throughout the day. You walk around the office, walk down the stairs, workout, and so on. This 1200 burns up fast! This 1200 is the absolute minimum! You need more than that.

Most active woman can count on a good 1800 calories a day and be pretty well off calorie wise. But if you are a woman and are majorly active, well you are going to need to ramp that up a bit more. Take into account that during a 1 hour workout, you are probably burning anywhere between 500 - 800 calories depending on intensity. Now you have sunk back below that 1200, and your body wont fully recover. Food is your fuel, food will actually help promote weight loss with proper nutrition. Want to build muscle? Get some hot sexy abs? You have to eat.

But it's not just the calories. Sure you can get 1800 calories or so from just 1 meal of crap. It's the quality of calories. You need to consume good healthy foods. This means lean meats, vegetables, fruits, grains, healthy fats, complex carbs. Don't cheat yourself with garbage, because you will never get where you want to be. I can easily go into a restaurant and order a meal and get 3000 calories in that one meal. I know, I have done it before. And all those calories are normally absolute garbage. Be smart, eat for your goals, don't starve yourself. If your nutrition is in place, you will reach your goals. Your journey starts in the kitchen, and ends in the gym!

Eat for the Future, not the Past

Ok, that might sound kind of strange, I admit. But when it comes to your daily eating, often times people eat incorrectly. Most people that are trying to drop weight eat very light all day, then after they workout they have a large meal. This is entirely wrong! Sometimes this is done as a reward to ones self. The thinking is "I worked really hard, I deserve this" The other thought is just replenishment of the body. Here is the deal. You should be eating based on what you will be doing, not for what you have already done. If I am going to workout in the AM, I am going to eat a larger breakfast because I am not going to be sedentary in the next few hours. I am going to be active and I need that energy from my meal. If I am working out at night, then I am going to eat a regular breakfast and lunch, and make my dinner larger to fuel for my workout. Again, I need this energy. Even though your metabolism is up after a workout, this does not mean it's going to burn a bunch of calories that you are just putting in it.

Now this pertains mostly to dropping fat, there are exceptions to every rule. But do you really want to workout at night, eat a ton of food and be inactive for 8 hours? I smell a good portion of weight gain right there. There is nothing wrong with eating after a workout, just be smart about it. Fuel your body before your workout, not afterwards.