I Speak From Experience

Being a perfectionist myself I find it a blessing and a curse. I spend too much time making sure things are perfect because I care, so half-ass jobs on my part do not sit well with me. The issue with things being perfect is that it slows down or completely stops momentum. So, when it comes to your health and fitness, you need to care and make sure things are on point…most of the time.

Be Consistent With Food

Let’s first start with food. Consistent good eating, i.e. healthy food, not overeating, but allowing yourself to indulge here and there is how you win. Life can throw you a S*#t storm with work stress, family stress, travel, or you’re just on the go all time.

How can one eat perfectly? Well for most of us you can’t. A glass of wine to calm the nerves, a piece of chocolate to help you move on from the day at work, or in my case heading to Starbucks and getting Nature’s way to get amped and bring me some good old comfort are all ways we deal with the day-to-day grind. These treats are all completely normal and all completely okay in the big scheme of things.

The 80/20 Rule

As I posted in a video last month, it comes down to the 80-20 rule, 80% of the time be on target, 20% of the time allow yourself to have the stuff you love. Remember that even if you are trying to maintain your current weight or even lose weight you can allow yourself some treats. The secret…staying within the calorie range that allows to reach those goals.

The same logic applies to working out. If you are 21 years old and you are in college, there is no reason why you shouldn’t crush every damn workout and I should know because I lived that life once. But for regular people that work, that aren’t 21, who may have families, and are social, crushing every single workout isn’t a reality. We must temper our expectations of ourselves and know there will be more ups and downs. Lack of sleep, slower recovery time, and sick kids can swing the pendulum more there we care to admit.

Adjust

Here again is where the 80-20 Rule can be applied successfully to your game plan. If you are tired, beat up, or have zero to low motivation…adjust your workout. In most cases, it’s better to do a little something like a light walk, stretch, or go on an easy bike ride, more times than not it will make you feel better anyways. This is the 20%, yeah you didn’t get that planned strength training session in or go to that spin class but you still moved your body. This again is a victory. Consistency at work.

In the beginning stages of weight loss most people will find:

a 1-2 pound loss on the scale each week
better energy
motivation to continue the journey

Momentum Falls Off

You have been riding on the momentum of the weight loss wave until the last few weeks hit. That damn scale hasn’t moved a fraction of an inch and you are stuck. Panic is starting to set in and you are thinking of taking drastic measures to ensure you reach your goal. Take a breath and let’s take a logical approach to dealing with the inevitable plateau.

If you have gone more than 2 weeks without the scale budging it’s time to change things up.

Bust Through That Plateau

1. Decrease Calorie intake - The easiest place to start is to cut more calories out of your daily allowance. The mistake most people make is they cut too many calories out at once. Instead take a conservative approach, decrease your calories by 100 per day. You must make sure that you are eating adequate protein and fat levels every day, so to cut calories, decrease the amount of carbs you are eating.

2. Lace up your shoes - The 2nd place to help promote fat loss is by increasing your cardio. How much cardio should you be doing and what types of cardio should you be doing - HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) or LIIS (Low Intensity Steady State)?

The answer is both, but I give HIIT the advantage. 2-3 days of HIIT is more than enough to accomplish the job. An example of this would be 5-8 reps for 25-45 seconds at a 90% + effort is plenty to get the job done. You will need to rest for 1:30-2+ minutes before attempting another rep.

HIIT Workouts

spin bike
sprints
sled
tire flips
stairs
rowing
running hills

LIIS workouts

For those less experienced exercisers or for those cardio haters LIIS probably is a better way to go. 3-5 times a week, 45-60 minutes.

stroll
easy bike ride
recumbent bike

3. Change your goals - Maybe it is time to switch things up. Being in calorie deficit can take a toll on you psychologically and affect your social life. Let’s assume you now have healthy levels of body fat, maybe it is time to focus on another goal that is motivating and has you excited.

One of the better fitness goals that I can tell you to do is to focus on strength training, the benefits of being strong are endless. Remember skinny does not mean fit. Your strength has a direct affect on how you interact with your environment. Strength training will do the following:

increase bone density
improve your posture
improve your work capacity
build some serious self-confidence

Let It Go

Strength training is the best thing you can do when taking on father time.

Constant dieting can be a daunting task. It might be time to let go of the idea of perfection. If you have been at it for a while change things up and focus on just eating well, exercising, moving everyday, and having some fun.

Contact me if you need help getting over the weight loss hump. I can design a personalized fitness & nutrition plan for you. 310.251.7420

Image credit: Sebastian Molinares on Unsplash

Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | You Don't Have To Be Perfect