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Once you realize fat loss or Body Gain as I prefer is difficult, then it becomes simple.
The actions you need to take might initially be difficult to stick with consistently, however they are simple.
Todays show was inspired by a chat with a gym member who’s a chef.
He was sharing how as he progress’s in his career he’s drawn to less complicated, more simple, high quality dishes.
It reminded me of a lecturer I had at Graphic Design School who loved to proclaim:
Less Is More.
Today I’d like to analyze Less Is More through the filters of FUEL, MOVE and LIFE.
If you’re on my email list you’ll be familiar with these 3 principles that guide a lot of the decisions I make:
- FUEL (that’s everything food!)
- MOVE (that’s everything exercise!)
- LIFE (that’s everything time!)
Because, Life = Time. And, Time = Life.
First up, Less Is More so far as Fuel…
Let’s disregard the obvious as I actually recommend a lot of my clients eat more food! Just better quality.
Simplifying Fuel for Body Gain.
- Eat primarily 1 Ingredient Foods.
Stuff like: Veggies. Fruit. Eggs. Lean Meat. Fish. Nuts. Seeds. Oats. Beans.
- Know your danger times/situations and have a plan ready. Even better two plans!
This will simplify your decisions and combat poor choices triggered by emotions, the social situation and convenience.
- Aim to have the majority of your meals follow the a similar format 5-6 days a week.
For at least a month eat the same thing for each meal. Yes, breakfast is different to lunch which is different to dinner. However, breakfast today and breakfast tomorrow vary only a little. Most people who eat great, nutritious primarily one ingredient food long term without feeling restricted have found what works best for them, in terms of results AND enjoyment factor and as such they eat a lot of similar meals.
I’m not saying eat exactly the same thing day in day out (I know a lot of Personal Trainers have put people off broccoli and cottage cheese for life!). I’m am recommending settling on what works and giving yourself less opportunity to make a poor nutritional decision.
Simplifying Movement for Body Gain.
Now, less moving and more Body Gaining?
That is a little too good to be true! I can come close though…
- Work at a higher intensity for less time to get more bang for your body gain buck.
In an industry where it’s easy to find the facts and studies to support and then dispute almost every theory… this one is near undisputed. Your metabolism will stay elevated for up to 48 hours after an intense work-out such as Metabolic Resistance Training.
MRT incorporates circuit style lifting and body weight exercises with little rest. I cover MRT in show #009.
- The less decisions you have to make in keeping to your training plan the more easily you’ll stick to it.
For example Monday to Saturday = Move. Sunday = Rest. Simple. 🙂
- In that MRT program…the one that you do on set days according to your non-negotiable training plan –prioritize big compound movements.
Movements that use multiple joints and multiple muscles like: squats, lunges, deadlifts, chin ups and push ups. There’s no need for a bosu-ball-squat-with-bicep-curl-and-optional-back-flip… Unless you’re training for the circus.
Finally, Simplifying Life for Body Gain.
Sounds like a bold call right? This is the area I still struggle with most! I’ll give it a shot though…
- One Mentor: chasing the next shiny thing whether with body gain, business, or whateverwill result in you starting a lot and finishing nothing.
It’s Frustrating. And Disheartening. With so many choices, my new approach is to find someONE I respect. Who Already Has The Results I’m Seeking and model them until I have those same results.
One. Person. For each area I’m looking to improve.
- The same applies to your body gain goal. One. Goal. Get undeniably clear on what specifically you want, why you want it, and most importantly the price you’re willing to pay to get it.
And… Do it! Ok, maybe it’s not ‘Nike’ easy… so here’s something to implement.
Once you’re clear on that ONE goal make sure that you do something every single day to bring you closer to that goal before you do anything else.
This one simple rule is insanely effective.
- The thing that without doubt is most effective at simplifying my life – the thing that makes body gain simple, natural, sustainable: Is my love of rules.
As long as I’m the one making them (!) I LOVE RULES.
Rules let me know what I need to do when to achieve the result I want. I don’t need to think: “Will I get away with eating this now?” and I don’t ever waste energy feeling guilty about something I ate or some training I didn’t do.
Here’s the thing, I get that everything here is easy to do in the areas you’re already excelling in.
The challenge is to be able to apply what’s working in the areas of your (my!) life that we’re happy with to the areas that we want to improve. That is my personal goal and also my personal challenge to you.
To get actionable today, I’d love you to pick ONE less is more strategy to focus on from today until it’s a habit. One thing in relation to either FUEL, MOVE or LIFE. If you’re stuck for choice I’m happy to pick for you!
My pick would be: The one thing rule. Choose ONE goal and make sure that you do something every single day to bring you closer to that goal before you do anything else.
That’s it for this week in Healthification.
A super huge thanks to you for your support and for sharing this week with me.
If you’ve enjoyed this show and gotten value out of it I’d super appreciate it if you pop over to iTunes and leave me a review. It helps other people find Healthification and it really does inspire me to power on with the triweekly episodes.
If you liked this you’ll also like: My best Fuel, Move, Life advice for out-smarting weight loss overwhelm.
If you’re yet to share the Healthification love – just click here to zip over to iTunes and leave an honest rating and review. It’d help me out big time. With gratitude, Kate.