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#112 - Make This Shift If You Want Your Results To Last
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Most people focus only on the physical side of fitness—impressive before-and-afters, building muscle, and losing weight. That stuff is great, but the mental side matters most if you want to keep those results for years to come.
In this episode, I’m breaking down the mindset shifts so you can make this a lifestyle and avoid being like the majority of people who put in all the effort only to watch their results slip away.
Here’s what you’ll take away:
- Why setting the right expectations from the start matters way more than you think
- 3 popular beliefs about fitness holding you back
- How to track progress beyond just your weight and measurements
- A simple way to build real confidence and start acting like the person you want to become
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Transcript
Welcome and Call to Action
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome back to the Fit-ish Project with your host, Lathan Bass, where we make fitness and health simple for regular people like you and I. Before getting into this episode, if you can and have not, leave a review just to get this out to more people who need this type of information. i really appreciate those of you who have done that.
Client Success Story
00:00:23
Speaker
Getting into today's topic. I was talking to a client yesterday and she's absolutely just crushed it. Just this last year, she has done some really, really cool, awesome things.
00:00:34
Speaker
And she was just texting me a little bit about just how excited she was of the progress that she had made and also the progress that she was looking forward to making in the next year because we've been working together for little bit under a year. And in that timeframe, she's lost over 40 pounds.
00:00:51
Speaker
She feels a lot better within her mindset. Confidence is way up, feels way more comfortable in the gym and just stronger. Built muscle, like done all the things, like done all the physical things, seen really, really awesome progress just by committing to the plan and just continuing to show up.
Mental Aspects of Fitness
00:01:07
Speaker
But one of the things that she had said that really stuck out to me and that I just loved so much was how much better she feels mentally. And I think a lot of times we really overlook how important that mental side of fitness really is. And not a lot of people really talk about that side of fitness and how important that is to making a bigger type of transformation because I know for me and I know for a lot of people who have really struggled with just their weight or maybe not necessarily being like super fit and healthy just naturally that it seems really really hard in it a lot of it stems from that mental side of things like it stems from this identity that you've had about yourself about being overweight about maybe some limiting beliefs that you have just as far as things that you're able to do physically and your fitness levels and your health and
00:01:57
Speaker
Just a lot of things that not a lot of people really talk about. And so I think it's easy for people to look at the physical side of things. And we all want that stuff, right? Like we all love the fat loss. We all looking we all love to look leaner. We all look love to look more muscular and look the way we want to look and be confident in our physical presence and just how we appear.
00:02:19
Speaker
But a lot of that comes from the mental side of it. And so I wanted to do an episode today where I just talk about that a little bit because I think, especially as I said, for people who have struggled for a really long time with the just health and fitness and weight loss and things like that, like if you've really struggled with those things, it's critical to really focus on the mental side of things and make that transformation within your mindset and your identity and just how you approach fitness and how you approach health.
Main Topic Introduction: Mental Fitness
00:02:49
Speaker
Because without that, I really think that is a huge reason why so many people struggle to make changes that actually last. Because if you look at the statistics, especially around just weight loss in general,
00:03:01
Speaker
a large portion of people who lose weight, they gain it back. And I think so much of that is just tied to the mental side of things. And so I wanted to just do an episode where we talk a little bit about just that side of things, share a few stories from my situation, but also clients that I've worked with about what it means to make those decisions changes within the mindset. And then of course, as always, I always want to give you some practical things that you can start doing, give you some tangible things, some things that you can actually put into practice today to start making this a lasting change. And so I really just want to be super honest and relatable and useful with this episode.
Setting Realistic Fitness Expectations
00:03:40
Speaker
and want to do like a fluffy mindset type of talk type of thing, but I really just want to give you some tangible examples because I think it's important to just hear the behind the scenes of different things and just understand how this journey all works and so i want to get into three different main parts of this podcast just going through this so the first part will just be like the importance of just setting the right expectations and then also being able to manage those expectations because this at a ground level like if you don't do this you are always going to feel like it's a struggle you're always going to be disappointed you're going to be frustrated and so having real expectations about what this whole situation what this process like what making a fitness transformation losing a lot of weight building muscle transforming your body improving your health what that actually looks like and entails if you don't have that right from the get-go
00:04:30
Speaker
It's going to make this whole experience just suck. Like it's not going to be very pleasant. So I think it's important to just tell people about what to expect and be honest about it. Because I think a lot of people out there, like I said, they just show the physical side of things. They show you the before and afters. They show you the workouts. They show you how chiseled and and ripped they are and and all these different things. But they don't actually show you what it took to get those things.
00:04:54
Speaker
And so I always want to provide that context and give you a little bit of behind the scenes and let people decide if that's something that you really want. If like this is a goal that you really have. whether it's weight loss or building muscle or changing your body or improving your health, like understand the things that come with achieving those goals. And then once you have a better grasp on those things and you understand, okay, this is what it actually takes, make that decision for yourself. Because a lot of people have these goals or these fitness aspirations, but it's like when you really dig down to it, it's like, is that something that you actually want or just something that
Common Mental Struggles in Fitness
00:05:29
Speaker
sounds nice? And so giving you a realistic look at what
00:05:32
Speaker
Proper expectations and what it looks like to actually manage expectations for some of those bigger fitness goals that you might have. Second part I want to get into is what it actually looks like to make mental progress. And so just sharing some common things that I see a lot of people struggle with from a mental side of things when it comes to fitness, things like the all or nothing mindset, things like.
00:05:54
Speaker
feeling off track or struggling with consistency or having to be perfect, all those different things and what it actually looks like to make progress on those things. And so that you can be a little bit more successful when it comes to this whole fitness transformation, this whole fitness journey and making this more part of your lifestyle.
00:06:11
Speaker
And then last, just three really super tactical things that you can start doing and applying so that you can actually make this a reality for
Sticking to Fitness Goals
00:06:18
Speaker
you. And so getting into section one, talking about setting the right expectations.
00:06:24
Speaker
Most people want the outcome without really understanding what it takes to get there. And the truth is, when it comes to like big fitness goals, it's supposed to be hard sometimes. It's not going to be as quick as you want it to be.
00:06:38
Speaker
You're not always going to be motivated. There's going to be times where you... just don't want to do stuff like you don't want to show up and work out. You don't want to get your steps and you don't want to make the meal prep on a Sunday. You don't want to make this certain decision.
00:06:51
Speaker
And I think understanding that that is part of it. And that is what this is supposed to be like. Like not every single day is going to suck, but you're going to have some days where you just don't enjoy doing the things that you know you need to do.
00:07:02
Speaker
There's a common quote that i see all over social media now, and it's stick to the plan, not your emotions. And I think it's hard as a human because we obviously all have emotions and that plays a role in the decisions that we make.
00:07:14
Speaker
But when you decide on a goal and you understand that this is something that's important to you, I think it's just really smart to understand that like you're going to have some days where you don't want to do those things that you don't.
00:07:25
Speaker
Know that you should do. And it's important to really embrace that and just understand like, okay, I'm going to have some days where it's going to suck a little bit. Having that expectation going in can help you better manage what this is actually supposed to be like.
00:07:39
Speaker
And I think this is really important because I've learned through just my own experience and just now just with working with other people that humans are not very good at managing expectations. We're just not very good at being able to set realistic expectations and then also just being able to manage those things. And I've had this happen with clients. I've had this happen in my own experience. And just to give you like a super simple example, when you think about like just our the the world that we live in now, we have so many luxuries, but it's so easy now to get frustrated about certain things. You know, these first world problems that we have, for example, like maybe your wifi isn't as fast as you want it to be, or your Uber eats, or maybe your Uber ride is taking an extra couple of minutes or, know,
00:08:24
Speaker
like your phone's not working. And it's like, oh, we're really complaining about these certain things that make our world so much more convenient and so much better. And just we're so far ahead of just all the people that were ahead of us in the world that we live in today. Like we're so lucky and we're just so blessed to like be and have all these tools at our disposal. Like you have a a supercomputer in your pocket that's more powerful than the president had 50 years ago.
00:08:50
Speaker
you have You can click a button on your phone and watch anything that you want. You can order food straight to your door. You can get somebody to come pick you up and take you anywhere you want to go. like We have all these luxuries, but it's so easy because we get so used to the things that we have that it's so easy to start complaining about those things. And that's what I mean when say it's really easy for humans to manage expectations because we just get so used to things and we have this certain perception of the world and just of certain things and of people.
00:09:19
Speaker
And then when those things don't go according to plan or the way that we think that they should be, then we get frustrated. We get angry. We want to quit or we want to talk crap or whatever the case may be. And this happens a lot when it comes to fitness because we have these certain things that we think should be happening, but that's just not the reality of the situation.
00:09:38
Speaker
And I think with like social media, as I said, it's really easy to think that everything's supposed to be super easy. It's supposed to be just, you go from point A to point B with no issues at all. There's not a lot of struggle involved because again, not a lot of people talk about that messy middle, but understanding that like that is part of it and really setting those realistic expectations up front, I think can help to increase your consistency and also just prevent like some of that disappointment that comes along with having poor
Managing Expectations: Client Story
00:10:08
Speaker
expectations. It reminds me of, I was working with a client currently still working with this client actually, and then he's killed it as well. Like he's done super awesome. He's lost over 40 pounds, like doing a really awesome job. And I remember like within the first couple of months that we started working together,
00:10:23
Speaker
One of the things that I always do is just ask clients questions about like how I can best support them. And one of the things that he had said that just stuck out was he was like, I feel like I'm not making fast enough progress or I'm not doing enough. And mind you, at this point, he had already lost like 15 to 20 ish pounds and was doing really well in the gym, like being consistent three times a week. He was following the diet. He was getting his steps in, like he was doing all the things, but in his mind, like based on his previous experience or based on things that he thought he should be doing,
00:10:54
Speaker
They weren't up to his expectations. And so he thought that he was behind or he wasn't doing enough or he wasn't making enough progress. And I see this a lot. Like I see this a
Benefits of Consistent Effort
00:11:03
Speaker
lot with people. And it's one thing that holds so many people back is like they start a certain diet or they start a certain program or they start doing these certain things and they expect that progress to be just like immediate.
00:11:15
Speaker
They expect to lose 20 pounds in a month or they expect to go to the gym for three months and expect to have tons and tons of extra muscle or they expect like these really quick results and they expect the progress to be quicker than it is.
00:11:28
Speaker
And I say this all the time. I think a lot of people really overestimate what they can do in a couple of months, but they really underestimate how much they could do with just focused effort and attention.
00:11:42
Speaker
on just a particular goal for a good like six to 12 months like the amount that you're able to change in a year is incredible like in a couple months you can make some changes you can lose a little bit of weight maybe gain some strength you can start to really see some positive health benefits But the amount that you can do when you're consistent for an entire year is incredible.
00:12:02
Speaker
You could lose 30, 40, 50, sometimes more than that. I lost 60 pounds in my first year and I was able to just do a lot of really cool stuff. Like I couldn't do any pull-ups when I started. And by the end of that year, I could do over 10 pull-ups.
00:12:15
Speaker
I couldn't do as much on certain exercises. Like I couldn't lift as much when I started that whole journey. And then as I was going through that being really consistent, like my cardio levels improved, my strength levels improved. I started to improve some of my habits.
00:12:29
Speaker
And so people really underestimate just how much you can change in a year, but you just have to be willing to commit to that and be okay with the expectations that not every single day within that year is going to be your favorite day, not every day, you're going to be motivated.
00:12:43
Speaker
Not every day is going to feel like fun, but that time is going to pass regardless. And so to me, it just seems like if you really do want this certain goal, like why would you not put that effort into those things?
Year-long Commitment for Results
00:12:56
Speaker
If that time is going to pass regardless, like, With just being consistent and showing up consistently and just making a little bit of progress, you know, making that 1% better every single day, like you can change your body, you can change your health, you can change your mindset with just one really focused year towards your health. And so...
00:13:17
Speaker
I think this is just a part of fitness that a lot of people overlook and a lot of people get really wrong. And it's one of the most critical steps to this entire process is just setting the right expectations and then learning to manage those expectations. Because when it comes down to it, like one of my main jobs as a fitness coach is to help people not quit.
00:13:38
Speaker
As I said, most people who lose weight, they gain it back. Most people who start New Year's resolution goals, they quit them. Most people who start a training program, they don't see it all the way through. And so to me, it's like, I know that if you can consistently show up and you can follow this diet or follow this training program or stick to these habits, I know that if you can do those things for a good solid amount of time, you are 100% without a doubt going to be in a better spot than when you started.
00:14:06
Speaker
But so many people have these skewed expectations of what that's actually supposed to look like. because it's not super sexy, it's kind of boring and like showing up and doing these things, you know, getting your eight to 10,000 steps in per day, that doesn't seem like a big deal. But when you do that for an entire year, that's a lot of extra steps. When you lift weights three times per week for an entire year, it doesn't seem like a lot in the moment, like going to the gym two, three times, four times a week doesn't seem like a whole lot. But at the end of the year, you go to the gym three times per week for the entire year, that's over 150 workouts.
00:14:40
Speaker
You think if you go to the gym 150 times and really put in some focused, intense effort that you're going to be stronger, you're going to build some muscle, you're going to have less aches and pains? Absolutely.
00:14:51
Speaker
You think if you consistently drink water and eat mostly whole foods and focus on a high protein diet that you're eating habits are going to be better at the end of the year. If you're going to feel better, you're going to look better. You're going to have more muscle.
00:15:03
Speaker
Absolutely. But again, you have to be willing to commit to that lifestyle and you have to be willing to commit to these things that you say are important to you. And those things aren't important to you, like if you really sit down and think about them and they're not important to you, then don't do that. Like, just don't do it. Like release yourself from those expectations.
00:15:22
Speaker
Don't continue to stress yourself out. Don't start this diet and stop this diet. Like, can your life be so much better by investing in your health? Absolutely. But again, it has to be something that you are interested in. It has to be something that you are invested in. It has to be something that actually means something to you.
00:15:38
Speaker
Because if it doesn't, then those things like those hard days, those days where you're unmotivated, those days where it's hard to continue to show up and things aren't going to plan and you feel like you're not making tons of progress, like those days are going to...
00:15:51
Speaker
be what stops you from continuing to be consistent and continuing to ultimately see those results that you want to see. Because if you're not showing up, you're not going to get those results. And so just be honest with yourself, just understand what it takes and understand that not every single day is going to be great. But if you are committed and it means something to you and you are okay with taking that long-term approach, which is getting a little bit better every single day, you can have those things that you really want to have. And I truly believe that for so many people that if, again, if they just put in a solid year, like ah just a really solid year of just focused, intense effort towards their fitness and health goals, that they could change their life. But again, we we're not chasing fast, quick results. We're not worried about like these short, intense little sprints. Like
00:16:38
Speaker
take the long approach and just understand what comes with that. And you will be absolutely shocked at the things that you're able to achieve when you take that approach.
Mindset Shifts in Fitness
00:16:48
Speaker
And so after you have had this time to really reflect and think about your expectations going into this and really learning how to start to manage those expectations and understanding what comes with this whole process of trying to achieve the results that you want to achieve and chasing these big fitness goals and these big health goals,
00:17:06
Speaker
I think it's important to start to understand what changing your mindset or the mental side of fitness actually means. And so when we think about just certain things that a lot of people struggle with, like one of the things that I know so many people struggle with because I have conversations with a lot of people around fitness and health. And one thing that I see all the time is just this idea that people have to be all or nothing, like it has to be perfect or like why even bother?
00:17:32
Speaker
And it's such a detriment to so many people because you don't have to be perfect. I think one of the things that I really strive to show people and just get them to understand is that it doesn't take perfection to get the results that you want to get. It doesn't take you being on point 100% of the time. It doesn't take you being in the gym six, seven days a week. It doesn't take you like obsessing over every single meal, every single workout, every single decision.
00:18:00
Speaker
But many people have that approach where it's like, if I can't do these things that consistently, then why even bother? And to me, it just doesn't make sense. It's like, you want to live life, you want to be healthy, you have these goals, and those goals are important to you. But like, if it's taking away from your life, and like, you don't enjoy life, like you're not able to have any sort of social life, you're obsessed over every single bite of food that you put in your mouth, you're never wanting to miss a workout because you feel like all your progress is going to go away, like that's not healthy to me either. So I think it's really important to have that balance and just really understanding that like, it doesn't have to be all or nothing. I think one of my favorite things is when I able to have clients who are with me long enough and they trust in me enough to follow a plan that we set up for them, that is just so much different than what they're used to. And so like,
00:18:50
Speaker
so many people go into a fitness routine or like they go into a diet with this all or nothing mindset. And it's like, they're able to do it for a couple of weeks, sometimes even a couple months, they see some progress. And then as soon as the first hiccup happens, or they're, they fall off a little bit and they just quit and they revert back, they gain the weight back and they just repeat that cycle over and over and over again.
00:19:09
Speaker
And so many people have this mindset. And i think about one of my clients that I'm been working with for probably about a year now as well. And when he came to me, like he was the prime example for this, like he was a former athlete. So he had this kind of go hard or do nothing at all type of mentality. It's like, I'm going to get in the gym, I'm going to push it super hard.
00:19:28
Speaker
I'm going to go on this strict diet. And if I'm not doing that, then it's, I'm not making any progress. Like I'm not going to see the results that I want to see. So I'm either all in or I'm all out.
00:19:39
Speaker
Fast forward to today where he's down over 30 pounds and he enjoys a social life. Like he enjoys date night with his girlfriend. He enjoys going out on the weekends and having a couple of drinks. He enjoys like doing different things and not having to stress over anything. And over that time period, he has worked out, I would say on average, two to three times per week getting in the gym. He's pretty active with his steps and he's just gotten much better around the whole mindset of like learning to manage food and make better choices and not really just stressing about
00:20:12
Speaker
what it means to like have this perfect healthy lifestyle. And as I said, he's lost over 30 pounds. And so now obviously he believes that it's possible, but for so many people out there, they don't believe that that's actually possible for them. They think that it has to be just this one way. And it doesn't have to be that.
00:20:30
Speaker
That doesn't mean that you don't have to make trade-offs or there might not be some sacrifices in there because again, I'd be lying to you if I said that you don't have to put some extra time and effort into making this a healthy lifestyle.
00:20:42
Speaker
But as you start to do those things and you realize, oh, there is a place for balance within all of this. like And actually, I've found that like once you can incorporate those healthy habits into your lifestyle, it makes everything else that much better. When you have more confidence, when you look the way that you want to look, when you feel the way that you want to feel, when you have just that energy and you're not always in...
00:21:04
Speaker
pain, and you don't have these little injuries and things like that, it just makes life in general more enjoyable. So from a standpoint of not only are you getting these results, but you're also making all those other parts that aren't about the gym, which is if we're being just realistic and honest about it, most of your life is outside of the gym, like you're not working out every single minute of the day, and you're not eating every single minute of the day, like a lot of your activities and a lot of the time you spend is outside of the gym. So it makes sense to use that as just a tool to improve all those other parts of the gym, because that is actually just a very small part of your life.
00:21:39
Speaker
But if you don't ever take the time to start to plan and start to build the right habits and start to build the right mindset and start to find a repeatable plan that works for you, and you're missing out on all these mental and physical health benefits, then then you're ultimately just taking away from the life that you have outside of the gym as well.
00:21:57
Speaker
And so finding ways that you can start to incorporate these things and really realizing that that balance is possible is a big part of making this a lifestyle and just making this part of your identity and improving your life, which is part of the goal, I think, of lifestyle.
Finding Balance vs. Perfection
00:22:13
Speaker
piece of getting into fitness is you want to do these things because you want to have a better life. And so again, understanding it's not about perfect. It's not about all or nothing. It's about doing something like something is always better than nothing and just focusing on that consistent progress.
00:22:28
Speaker
Another big one that I see for a lot of people, and this is more specifically for weight loss, but even just for like building muscle and maybe even just like dieting and things like that. It's like, How fast can I get these results?
00:22:39
Speaker
And I think that's always the wrong way to approach it. Obviously, we want to do things that are smart, things that are practical and get to our results. But I think when you go in with the mindset of like, what is the quickest way that I can achieve this certain goal, you're ultimately going to be doing a lot of things that are just not sustainable.
00:22:57
Speaker
And when you're doing things that are unsustainable, your results are going to be unsustainable. And so if you want to make these results an actual part of your lifestyle, not just for like a couple weeks or a couple months, but for multiple years, decades, the rest of your life, then it makes sense to start thinking about now how not how fast can I get these results, but how long can I keep these results?
00:23:17
Speaker
And if I want to keep these results, I need to do things that I can see myself doing for the long term, which means You may have to scale those things back when you start. And that goes back to the whole expectations thing, because a lot of people think like I need to be in the gym seven, six, six, seven days a week. I need to be perfect with the diet so I can get these good results. But that's not sustainable for 99 percent of people.
00:23:39
Speaker
And so maybe starting out with just two workouts per week is where you have to start. And that's perfectly fine. And then you build up over time. Then maybe you go to three. Maybe you go to four eventually. Maybe not. Maybe three is your sweet spot.
00:23:51
Speaker
Because you can get really good results with being in the gym three days a week and watching the things that you're eating and focusing on a whole foods diet and high protein and being active in your everyday life. And so that might be a lot more sustainable than trying to do endless hours of cardio or being in the gym six, seven days a week and trying to just cut your calories in order to hit these certain goals.
00:24:11
Speaker
think for a lot of people, if they started thinking about what are these things that I can start incorporating that are actually sustainable versus like, how can I get the fastest results? we would have a lot more people that don't struggle with gaining their weight back or falling off or starting something and then quitting because you have to make it sustainable if you want this to be a long-term solution to the issues or the problems that you're trying to address.
Handling Setbacks in Fitness
00:24:36
Speaker
Another one, the third one that I'll talk about, third and final one that I'll talk about just from like a mindset shift is like this idea that I really messed up or I screwed up or like I'm way off track. And so now what do I do?
00:24:49
Speaker
So many people ask me about a the question of like, how do I get back on track? And I think so many people overthink this like way more than it really needs to be thought about.
00:25:00
Speaker
And I think, again, this stems back to having unrealistic expectations or unrealistic plans about what you actually should be doing. So for example, I just went on a ah weekend with some friends at the lake, like I was eating a lot more than I typically would having more drinks than I typically would. I didn't work out over the weekend, which I typically like to get in some activity and do some things, but like I didn't do any of those things.
00:25:23
Speaker
And I knew going into this, like I knew that that wasn't going to be something that I was going to be doing. I knew I was going to eat more food, have more snacks, have more drinks. And I knew that the scale would probably be up this week, which it was. It was up because I had more alcohol. I had more carbs. I had more food.
00:25:38
Speaker
But that wasn't something that I look at and be like, oh, I screwed up. I failed. That wasn't always the case because I used to struggle with certain situations of like feeling like I fell off track or I ruined a bunch of my progress.
00:25:50
Speaker
And again, this is something see happen with so many people, especially when they are just strictly using the scale to measure their progress because that scale is going to fluctuate so much. And so you have a certain instance where maybe that scale spikes up because you went out to eat or you had some drinks something.
00:26:04
Speaker
certain things like that and you just feel like you've messed everything up you screwed everything up but that's just not the case like that's not how this stuff works and having those unrealistic expectations and having just this outlook of like i screwed up i messed up what do i do now like i don't know how to get back on track is it even worth it to get back on track how far did i dig myself in a hole it's just not conducive to getting the results that you want to get because In reality, when you actually look at it, like when you look at it logically, like if you're looking at the numbers and things like that,
00:26:35
Speaker
you didn't make all your progress in a couple of days or a couple of weeks or even a couple of months. lot of times like weight loss goals, building muscle, getting to a place where your health is in a really good spot takes several months.
00:26:47
Speaker
Sometimes it takes several years to get to a certain spot. And so thinking that you are ruining that in a single day, single meal, missing one workout like a single weekend, it's just it doesn't make a lot of logical sense.
00:27:00
Speaker
And so understanding that like, you want to have a plan going into it. But like, if a certain social event, or like some certain thing is part of that plan, and it's not like you fell off. It's not like you screwed up making that a part of your plan and actually incorporating those things within your life. And learning how to find that balance i think it's such a crucial part of making this a long-term part of how you approach fitness and health and obviously the goal is we want to stick to that plan most times so but life does happen sometimes like sometimes there's going to be things that come up where like we didn't plan for a certain social event or like something is going on within our family life or we have some personal things going on and like we don't stick to our diet 100 or
00:27:43
Speaker
we fall off a little bit and we have a couple of days or maybe even a week where we don't work out or things like that come up. And I think being able to learn from those situations rather than viewing it as like you failed or you fell off or whatever the case may be is so much more productive. Getting you to not only just continue to move on and just get back on track, but also just learning when you're in that situation next time, like maybe what are some things that I can do to help me stay on track a little bit to keep that momentum going and just learning from those situations rather than beating yourself up or having this huge like pity party or like guilting yourself over messing up or falling off or whatever. This is a long-term game.
00:28:24
Speaker
Fitness and health isn't something that you win. It's a practice that you do day after day, week after week, month after month.
Fitness as a Continuous Practice
00:28:30
Speaker
so thinking this small little snapshot, like this single workout, the single weekend, even the single week is going to throw off your entire results. It's just, it's just not really, it's not realistic. And it's not very, and it's not smart. Like, it's just not a good way to approach this. And so I think being able to take that step back and really see it for what it is. And that's just a learning experience.
00:28:51
Speaker
You either win or you learn. And as long as you're doing one of those things, like if you're sticking to the plan, that's awesome. If you have a time, where you slip up a little bit and things aren't going as well as you thought, take a step back and just think about how you can actually learn from this situation to improve things down the road or that next time that things get a little bit more difficult. Because in reality, you're always just one workout, you're one meal, you're one decision from being right back on track.
00:29:18
Speaker
It doesn't have to be this big thing where like, I need to start over on Monday, or I need to wait till the beginning of the year or Like whatever, like you don't need to wait in order to get right back on track. You're simply one decision away from being right back on track.
00:29:33
Speaker
So don't overhype that in your head. Don't make it a bigger thing than it needs to be. Because when you can start to adopt that mindset of just, this is part of my experience. I'm learning, I'm getting better. And this is just part of that trial and error process.
00:29:47
Speaker
that is so much more enjoyable than being like, oh I screwed up, beat yourself up, cry over it for multiple days, let that one decision turn into multiple days, multiple weeks, and let it just turn into this big spiral where like you throw everything off because,
00:30:02
Speaker
never the one day. It's never the one meal. It's never the one workout. It's all those things that come after. And I've said this on multiple different podcasts. The people that you see that seem to have their health figured out, like they're pretty fit, they're pretty healthy. It doesn't seem like a struggle to them as much. Like it seems like it's something that they have under control.
00:30:21
Speaker
They don't stick to the plan 100% of the time either. and They have days where they overeat. They have days where they don't do their workouts. They have days, maybe sometimes even weekends or entire weeks where they like health isn't just the highest priority for them where things life kind of comes first and they fall off a little bit and they aren't as consistent.
00:30:41
Speaker
But those people, they get back on track sooner than most other people. That's the thing that I've noticed just with being around fit and healthy people and people who prioritize their health. It's not that they don't ever fall off a little bit or slip up or get a little bit inconsistent here there. They just don't let that turn into a really long time and turn into this big, huge thing. And so those are just some things that I wanted to hit on just as far as mindset goes and really starting to think about some of those things and how you can start to incorporate those things. Because as I said, the physical progress is awesome.
00:31:11
Speaker
Like we all love to make the physical progress, but understanding that like making that mental progress and making some of those mindset shifts and really starting to embrace some of those ways of thinking in a different perspective can do so much with making this part of your lifestyle and helping you ultimately get to that place where you want to get, where you feel great, you look great, your health is
Conclusion and Takeaways
00:31:32
Speaker
great. Like that is what it takes is incorporating some of these shifts within the mindset.
00:31:37
Speaker
And then bringing this thing to a close, as I said, I always want to leave you with some actionable things, some practical things that you can actually start to incorporate because It's nice to hear these things and like hear some of these stories. But I always hate when I listen to a podcast and like I get some good information, but then I'm like, OK, what do I do next?
00:31:54
Speaker
And so I always try to give you some practical things, some actual tactical tips that you can start putting into play. And so I came up with three things that I think can be super helpful. And the first one is just learning the skill of showing up when things don't feel good.
00:32:10
Speaker
Understanding that it's not just about like motivation. Motivation is nice when it's there, but it's not always going to be there. And so having that ability to show up when things don't feel great is such a big part of any sort of goal, but especially like fitness and health goals, because there's going to be days where you don't necessarily want to work out, you don't want to plan the food, you don't want to make a certain decision. But the more that you can start to do those things, the more that you can start to show up on those days, the better off that you are going to be. And so when those days start to happen, I think about those days being even more important than like the days where I feel good, like the days where you feel good, and the workout feels great, the weights are flying up, like
00:32:51
Speaker
you're making all the healthy choices and you're you're doing the meal prep and like you're getting your steps in and those days just seem easy. Those are the days that take care of themselves. But when you can really go in on those days where like you don't really feel like doing the things that you need to do, like those days to me count even more so than the days that are just easy.
00:33:12
Speaker
And so when you have one of those days, when like you realize that, okay, it's one of those tough days, like think about how important that day is to your overall process. And when I think you can put a little bit more emphasis on those days and make those days a little bit more important and put a little bit more effort into those days, you string more of those consistent streaks together. And the more that you can start to string more consistent days, weeks, months together, you start to see those results. And then the more that you start to see those results, the more you're motivated, the more progress you see, and it just turns into this big cycle.
00:33:45
Speaker
The second thing that I would say is learn to measure the right things. I'm big on tracking things because I think it's nice to see progress. And as I said, the physical stuff is great. Like take your progress pictures. You can use the scale to measure progress, body fat levels, strength, but don't let the physical stuff be the only way that you measure progress. Because as I said, towards the beginning of this podcast, the mental stuff matters a lot. So like the relationship that you have with food and being able to manage hunger and make good choices, the confidence that you have in yourself being better at making decisions around what it means to actually be healthy and make healthy decisions, being able to handle social situations without feeling like you go off the rails.
00:34:27
Speaker
Because one of the things that I really like and that I enjoy is I'll have clients tell me small wins. So every week I have them do check-ins. And sometimes when we have calls and things, I'll ask clients like, what are some small wins from this last weekend?
00:34:41
Speaker
And a lot of times those wins that people say have nothing to do with the physical stuff. Sometimes it does. But a lot of the things that they say are like, I got better at planning my meals out. I learned that I can make these choices when I travel.
00:34:54
Speaker
I learned that if I'm having a rough day, like I can go and do this to help make me make these better decisions. And so a lot of it is like just little things, little progress things that like, if you start thinking about those things and you really start to just reflect a little bit more, you start to see how important these things are.
00:35:12
Speaker
And when you start having more of these small wins and you realize that just because I'm not losing five pounds every week, or I'm not increasing my strength numbers in the gym every single week or like I'm not seeing that physical progress that I would really love to see you're still making progress in other ways in the more ways that you can measure progress the more ways you have to win the more motivated you're going to be and again it turns into that nice loop of like you put the action in you put the work in you see some progress in different ways you get motivated and it just turns into this nice loop of just continuing to see the progress and so
00:35:45
Speaker
Think about those small wins that you're making, especially when you're going through some of those periods where maybe you aren't seeing quite as much of the physical progress that you want to be seeing because that physical progress isn't going to happen every single week. There's not going to be noticeable difference every single week as you're chasing your certain goals. And so starting to find other ways to measure the right things and thinking about the mental side of fitness and where you're making positive improvements in those areas can go a really long way.
00:36:12
Speaker
And just a simple thing, like I said, I have clients do check-ins where they actually write these things down. But like you could do this in a journal. You could do this while you're working out between sets. Like just start to reflect a little bit more, create more awareness around some of the progress that you're making.
00:36:26
Speaker
Because continuing to seek out those small wins is important because as humans, we like to focus on the negative stuff. We like to focus on all the things that we need to improve. We're just wired to do that.
00:36:37
Speaker
And so start to train yourself to seek out some of the positive stuff and really celebrate some of those wins because it makes this journey ah as a whole much more enjoyable. And you just start to get more momentum with seeing that progress and being more motivated. And so just a small thing to do is just starting to think about some of those small wins.
00:36:57
Speaker
And the last thing that I would say is build your identity through small actions. And so what I mean by that is like Confidence doesn't just come from like this whole like mentality thing.
00:37:09
Speaker
It comes from creating evidence and stacking small wins and seeing that progress actually happen from the actions that you are putting in and keeping promises to yourself. That's how like confidence is built.
00:37:23
Speaker
That's how your identity starts to change over time. That's how you really start to create a better self perception of just how you see yourself and how you approach this fitness journey. Because so many people get into this because they want to be more confident, they want to be more disciplined, they want to feel like they have more control.
00:37:40
Speaker
But that happens by doing these little things every single day. And I think it goes back to that expectations thing of like, if you say you're going to work out seven days a week, and then you're only getting in the gym four days per week, well, now you feel like a failure because you didn't hit that seven days a week. And so for a lot of people, starting smaller and starting with something that you know that you can be really consistent with is important.
00:38:02
Speaker
And then as you get better, you build on those things. So you have dozens of opportunities to do this throughout the day, whether it's like Getting your steps in or making the healthy choice throughout the day when it comes to your meals, when it comes to your snacks, when it comes to drinking enough water, when it comes to getting your workout in, when it comes to just doing all these little things that you say you're going to do, the more that you can do those things and stack those wins and really start to prove to yourself you are that person.
00:38:26
Speaker
the more that that confidence builds and the more that your identity starts to shift into, oh, I am this person that I can trust. I am this person that I really want to be. And when you get to that point, as it starts to build, it's a super powerful thing because people want to be in alignment with their identity.
00:38:43
Speaker
But if you're always saying you're going to do these things and you never do them, well, why would you believe that you're going to get up at 6 a.m. and get your workout in or stick to your meal plan or stick to the goals that you set for yourself? You haven't proved anything.
00:38:56
Speaker
with any sort of evidence or any sort of certainty that you're able to do those things. And so pick small things and just let those things build and stack on each other. And as you start to do that, that confidence starts to increase, that identity starts to change, and that's a really cool place to be. And so with that being said, that is the episode for this week. Hopefully you got a nugget or two out of this and was able to leave you with a couple of practical things with this episode.
00:39:24
Speaker
If you found this helpful or you know somebody who could get some value out of this sort of episode, you can always share it with them share it on your social media, leave a review, continue to get this out to more people. If this sort of stuff really hits home with you and you're struggling maybe with some of this different kind of stuff and you want some help from somebody who's been there, who's been in your shoes, who helps other people through these sort of issues, that's what I do with one-on-one coaching. That link is also in the show notes.
00:39:48
Speaker
With that being said, i really appreciate you listening to the pod and we will see you next week.