Also keep reading to learn a surefire way to attain sustainable weight loss. đ
I feel the need... to lift.
I'm sorry guys, I just saw Top Gun: Maverick and absolutely felt the need to do this. đ
Anyway, just in case you're wondering what's up with the band around my arm in the picture above - well, when I'm working out at home, there's an understandably limited choice of weights, compared to our gym. I make sure I can still stimulate muscle growth by employing the Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) training method where I increase metabolic stress on my muscles safely with a tight band around my limbs.
As the saying goes,
Where there's a will, there's a way.đ
After I started our mobile clinic, RESCU , I found my 'will' to maintain my fitness objectives over the past few years stronger than ever. This is surprising for someone like me who used to hate PE (Physical Education) in school.
One of the key services offered at our clinic is health screenings. On many occasions, I realised that patients' less-than-ideal blood test results are mainly attributed to their poor lifestyle choices. But the puzzling thing is that even with the poor results and less-than-pleasant treatments prescribed, many are still not inclined to change their lifestyles.
Instead, seeing their predicament motivated me greatly and when I realised we can possibly out-exercise these bad health ailments, I stepped up my fitness routine instantly.
After talking to some patients and our loved ones who were unable to lose weight even with their health scares, we realised the reason was simple. Their routines are just not sustainable.
Recently, a fitness client of ours showed us his personalised one-month fitness plan from his previous PT and in my opinion, it was way too strenuous and unsustainable, some might even say it's absurd!
One-Month Fitness Programme from a client's ex PT:
* I removed the PT's company name for privacy reasons.*
It basically suggested the client to do jumping jacks, crunches, squats and push ups, increasing the intensity every day for an entire month. The only humane thing the programme suggested was that the client rest on Sundays. Still, this is extremely dangerous. These are all high impact exercises that require ample rest in between so your muscles can recuperate. At this rate, you may suffer an injury which will decimate your fitness journey. The programme also suggested that the client drink three litres of water (and nothing else), avoid carbs at night (Why only at night? The time of day for meals usually doesn't make a difference to your daily calorie count) and 45 minutes of cardio training everyday on top of the exercises.
Now I completely foresee the beginning of failure - eating less, exercising more without consideration for recovery, your food preferences, current lifestyle and schedule is just not sustainable. You can lose weight and stay that way, even without trying so hard.
Did I mention this PT said consume 3 litres of water a day and nothing else?! Oh come on! Let's be realistic, who can do this for the rest of their lives? If you answer you can, good for you! You're a rare disciplined gem. Well, for the rest of us, we'll probably be misery guts for a long time and possibly a candidate for revenge eating and drinking in the future.
Some of you may argue that this programme is doable. Well, the only times we did see actual weight loss results with such programmes are when there's a self-imposed finish line such as a wedding, Christmas/Chinese New Year gatherings, photoshoots, etc. Usually after the stipulated deadline is over, old habits tend to kick back in. It's almost like seeing sprinters run during a competition like their lives depend on it and after they cross the finish line, you don't see them sprint anymore, instead we usually see them throttle back and just walk/jog on the track.
The thing is - there's no finish line in fitness journeys. In order to have long term weight loss results, we need to treat this like a life-long leisure walk in the park. Slow and steady will win this race.
Over the years, I learnt that health scares, major events and even others' positive/negative opinions don't motivate people enough to keep up with their fitness routines in the long term.
But! Sustainable fitness and nutrition plans do! Remember it has to feel like a walk in the park.
So where do we go from here?
Firstly, I want to ask you, were you ever at a point in your life where you were happy with your weight and lifestyle? If you did, what did you do then that you're doing differently now? For you lot, the method may be quite simple - you could just trace back your steps to see if you could replicate the same lifestyle habits? Same methods, same happy results!
A lot of folks Iâve spoken to want to get back to a body weight they once had.
The funny thing is that when I ask them to think back to what they were doing, they realise, like a light bulb moment, that they werenât starving themselves and they werenât exercising 24/7! It doesnât have to be so hard!
Itâs the gradual accumulation of a little here and there that overtime, repeated again and again, brings you where you are and in the same way, just a little here and there can get you back to where you want to be!
But in the same way, the weight gain didnât occur over night, you wonât lose it over night either, itâll take some time but you bet itâll be easier than scammo programmes that say you can do this in just a few weeks, counting on you to fall for their quick fix, instant gratification scams! Thankfully, youâre smarter than that!
For the rest of you, if you're still looking for a sustainable programme, Bobby and I have come up with a comprehensive programme with a menu of exercise routines and recipes with calorie info included so you can plan your routine more realistically and healthily.
If you think Iâm trying to blow our own trumpet here. That may be true but it's because we truly recognize the problem and weâve already done all the research for you, calculated the nutritional info and created an exercise plan that will not tire you out in minutes. With our evidence-based fat loss programmes, we hope we can help you become your own celebrity coach, personal trainer, nutritionist and motivational speaker.
Of course, if you prefer to engage your own fitness instructor, I highly recommend it too. Just make sure it's not an unrealistic programme like the one above. You know the red flags. đđ
If you want to lose weight, it has to become your daily lifestyle and habit. Saying you're going to cut out a food group or macronutrient completely is not sustainable.
If you do choose to use our plans, I have to emphasise that the books do not mince words. It is not a one-week plan to become a Victoria's Secret model kind of programme. Well, you know that already too. đ
All you need right now is a little perseverance, a mindset change and some elbow grease to be able to achieve your fat loss goals and keep the body of your dreams.
I could do this all day!
Check out our Flow Fysique Factory Power Plans here - 3f.energy/powerplans (Don't forget to download our free ebook!)
We also have a blog and YouTube channel where we address the misconceptions and debunk the myths about weight loss on a weekly basis.
Alright, thank you so much for being here. Let me know what you think about what I discussed in this post in the comments below.
Talk to me, boos!
Hehe! I'm sorry - I just had to do it.
Have fun and keep sparkling, belles and beaus! đŞâ¨
Your friend,
Juliana