You’re eating right and you’re exercising. You’re maintaining a healthy weight and you’re getting the rest you need. Above all, you’re feeling pretty damn good.

And you’re not just feeling good physically, but you’re also feeling good mentally about what you have accomplished for your health. You should. You did good.

Pat yourself on the back because not everyone is able to do what you’ve done. For one reason or another they can’t establish a good plan and then stick to it.

Establishing a Good Plan

It was the A-Team that made those crazy plans happen in the TV show – not the A-Guy or A-Gal. So who’s on your team? Do you have a Personal Trainer or Physical Therapist to help you lay out a plan that works for you? How about your Medical Care Provider – have you talked to them?

Granted, I’ve seen many A-Guys and Gals make it happen on their own with their own fitness plan . They study fitness and find out what works for them. They write everything down and try new things constantly. They know their bodies. They understand their strengths and their weaknesses. How do I know it works? Results.

On the other side I have seen plenty of people try unsuccessfully to do it on their own. They don’t do the research. They don’t write anything down. They only do things they prefer or have done in the past.

Some think all they have to do is starve themselves to be at a healthy weight. Others think they can exercise away a bad diet. No balance. Just disappointment in having “tried everything” – except, of course, hiring someone that can help.

Following Through

Once you’ve established a solid plan, preferably guided by a professional, follow-through is critical.

It’s not unusual for personal training clients to deviate from a plan and go it alone even though their Trainer has taught them a better way. Habits and preferences are powerful forces when trying to correct course. We see that in our gym – clients that just can’t seem to break old habits and try new, better things. Other than reminding them periodically what they need help with, Barb and I generally let them be. It’s a “lead a horse to water” kind of thing. It’s easy to imagine how frustrating it could be to advise someone on what they need to do only to have them do something entirely different.

I read a Reddit post recently from a certain “Cardio Queen” who was defending her preference to do only cardio, specifically running, for exercise. There were people with knowledge that informed her that even if she HATED strength training, she should do it for its health benefits. The majority of the posters, though, were supportive of the woman doing anything she enjoyed because at least she was doing something.

I had a woman client that starved and cardioed herself to a healthy weight, but had zero upper body strength. She exercised all the time but could barely do push-ups on her knees. She executed her plan well, but it was a bad plan. The success at losing weight distorted her reality of what was healthy and as a result, she continues to push herself with cardio and cut way back with her food intake. For those that don’t know it, adding muscle by working out pumps up the metabolism, whereas starving yourself takes away muscle and in turn reduces your metabolism. That’s why the weight – and more – comes back so quickly when you stop starving yourself.

What constitutes a good fitness plan?

The basics of a good fitness plan are laid out in our Stay Off the Scale challenge.

Basically, a good fitness plan includes:

• A diet that:
  • controls intake
  • ensures enough protein and vegetables
  • limits sugar
  • limits amount of processed foods
• Exercise that includes:
  • AT LEAST 150 minutes of cardio per week
  • Strength training AT LEAST 2X per week for 30 minutes.
• Good rest.

Regarding exercise, doing something instead of nothing is a positive thing. Going through the motions in your strength training routine rather than pushing yourself to get stronger is one of my biggest pet peeves. But Barb reminds me often – at least the person is trying. At least they’re doing something.

OK. I give them that. At least they’re not on a couch watching television.

The only good exercise plan is one that regularly changes and continuously improves. Sure, you can take steps in the right direction, but you really should be mixing it up.

It’s because the body is adaptive. The only way to challenge it and make it better is to mix it up.

That’s what I do in my exercise class – I mix it up. We’ll lift heavy to build strength for a few months then we’ll switch to hypertrophy or drop sets. Maybe we might do a HIIT video series or we’ll work on mobility and functional exercises. The constants are cardio and core – every class.

So if your plan’s not working for you, get some help and develop a new one.

“I pity the fool” that doesn’t.

Ron