Get Lean in 2019
As the New Year unfolds, millions of men set goals to get a lean and fit body. But sadly, few are successful.
I’m very confident that after you complete each step in this article, you will have a master plan to achieve your goals.
You are about to learn a simple, but powerful framework to help you lose weight and get lean. It’s not smoke and mirrors, it’s not about promising you fast, easy results, and it’s not about crash dieting.
This 5-Steps framework works so well because it’s a systematic approach to change your habits. Right now, your body reflects your (1) genetics (2) previous injury history, and (3) your habits. We need to change these habits so that you achieve a stronger, leaner, and fitter body for the long run.
When I say “lose weight” or “get lean”, I mean lose fat without losing muscle mass. Losing weight and losing muscle is undesirable.
Step #1: Self Assessment
“He who conquers others is strong. He who conquers himself is mighty”
-Lao Tzu
Successful weight-loss boils down to changing your old habits and replacing them with new habits that will transform your body. So how do you change your habits which are deeply ingrained in your subconscious mind?
The short answer is to be conscious of your habits so you can change them. One of the best ways to become more conscious of your habits is completing a self-assessment to analyze your mindset and physical state.
A) Mindset Assessment
Answering tough questions about your exercise, nutrition, and lifestyle habits can help inspire change. For example, if you don’t work out, why not? This seemingly simple question requires deep introspection and courage to answer. Yes, you may not have the time, but that may not be the real reason or the root cause.
Questions:
If you don’t work out, why not?
If you stopped exercising in the past, what were the reasons?
What kind of exercise do you enjoy? What exercises do you dislike?
In what situations do you overeat? What steps can you take to change this?
If you don’t get enough sleep, why not? What steps can you take to change this?
B) Body Assessment
Next is the body assessment, which provides objective facts and establishes the starting point for your journey. A body assessment can also be a key motivator as well because the results of a body assessment can be a serious wake-up call.
A typical body assessment is comprised of the following:
Body Weight (weekly weigh-ins)
Body Fat Percentage
Body Measurements (waist, hips, thigh, arms, legs, chest, shoulders)
Photos (front, side, back)
Step #2: Set Goals and Reason Why
“If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll probably end up somewhere else”
-Yogi Berra
Creating a compelling goal along with the reason why that goal is important may take some time, but it’s worth it. Without a compelling goal, we have no direction and we may lack the fortitude necessary to achieve our goals.
I bet the times you were successful despite big challenges, you set a specific goal and you had a reason why that goal was important to you that was so compelling failure was not an option.
There are two different types of goals you can consider creating:
Outcome goals – Relate to an endpoint, such as losing 5 kilograms, or completing 10 pull-ups
Process goals – Relate to a process that will help you reach your outcome goals, like exercising 3 times per week, or eating 2 servings of veggies each day.
You can create a combination of outcome and process goals to help you stay on track. My personal favourite strategy is creating a primary outcome goal, such as losing 8 kilograms in 12 weeks and a short-term goal of 1 kilogram of weight loss per week by using weekly weigh-ins.
Step #3: Follow A Plan
“Failing to plan is planning to fail”
Having a plan is important because it channels your energies to help you get the best results possible. If you work hard AND have a great plan, it’s only a matter of time before you achieve your goals. Unfortunately, most people either (1) never create a plan, or (2) follow an ineffective plan.
There are tons of exercise and nutrition plans that can be found on the internet. I believe that I’ve been refining my programming for some time and have an outstanding plan that will help you get a lean, healthy, and functionally fit body in 12-weeks or less, but I’m slightly biased!
You could also create your own exercise and nutrition plan, which is time-consuming but can be a worthwhile process. A plan does not necessarily have to be a rigid structure, it could be developing specific guidelines for yourself to follow.
For example, your “Get Lean In 2019” Plan could be:
Full body strength circuits 3x per week
Eat less than 1800 calories per day – 3 meals and 1 snack
Eat 2 servings of vegetables per day
1 drink of alcohol per week
In bed by 10 pm 5 days a week
You may have realised I just listed 5 process goals, which help form the foundation of the plan; 1 exercise 3 nutrition, and 1 lifestyle. You can then drill down with more detail to flesh out each goal, which will put the finishing touches on your plan. When developing your body transformation plan, be sure to draw from the answers and results you outlined during your assessment.
Here’s some more detail to consider when creating your plan:
Exercise Details
Determine the number of times you want to workout per week
Determine the type of workouts you will complete
Determine how long each workout will be
Determine when you will workout
Determine how you will make your workouts harder over time
NOTE: Don’t forget if you want to maximise your results, you should have strength training, cardio, and flexibility components in your exercise plan.
Nutrition Details
Determine the meals and snacks you will eat
Determine the foods you will avoid
Create low-calorie meals and snacks to eat
Determine where and how you will procure these foods
Keep in mind nutrition is the difference in helping you get more visible results faster. You can exercise until you are blue in the face every day, but lose 0 pounds of fat if you don’t change your eating habits. Because half a kilogram of fat has approximately 3500 calories, you are going to have to do A LOT of exercises to burn off that amount of calories, but the easier way is simply to eat fewer calories AND exercise.
I do want to emphasise you need to eat fewer calories than you burn to lose weight. This may sound difficult, but a strategy of filling up on whole, natural foods that provide fewer calories but keep you feeling satisfied is a great strategy that I highly recommend.
Following a clear exercise and nutrition plan is essential to help maximise the effectiveness of your time and keep you motivated along your journey to lose weight. The Discipline Fitness Coach has programs already figured out for you
Step #4: Take Action
“We must sail, sometimes with the wind, and sometimes against it. But we must not drift or lie at anchor.”
- Oliver Wendell Holmes
This “take action” step may be self-evident, but for some getting started and taking action is the hardest part.
Starting off slow if you haven’t worked out in a while will make starting a program more manageable for you, which will make taking action easier. Maybe it’s going to the gym for 30 minutes, or cutting out drinking soft drinks.
Execute your plan without hesitation, but be sure to follow the next step.
Step #5: Track Progress
“Progress lies not in enhancing what is, but in advancing toward what will be.”
-Khalil Gibran
Tracking your progress will help you identify improvements from consistent exercise and better eating so that you can link your efforts to positive results. It will also keep you accountable for the decisions you make regarding your health and well-being.
Not tracking your progress is like playing in a basketball game and not knowing what the score is, how many points you scored, or rebounds you have. In other words, you have absolutely no idea how you are playing and if you are even winning.
While there are several metrics you can track, here are 5 you can consider tracking:
Body Weight
Body Fat %
Body Measurements
Energy Levels
Strength Levels
Now It’s Time To Get The Lean and Healthy Body You Deserve
While there is a lot of information in this article, you don’t need to complete each step perfectly in order to be successful. Just do your best with each step and move on to the next step. For example, if you don’t have a body fat calliper, or don’t know any ways to measure your body fat percentage, that’s fine. You can certainly still get lean & healthy without knowing your body fat percentage. Do what you can, order what you need, then move on.
An important theme I tell everyone is to “always move forward”. We all have obstacles in our way and we all make mistakes, but it’s how we deal with adversity that determines our success.
Always move forward and best of luck in 2019!
If you want to get lean in 2019 and want A Personal Trainer for less, contact the Discipline Fitness Coach, today!