I’ve been in this industry for over a decade as a coach and a business owner. I’ve been training for over 20 years and these are some things that I’ve noticed about people who achieve their fitness goals:
The ones who are successful over a long period of time start slow with low expectations. They aren’t looking to drop weight for a wedding or a vacation. They are looking for a full life overhaul. I’ve seen many people get in great shape for one of these special occasions but when that is the goal, old habits and lifestyles quickly sneak back into the routine once that vacation is over.
Talking about lifestyles – fitness is a lifestyle. Long term fitness goals only happen when the whole lifestyle is changed. This means prioritizing sleep, nutrition, activities outside of the gym etc. The gym workouts are a must, you need to build muscle, get stronger, get fitter and keep the body moving in all ranges. But it accounts for such a small part of life, it can easily be derailed by a poor lifestyle outside the gym.
I’ve also seen more success with people who have goals that are related more to what their bodies can do rather than just how it looks. Wanting to lift more weight, string together more pull ups or run faster often gives a much better sense of accomplishment when they are achieved than dropping 5lbs of body fat. It’s not to say that losing weight is a bad goal (it’s certainly not as it will increase your life and health span) it’s just easier to measure and control our output in terms of our performance.
Those who are successful have support. When I was 14 years old I started training in a bodybuilding gym, I went down with 2 friends from school and quickly got help from all the older dudes in their as they made sure we did things properly. Over the years I’ve had many coaches, training partners and the like. This support network keeps you accountable and makes things more fun. Shared suffering is something I learned a lot about as a Commando – suffer together and the bond gets tighter. Same in any fitness community.
There’s often a change in social circles. It’s not uncommon that people who really want to change their health and fitness have to leave behind old friends and old routines. It can be intimidating for your friends if you decide to stop drinking or go for a run on a girls weekend away. Some people don’t support that and can stop you from being successful.
The last thing that I’ve noticed over the years is that people look to use their fitness for other things. It could be hiking the Grand Canyon or doing a Triathlon. Having that “event” in the calendar helps to keep people on track when it gets tough, boring or even stagnant. If you’re in the game long enough then you’ll come across all these at times.
If like many people I’ve met over the years, you struggle to stay consistent with your fitness routine then I hope you can integrate the above point into your life and routine. That word; consistently is the single most important thing to achieving any goal and that is the most common trait of anyone who I’ve known to crush their goals long term.
