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Here’s What We’ll Cover.
- Zoning in and Zoning Out in Fitness
- The Law of 33% Within Fitness
- Short Cut Vs the Long Cut Within Fitness Results
- Creating a Strong Support System within Fitness
We’ve been in the fitness industry for well over a decade now and we’ve seen and experienced a lot.
One thing that is always overlooked in fitness and you can say in life as well, is simple rules.
Simplicity is often over looked because we are too busy looking for the shiny object.
It’s as if it’s too simple, then its devalued.
But, we kid you not, after working with well over a thousand clients, having coaches, mentors, and constantly educating ourselves, the magic within your fitness journey lies in simple rules.
In this article, we hone in on 4 simple rules that we feel are key to a successful fitness journey.
Trust us, we could have come up with a dozen simpler rules, but these ones are good, and very practical.
Just understand that a lot of these simple rules are not necessarily backed by peer reviewed scientific literature, more so this is from the past decade of experience working with well over a thousand clients, our own experiences and anecdotes, learning from coaches and mentors, and self-experimentation. So, keep an open mind with these simple rules and take bits and pieces from them and see if they resonate with your coaching philosophy or personal fitness journey.
Without further ado, here are the 4 simple rules within fitness to enhance your results…
Simple Rule #1- Zoning in and Zoning Out in Fitness
We remember when we first started our fitness journey over a decade ago, there were so many fads and myths, people telling you to “do this” and “not that,” and very few people were using the scientific literature to back up their ridiculous claims.
It wasn’t until we started “zoning in and out” in fitness.
Often, too many people focus too much on “zoning in” on fitness. They worry about the small rocks in fitness. The things that don’t matter as much.
Some examples are:
- Meal frequency
- Nutrient timing
- Supplements
- How much cardio should I be doing
- The “perfect-cookie cutter” workout program
We are not saying these things aren’t important, because they are, but they are just small rocks… icing on the cake.
Instead, focus on “zoning out” in fitness. Worry more about the big rocks in fitness. The things that matter most.
Some examples are:
- Behavioral habits
- Total calories
- A nutrition program that fits your preferences and lifestyle
- Eating whole and minimally refined foods, fruits, and vegetables
- Using cardio as a tool
- Learning exercise movement patterns such as a squat/lunge, hip hinge, push/pull movements
Then after you “zone out” on these things and master them, you can “zone in” on the smaller rocks.
Simple Rule #2- The Law of 33% Within Fitness
There’s a cool law that has to do with mentorship and it says this:
“This law off 33% ads up to 99% of your time and who your surroundings should be in order for you to achieve that elite level of success you are looking for in whatever endeavor you choose. Spend 33% of your time with people below you, 33% of your time with people that are at your level, and 33% of your time with people that are above you.”
This concept of the law off 33% really resonated with us, so we said, “why not apply this into fitness?”
Here’s what it looks like, so you don’t think we are crazy:
33% of your fitness journey should be focused on a sound nutrition program.
- A nutrition program that is tailored around your goals, preferences, and lifestyle. One you can adhere to for days, weeks, months, and years on end.
33% of your fitness journey should be focused on a sound exercise program.
- An exercise program that is tailored to your goals, physical capabilities, training experience and age, your lifestyle, one you enjoy, and can adhere to long term.
33% of your fitness journey should be focused on lifestyle.
- Within lifestyle we mean making fitness a part of your life, not your entire life, having fun, being social, keeping relationships, enjoying experiences, etc.
Simple Rule #3- Short Cut Vs the Long Cut Within Fitness Results
To be honest, about a decade ago we would always say “there are no short cuts in fitness.”
Funny how things change though…
Let’s look at these 2 scenarios and you can make the decision on if you feel there is a short cut in fitness or not:
Long cut scenario-
You have a vacation that you want to be in the best shape of your life for, you need to lose a solid 15-20 pounds. So, you decide to comb through a bunch of YouTube videos, do numerous google searches to get free fitness info, you then put it all together in a game plan hoping and praying you get results. The outcome after 12 weeks is you lost 5 pounds, extremely frustrated and disappointed, and didn’t end up reaching your ultimate goal.
Short cut scenario-
You have a vacation that you want to be in the best shape of your life for, you need to lose a solid 15-20 pounds. You do your research and hire an online fitness coach to put together an individualized fitness program that is tailored around your goals, preferences, lifestyle, metabolic variances, and more. You check in with them once a week for accountability purposes, they make changes when needed to keep ensuring progress, and they’re constantly motivating you to reach your goal. The outcome after 12 weeks is you lost over 15 pounds, gained some muscle mass and strength, became more educated and confident in fitness, and you ultimately get to go on your vacation looking like fiiiiire!
So, is there a short cut in fitness?
Simple Rule #4- Creating a Strong Support System within Fitness
We love using a tree as an analogy to get the point across on the importance of developing a strong support system within fitness.
The Trunk-
You should always have a talk with your immediate family about your fitness goals so that they understand how important this is to you. So, they don’t try to discourage you. So, they don’t bring home an XL pizza out of the blue. And so, they ultimately support you and encourage you throughout your fitness journey.
The Branches-
Its important to talk to your close friends about your fitness goals so they don’t invite you to happy hour every day. So, they don’t have you making dinner reservations 3-4 nights per week. So, they don’t say “its okay just skip the gym today and there’s always tomorrow.” You need to set boundaries and let them know you need their support. If they are your true friends, they will support you.
Acquaintances and co-workers can be tricky, because its harder to have a heart to heart talk with them. But at the end of the day, if they are around you a lot, you need to let them know you need their support, so you can reach your fitness goals.
With family members, think about those family members that have some sort of family function every weekend and they want you to eat, drink, and have dessert all the time. Trust us, we had plenty of these family members. There’s nothing wrong with going to the family functions, but they need to understand you are on a mission to reach your fitness goals and you need their support so have a talk with them.
The Leaves-
Its crucial to have a great gym environment where you feel comfortable, confident, and pumped to train at because this will make you work harder, increase adherence, and thus get results.
Gym buddies are very important too unless you like to ride solo in the gym. Just make sure they are just as motivated as you are and understand your personal fitness goals.
Having coaches is probably one of the more important aspects with in a strong support system because they are your non-biased eye, they are there to put together a blue print for your fitness goals, they’re there to motivate and inspire you, and ultimately help you reach your fitness goals.
Final Thoughts
Always remember to not overlook these simple rules within your fitness journey.
Simplicity is often over looked because we are too busy looking for the shiny object.
But, we kid you not, the magic within your fitness journey and getting results lies in simple rules.
These are just four simple rules, but as you can see, they’re very powerful, and they will lead to a long term, sustainable, joyful, and results driven fitness journey.
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