"When there is a choice between the short term and the long term, there is no choice." -Jim Wendler
You are a marvelous adaptation machine. Your body is capable of way more than you will probably ever demand of it. You can see examples of this by watching Ironman triathlons, the Olympics, the Crossfit games, or going to a local powerlifting meet. What does it take to realize the levels of performance that the athletes competing are expressing? If you've read this blog at all you can probably guess my answer: long term hard work.
If that's the case, and it is, then how do I choose the right programs and strategies for me? Easy! You start out with long term goals and back track your way to the present. So what kind of goals should I set? SMART goals of course. Even more specifically, I recommend performance goals over any other option. Why performance goals? Because you can generally control the factors that lead to increasing performance. If you are carrying a ton of body fat around but you want to get faster and stronger, you'll lose the weight working towards the performance goals. If you set the goal to only lose the body fat, you'll become a slave to the scale. It will drive you crazy. Besides, simply losing the weight is too short term, you want to keep it off and continue to be faster, stronger, and healthier.
Simply losing the weight requires a short term change in habits. Losing the weight and keeping it off requires a long term change of lifestyle. Here is how I might write my goal to lose 23 lbs and keep it off. The overarching long term goal is at the top followed by several short term goals that will let me know I am making progress. Each short term goal will have 1 or more steps that I am going to take to make each happen. The discerning reader might even find some helpful tips for fat loss below...
BIG GOAL: Lose 23 lbs and maintain my new body weight indefinitely.
Goal 1: Lose the first 5 lbs within 30 days.
Step 1: Drink plenty of water. (1/2 my body weight in ounces.)
Step 2: Cut out sugary snacks.
Goal 2: Lose the next 10 lbs within 60 days.
Step 1: Stop drinking calories.
Step 2: Move around for 30 minutes 3-5 days per week.
Goal 3: Lose the remaining 8 lbs within 60 days.
Step 1: Find a training program I enjoy and will commit to for at least 3 days per week forever.
Step 2: Learn more about healthy eating and how to cook healthy foods for myself and my family.
The example above is very simple, but it shows how you can work from a broad long term goal through several short term goals and action steps to get you to the end result desired. If you have a fair amount of fitness knowledge, you can apply this process to yourself fairly easily. If you don't think you could have come up with the example above, I am always happy to help. You can comment below or email me at disruptivefitness@gmail.com. Don't forget our facebook group for like minded people who are interested in improving themselves through smart, hard work.
You are a marvelous adaptation machine. Your body is capable of way more than you will probably ever demand of it. You can see examples of this by watching Ironman triathlons, the Olympics, the Crossfit games, or going to a local powerlifting meet. What does it take to realize the levels of performance that the athletes competing are expressing? If you've read this blog at all you can probably guess my answer: long term hard work.
Training is cumulative.
Donnie Thompson didn't smash a 3000lb total in powerlifting with 6 weeks of training. Rich Froning Jr. didn't become the "Fittest Man on Earth" by following a 3 week muscle magazine training program. Usain Bolt didn't become the fastest man on earth because he started running the same year as his first Olympics. This list could go on forever. There is no such thing as an overnight success. Every overnight success story you have ever heard follows years of hard work, usually with little to no recognition or compensation, that built up the base of the pyramid until it was large enough for the tallest point to poke out above the clouds. Just like get rich quick schemes are too good to be true (or at least legal), get jacked and tan quick schemes aren't worth the paper they are printed on.If that's the case, and it is, then how do I choose the right programs and strategies for me? Easy! You start out with long term goals and back track your way to the present. So what kind of goals should I set? SMART goals of course. Even more specifically, I recommend performance goals over any other option. Why performance goals? Because you can generally control the factors that lead to increasing performance. If you are carrying a ton of body fat around but you want to get faster and stronger, you'll lose the weight working towards the performance goals. If you set the goal to only lose the body fat, you'll become a slave to the scale. It will drive you crazy. Besides, simply losing the weight is too short term, you want to keep it off and continue to be faster, stronger, and healthier.
How do I do it?
So let's work through the weight loss example together as an opportunity to set a long term goal and then several short term goals to measure progress towards achieving the long term goal. Let's say you're about 23 lbs overweight, and you're fed up with it. You might think the best long term goal is to lose 23 lbs. I think that is more of a short term goal. A better long term goal could be to lose 23 lbs and keep it off indefinitely. Most people who have struggled with weight loss have had short term success, even reaching goal body weight before overeating back to their pre-diet body weight.Simply losing the weight requires a short term change in habits. Losing the weight and keeping it off requires a long term change of lifestyle. Here is how I might write my goal to lose 23 lbs and keep it off. The overarching long term goal is at the top followed by several short term goals that will let me know I am making progress. Each short term goal will have 1 or more steps that I am going to take to make each happen. The discerning reader might even find some helpful tips for fat loss below...
BIG GOAL: Lose 23 lbs and maintain my new body weight indefinitely.
Goal 1: Lose the first 5 lbs within 30 days.
Step 1: Drink plenty of water. (1/2 my body weight in ounces.)
Step 2: Cut out sugary snacks.
Goal 2: Lose the next 10 lbs within 60 days.
Step 1: Stop drinking calories.
Step 2: Move around for 30 minutes 3-5 days per week.
Goal 3: Lose the remaining 8 lbs within 60 days.
Step 1: Find a training program I enjoy and will commit to for at least 3 days per week forever.
Step 2: Learn more about healthy eating and how to cook healthy foods for myself and my family.
The example above is very simple, but it shows how you can work from a broad long term goal through several short term goals and action steps to get you to the end result desired. If you have a fair amount of fitness knowledge, you can apply this process to yourself fairly easily. If you don't think you could have come up with the example above, I am always happy to help. You can comment below or email me at disruptivefitness@gmail.com. Don't forget our facebook group for like minded people who are interested in improving themselves through smart, hard work.
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