When it comes to trying to get in better shape, whether you’re trying to lose weight or stack it on, the ‘default setting’ most people revert back to when they start the process is the ‘all or nothing’ approach. This works – if you actually stick to the ‘all’ part all of the time. For the vast majority of people, however, this isn’t the case. Consistency is severely lacking with most people’s efforts.

 

Most people bounce in and out of good diets, good stints of training, good routines and lifestyles. While they’re ‘on it’ everything is sweet. They’re getting good results and everything is going to plan. But as soon as one unexpected thing happens (as it does so often in this thing called life), everything goes out of the window. The diet is lost, the training either doesn’t happen or is half arsed, sleep and recovery suffers and you rapidly go backwards instead of forwards. You can’t hit 3 perfect days in a week and let 4 days go tits up and expect to make progress. You aren’t going anywhere with half arsed commitment like that.

 

Consistency Tip #1: Start From Where You Are

If you can’t stick to what you have planned, you need to adjust what you have planned to something easier for you to stick to. Stop trying to run before you can walk. If you’re not a pro level bodybuilder – why are you trying to follow a pro level bodybuilder’s training schedule and nutrition protocol? It’s obviously going to be a massive step up from what you’re used to, so let’s simplify things a little.

 

If you’re a beginner, or returning to the gym after a significant amount of time off, start small. Start with a manageable, sustainable amount of sessions per week, with a manageable and sustainable diet that allows for your current commitments and lifestyle. Don’t start on a diet that calls for 8 meals per day if you know for a fact you won’t get time to eat at work or get the meals in at the appropriate times.

 

Start from where you are right now. Set up a diet that is marginally better than your current eating and do the same with your training. As you prove to yourself that you can sustain this, make it harder and slightly more complex. Ease yourself into the programming and you’ll find it becomes way easier to integrate properly into your life.

 

Consistency Tip #2: Stop Bullsh*tting Yourself

If you have a pretty simple diet and training plan and you’re still not making progress, it’s time to stop blaming the diet and training plan. At the end of the day, no matter what coach you hire, what plan you follow or what advice you receive, the book stops with you and you have to man the f*ck up and take some personal responsibility for your own life and your own goals. If you’re happy enough to take the credit when it goes well, be happy enough to take the blame when you f*ck it up. Sure, sometimes if you have a shit coach they have a lot to answer for. Sometimes you may have been given dodgy advice from weird gym members. Sometimes you’ve been led down the garden path by some crossfit salesman. Shit happens. It doesn’t change the fact that you’re responsible for your own results – so stop blaming everyone and everything else and take some responsibility for you own life. You’ll find your results get exponentially better once you realise it’s down to you, and no one else.

 

Nothing about the process of adding muscle and losing fat is particularly complicated. The most difficult part is getting up and doing the same shit every day. Sticking to your nutrition goals, hitting your training sessions, getting your recovery in. Ticking all your small boxes and moving forwards every day, showing consistency. That’s the key to real progress. It’s not shiny, it’s not particularly exciting but that’s the truth of the matter.

 

Stay consistent, make progress.

 

Have a great week

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Andy

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