The health and fitness world has expanded greatly over the years. The amount of resources, methodologies, theories and hacks seem to be never ending. This is a great thing for those trying to better their health and become more efficient in doing so. There has never been a better time for someone to take control of their life with the wealth of information you can find just by scrolling through Instagram for 20 minutes. At the same time, the amount of information that is out there can make you feel helpless. Whether you are looking at good, solid research or some pool noodle looking trainer that thinks he knows it all because he has 5,000 followers.
If you want to lose weight, go on the carnivore diet and eat nothing but meat and fruit. Actually, the best way to lose weight is to go Keto. Just kidding, eat whatever you want as long as it “Fits Your Macros”, just make sure to put a broccoli stem in your coffee.
Want to put on muscle and look shredded? Make sure to do compound lifts every day. Wait, no, make sure you isolate one muscle group per day. Better yet, just take this new supplement that just came out with the really cool fancy label describing how jacked you will get if you take 6 a day.
The best methodology is CrossFit. Better yet, Orange Theory is the only way to burn fat. But if you want to look like a Greek God or Goddess, you should use nothing but Kettlebells because all other gym equipment is worthless.
Okay, you get the point. All of the above have a time in a place, well, except the broccoli stem in the coffee and the fancy new supplement that will probably give you a heart attack. The point is, while they may work great for one person, it might completely derail the motivation and confidence of the other.
Even as someone in the field who has consumed all things fitness, nutrition and wellness for 15 years, I sometimes feel like an imposter and get overwhelmed with all the information and resources out there.
If you ever feel like this, just take a step back and remind yourself to keep it simple. The best way to reach your goals is to simply find something that you enjoy and stick to it. Consistently putting in effort day in and day out is what gets the job done. And as you go, tweak some little things here and there. If for 1 year you worked out 5 days a week, read 10 pages a day, ate healthy food 85% of the time and did your best to get sufficient sleep everyday, you’re going to come out on the other side a whole hell of a lot closer to your goals. I don’t care if you do CrossFit or Peloton, just move and improve every day.
Some simple tried and true baselines that will help improve the life of every single general population person out there:
- Fitness/Movement – Try and do something everyday that gets your body moving and blood flowing. Even if it’s just going for a walk.
- Nutrition – Keep it real. You should know where your food comes from. If it’s in a box that has 67 ingredients in it, there is probably a much better option out there. Focus on eating whole foods without a bunch of additives and chemicals
- Sleep – We live in a society where sleep is always the thing that gets pushed aside. If most people got 1 more hour of sleep than they normally do everyday, they would probably function a whole hell of a lot better and feel much more energetic.
- Mindset – You are what you consume. If you hang out with friends that do nothing but spew negativity, you watch mainstream media all day telling you about all the problems in the world, you have negative self talk and you constantly compare yourself to people on social media, you will go to sleep every night with a negative mindset. All that negativity impacts your health in such a profound way.
I am very big on the 1% rule everyday. If everyday you got just a little bit better, your life will change for the better over time.
So if you get overwhelmed and confused, don’t get discouraged. Just take a step back and remind yourself that there is no perfect route besides consistent, intentional, hard work.