Stop putting a label on the way you eat!
I generally ask everyone I consult what it means to eat a balanced diet and generally after a minute of fumbling around trying to string the right words together they give up. Whether you say a balanced diet or everything in moderation, nobody seems to have a clue what it is.
'Eh a pizza with meat and veg' or 'porridge with fruit and honey' (I was once told ‘because porridge is your protein'). I couldn't make some of the answers up because most people and maybe including you just don’t appear to understand the food or food like products that you're putting in your mouth. And then these people think that looking after themselves means high cardio, followed by a protein shake and meals consisting of lettuce and boiled chicken.
Here's a comment that very few can prove wrong. "No matter your goals, the methods used to get you there are pretty much going to be the same methods required to maintain them".
So if you go on the latest calorie deficit fad and you're popping caffeine pills like smarties with your protein shakes. Yes, you're going to lose a couple stone but is that the extent of your nutrition for life? You can't do it, no one can. It’s just not a sustainable lifestyle.
Creators of these diets with their pills are deliberately setting you up for failure and then making you believe that it's your own fault because you couldn't ‘Stick with the program’. So then when they bring out their new and improved version you’re top of the queue.
I always tell everyone,
I don't have a product to sell, I sell information and we implement it through sustainable systems that we’ve proven works time and time again.
I can't do the work for you, you've to do it yourself.
I can only motivate you short term but long term it's on you.
I can't make you happy, you've to learn to be happy.
Sounds like I do nothing yeah? So why is my gym out the door? Because the people that learn from me are ready to take accountability, ready to stop blaming others, stop looking to someone else. They want to make a change in their life and they’re starting with the person in the mirror.
I won't just train anyone, I train those who are ready because if they're not they're only wasting my time and their money. Do I turn business away? Most definitely and probably more than you think.
If I was to take on the quick fixers then I'm no better than the food and supplement companies. Just setting them up for failure and I'd argue that it's their fault for not following my advice but sure I knew the first time I met them they weren't going to follow it.
It's like a smoker trying to quit. Most ex-smokers I've talked to say you just stop. No patches or easing off, no E-cigarettes. You’re just ready to stop and you stop, end of.
And I believe it’s the same rules for those of you of bad health. Until you see that you’re close to being just another statistic for obesity, heart disease or cancer and you’re ready to make sustainable long term changes then you’re forever going to fail.
So what to do without having to throw a load of money at someone like me?
You’ve to make sacrifices! If that sounds like too much then sorry but you need someone like me. But if you’re thinking you can do it how does 20 minutes a day sound? 20 minutes every single day with no distractions like a TV, phone, Facebook or poxy blog emails.
So everything is off, now what?...................Educate yourself and READ!!!!
Almost everything I and any other trainer do is available for free online if you know where to look. I've paid A LOT for my education only to randomly read so much of it online at a later date. Some good places to start for something a bit more in-depth would be Sean Croxton, Danny Lennon or Chris Kresser. Read their articles or listen to their podcasts. This won't change your life after a day nor even a week but how many 20 minute segments do you waste every day doing something that contributes nothing to bettering your life?
Also to get you going, try this.
First you need to download my recipe book HERE.
Now Starting Tomorrow
Step 1: Check out the recipe book and I want you to only concentrate on changing your breakfast and consume 2 litres of water a day. That's it for a whole week.
Do everything else as you do. If you can manage 7 days in a row with a good breakfast and two litres of water then move on to step 2.
Step 2: Keep up with the breakfasts but now consume 2.5 litres of water and if you need to snack between meals make better options:
Morning Snack – 1 Piece of fruit.
Afternoon snack – Chicken fillet, Handful of nuts or 2 x Rice cake and peanut butter. See the idea? Fats and proteins.
So not until you now have another 7 days of breakfast, healthier snacks and 2.5 litres of water do you move on to step 3.
Step 3: Add in some of the lunch recipes.
Every time you look at your plate try making sure there are 95% of whole foods.
1-2 Fist size of veg, 1-2 Palms of protein. 1-2 thumbs of fats and a grab of gluten free grains or starch.
The other 5% allows for some sauce or mayo etc. So don’t be thinking that when someone says ‘Clean Eating’ that it’s just boiled chicken and steamed veg. We can enjoy our foods. Just open the Cookbook I gave you and see all the things you can be doing with food.
Step 4: Add in some of the dinner recipes.
Your lunch and dinners are meals. Generally they should look somewhat similar.
Again every time you look at your plates try making sure there are 95% of whole foods.
1-2 Fist size of veg, 1-2 Palms of protein. 1-2 thumbs of fats and a grab of gluten free grains or starch.
If you need anything else, please just ask.
Until next week,
Love and happiness,
John T.