supplements

A Self-Limiting Barrier to Fat Loss and Performance: “If I Had ________ Than I Would Definitely _________ ” Syndrome

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This will probably be the easiest post that I ever compose on this blog.

The idea is clear and I think that most of us can relate to it, at least at some point in our lives.  Heck, maybe we feel this on a daily basis.

It’s a common barrier to fat loss and performance.  

As the title of the blog shows, “If I had ____ I would definitely be _____” is a self-inflicted syndrome.  

Some common examples go like this:

  • If I had more time to workout, I would definitely be in better shape.
  • If I had a membership to that new gym on the other side of town, I would definitely be in better shape.
  • If I had more money to go 100% organic with all of my food, I would definitely be able to see my abs.  
  • If I had more equipment at my house, I could perform all of the best exercises and engage in all of the best workouts that the magazines talk about.
  • If I had more fitness apps on my iPhone, I would be able to make much greater gains in much shorter time.
  • If I had better fitness apparel, I would re-dedicate myself to my movement.
  • If I had those supplements, I would be able to drop the weight and exercise more frequently.

If I had _____ I would definitely_____” Syndrome.

It’s a syndrome brings us to our knees, cripples us, leaves us uncertain about whether our goals are worth all of the effort. 

We convince ourselves into thinking that the grass is greener on the other side, and then when we get to the other side, we realize that the grass is the exact same color.

Use exactly what you have right now, where you are at right now.

If something is worth doing, it’s always worth the effort.

Don’t get caught up in the minutiae of building health, wellness and performance.

Because there is a lot of minutiae.  If you’re a beginner, all you need to know is enough to get started.  If you’ve already started, all you need to know is enough to keep going.  

You’d be surprised at how taking a few minutes to re-examine your training options can open doors to new challenges and a refreshing movement experience.  But you have to be willing to open your eyes to all of the things that you do have going for you (time, equipment, space, a roof, mobility, etc) versus dwelling on all of the things that you don’t have.  

If you’re wondering where you can find new ideas for your training, comb over the archives of this blog.  I have been posting for a little over a year.  There are more than 150 posts to read on Range of Motion.  Bookmark it in your browser or better yet, sign up to get an update whenever I post.  

A lot of the posts on this blog contain workouts and effective exercise variations, some performed by yours truly and others I outsourced because I didn’t have the video or someone else was more effective at demonstrating.  Eat your heart out.  

One big culprit of “If I had _______ I would definitely ________” Syndrome are fitness “secrets”.  There are no secrets, there is only what you know and what you don’t know.  And you don’t know what you don’t know.  Ok?

If you’re really in an exercise slump, redirect yourself back into the movements that you avoid and hate the most.  Chances are quite high that those same movements might be the missing link in your training success.  More often than not, this advice will hold up.  That which you dread just might that which you need.  

Just a few simple thoughts on a Monday.

Go do something great today.  Go ahead, you have time.

Less thinking and more doing, and I will do the same.

 

Cheers to wiping “If I had ____ I would definitely ______” Syndrome off of your shoes at the front door before entering!

 

 

KG

Dr. Oz… And Here Comes the BackLash

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I always perk up when I hear or see popular figures like Dr. Oz on television.

Why?

Because I know that he has won the hearts of so many television watching addicts that are in search of “the next great tip”.

Last night’s piece on NBC Sunday Night programming surely didn’t disappoint.

I have to admit that his advice last night was decent.  But it’s the same old song and dance for me and many others…

–  Eat more vegetables.

–  Stop eating processed junk.

–  Exercise moderately for no more than 30 min a day.

–  Include the walk into the Mall, place of work or grocery store as part of that 30 minutes.

Huh?  Re-read the last two points that he made about exercise.

Now, one might say, “Kyle, these are great points, anyone can start with this!”  You’re right and you’re also missing a much more important point.

You’re right in the fact that advocating people to just get up and move in some way shape or form is a really positive tip.  You should move whenever possible, no doubt about that.  Add a little bit more everyday and the accumulation will equate to big things.  You know the drill… take the stairs, park farther from the front door, take a short walk in the morning or after dinner.

But understand that this is the absolute bare minimum needed to get by.  These are recreational activities.  This is not “exercise” in my opinion.  Walking is a skill that an able-bodied human should be able to do for miles upon miles, not just for the minimum 50 yards from the car to the front door of the area shopping mall.

I have seen the studies showing the correlation between minimal amounts of moderately intense exercise (roughly 30 min per day) and its positive effect on life.  I get it.  I read it and I get it.

While this information is definitely interesting, how about we demand a little bit more from ourselves?  Walking for 30 minutes a day is great, but let’s get serious about changing or improving our physical abilities, trading unhealthy tissue for healthy tissue, increasing range of motion at important joints, etc.

Set some goals… Aim to run a 5K or a 10K.  Squat your bodyweight on the barbell.  Swing a kettlebell for 20-30 minutes.  Slam a medicine ball.  Go to war with some battling ropes or try to improve the maximum number of push ups or pull-ups that you can do in a 5 minute time-frame.

Become an athlete later in life, that’s something worth pursuing.

As I mention in my training book(s), we have become a nation afraid of work.  I am talking about legitimate physical labor.  The kind that fatigues your body quickly from effort, causes sweat pour down your face and eventually soak into your shirt.  The kind that causes your lungs to “burn” from a short and intense bout of conditioning.

We always seek the path of least resistance.  Our joints do it, our muscles do it and now our brains are doing it.  We crave what is easy.  We scour the internet, magazines and newspapers for the quickest possible route to health glory while enduring the least amount of physical agony.

Let me tell you something… resolving to dominate your training sessions, whether you are a beginner just learning or an advanced trainee seeking a new path, builds character that spills over into all other areas in your life.  If you can do it physically, you can do it mentally.

Back to the backlash…

I predict a massive backlash from Dr. Oz’s comments, even though I think that he is very intelligent and probably didn’t intend for his comments to be twisted the way that they inevitably will.

It was funny to listen to him talk.  He said that he has to choose his words so carefully when he talks about health concepts and strategies because:  “People will hear what they want to hear”.  I respect that comment.

What he is means is that people are always going to take his advice and twist it to fit their situation.  Some will use common sense and add his tips to the greater whole (exercise and nutrition), but most won’t.  They want the least painful quick fix.

If he says that raspberry ketones are a great supplement for helping to initiate weight-loss, consumers are going to be buying mass quantities of raspberry ketones and consuming at an alarming rate.  When no weight is lost because all that person did was over-dose on raspberry ketones, they render that intervention useless and ineffective.

I also respected his comments about NEVER endorsing a product.  That’s cool.  He said that anything on the shelves that mentions his name or shows his picture is a scam.  That particular company has chosen to use his fame as leverage to sell their product.

Beware of this.  The supplement industry is a billion dollar industry with so many horrible scams out there.  It is difficult to regulate the supplement industry and even more difficult to identify the supplements that are worth taking.  You’re spending your hard-earned cash on these products and most of them don’t work!  Ouch.

Anyways, prepare yourself for the backlash.  Don’t be afraid to push yourself into new realms of fitness.  I don’t care if you’re interested in kettlebell training, powerlifting or endurance-related activities.  Go after something and be WAY MORE THAN AVERAGE in doing so.

Make it happen this week, alright?  I will do the same.

 

Cheers on this Monday…

 

 

KG