It’s easy to get lost in the health and fitness hype of the moment.
Whether that’s the latest Tae Bo-esque exercise fad or some “magical” diet based on a supposed rare rainforest berry. But it’s just as easy to find your way home.
Anytime you feel distracted by the “latest and greatest” a return to the basics will reset your fitness compass.
Keep It Simple…
#1 Get Picky With Body Weight Movements
For exercise, you can’t get any more basic than the body weight movements. Revisit the push up, the pull up, and the body weight squat and go through your technique with a fine tooth comb.
The things to pay the closest attention to are your range of motion and postural alignment. Use a video camera or a training partner and get some unbiased feedback on your performance on the most basic of the basics.
#2 Reduce The Weight You Use On The Barbell Lifts
No doubt, the barbell lifts are meant to be done heavy. What I’m suggesting is knocking back the weight you use just a bit and focusing on the technique.
There are undoubtedly minor tweaks you can make to your lifts that you would not discover without reducing the poundages. Even better – go find an expert coach on these lifts, pay them what they’re worth for a session, open your mind and be a student. The results will be priceless.
#3 Simplify Your Circuits
I’m notorious for putting clients through circuit training with every sort of jumping, throwing, swinging, and lifting movement you can imagine.
But it’s tough to beat finding a steep hill and running up and down it until your heart feels like it will explode from your chest. Or seeing how many burpees you can do in 10 minutes.
Pulling out your bag of exercise tricks can be nice for variety on occasion, but it’s never necessary for a good fat burning workout.
#4 Eat The Same Thing Everyday
Take the guess work out of meal planning and eat the same thing every day. This makes grocery shopping, cooking, and packaging your meals a snap.
Change the menu up weekly if you like, but for a solid week eat the same thing for breakfast, the same thing for lunch, and the same thing for dinner.
If you can’t stomach doing this, then just make sure you prepare your meals ahead of time and take a little extra time on Sunday to get everything ready for the next few days…
#5 Get More Sleep
Maybe that means turning off the television at night or setting the alarm clock an hour later (wouldn’t that be nice). Our recovery time is often the most neglected aspect of our health and fitness regimen. And you can’t get any more basic when it comes to recovery than a good night’s sleep.
There is no need to get fancy with your workouts. We all stray from the proven path from time to time because we were dazzled by the latest late-night infomercial or in search of a quick fitness fix.
When this happens, revisit the technique on the basic movements, keep things simple, and get more sleep.
Your results are sure to improve…
– Vic
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Great post Vic. I just recently started doing “real” burpees and find they are a great exercise for fat loss. I have been trying to build up to my first 100 and then I am going to do 100 for time.
My 30th birthday is coming up Friday and although my training and diet hasn’t been the best it could be this week, I look forward to getting back on track this weekend. With your help I have dropped close to 45 lbs and kept it off!
Good Stuff…I am starting to look forward to your posts…they give good, strong, simple, straightforward advice…I haven’t found any other site as helpful as this one yet ….thanks!
As always Vic great advice, keep em coming and educate the masses
As always, Vic offers excellent counsel; please continue to educate the masses.
clear labeling and detailed information about the composition
Looking to cut through fitness trends? Remember, simplicity wins. Focus on classic body weight exercises like push-ups and squats. Fine-tune your form and watch your gains grow. And when it comes to diets, consistency beats complexity. Just like mastering Wordle, stick to the basics for real progress.