What Appears To Be The Problem?

Or, Why The Plan Isn't Working

Hands up if you have a regular workout schedule and diet in place.
 
I hope all of your hands are up?
 
The only reason you shouldn’t have such a plan – by which I mean an attendance schedule, a programme. and a goal appropriate diet – is if you’re new to exercise.
(if this is you and you want to get started with kettlebells, please see last week’s blog for a great opportunity to get yourself going)
 
If you raised your hand, keep it raised if you’re getting the results you want.
 
I often do this at seminars and workshops, and the number of hands dropping at this point is usually quite alarming.
(If you're reading this at your office or in public I suggest lowering your hand anyway - people are staring at you)
 
You’re not getting the results you want because your plan isn’t working, that’s obvious, right?

But why isn’t it working?

There are, in general, three reasons:
 
Unrealistic Expectations

Forget the steroid bloated freaks at bodybuilding shows, and the equally chemically enhanced air-brushed models in adverts. It’s neither possible nor healthy to look like that on a long-term basis.
Also forget the personal trainer who promises you instant results – he’s lying to get your money.
 
Too Much Complexity or Variation
(yes, you read that right ‘too much complexity or variation’)

if you’ve seen the fitness rags and click-bait websites/social media accounts that promise, or encourage, completely different workouts to ‘shock your body into changing’, next week’s blog will give you the facts about why you’re being lied to (or click here to see if your trainer is just entertaining you)
 
Commitment to Your Goal

Even if you have a great programme, your progress is dictated by your level of commitment. I don’t just mean how much effort you put into each set. Your diet, your rest periods, the length and cycling of your workouts, your consistency of attendance – all of these things come under the heading of commitment. The trainer or programme that promises results without effort (typical of the products sold by TV info-mercials, and the claims made by supplement manufacturers and chain gyms) is, yep, you guessed it, lying to you.
 
Seems like everyone’s lying to me, Craig, so why should I believe you?
 
I’m glad you asked.

The reason is simple – and the reason is this:

You can believe me because I’m not selling you anything.

I don’t write this blog to make you want to train with me.

I write this blog because I want people to feel the benefits of living the Sparta lifestyle.

I want you to enjoy the feeling of being strong, having skills, moving without difficulty or pain.

That’s why I started Sparta.

It’s why we continue.

It’s the ethos of all of the trainers who work here (that’s why we’ve become a lot more selective about the coaches we allow to train at our facility)

It’s why, over the course of the next few blogs, I’ll be helping you overcome the three major obstacles to progress I talked about earlier, and design your own programme that’s effective, specific to your goals, and fun to do.
 
In the meantime, have a think about the points above, see if any of them are sabotaging your progress, and do what you can do address them.

Only you have the power to change you.

Take back that power.