Top 3 Fitness Trends to Stop Following Now!
It’s no secret that the New Year brings new resolutions, new trends, high hopes, a lot of anticipation; and this year will be no different. 2021 won’t have to work hard to surpass one of what was arguably one of the most challenging years in recent memory.
Maybe, however, this year’s fitness resolutions could look a little different. As a personal trainer, turned corrective exercise specialist, I find myself waist deep in fitness trends promising everything from ginormous muscles, to a shredded six pack in no time at all. Well, I’m here to help you find sanity and cut through the b.s. Here are my top 3 fitness trends to stop following in 2021.
1. Stop Dieting!
This might be, superficially, the most inane concept you could imagine. Stop dieting? You might be asking yourself, “what if I need to lose weight?” If you think you have a few extra pounds to shed, I’m not suggesting you don’t start watching your food intake. I will say that dieting is probably not the answer.
Simply improving the quality of your intake has more power than we give it credit for. Micronutrients like Magnesium, Potassium, Vitamins B-6 and 12, Iron, Vitamin D, and Iodine are among the most common deficiencies; all of which create some subtle, yet notable, side effects. For the sake of this post, I’ll put hunger and cravings at the top.
2. Buying Trendy New Supplements and Gear!
I’m as a big of a fitness gear junkie as the next gym rat, but I’m also here to tell you that you just don’t need it! Waist trainers, fat burners, fitness trackers, occlusion bands, or random supplement ‘x’ promising the biggest payoff, ‘y’; and for only $ ‘z’ dollars. Supplements and add-ons are superfluous money sucks that just give you one more excuse not to workout and eat right, and one more thing to have to cart to the gym to use.
I’ve obviously done my time. I’ve been suckered in to the notion that I’ll never get my perfect body without supplement or another. I’ve also purchased every wearable fitness tracker under the sun! None of them are accurate enough for my taste. I know when I’m hungry, tired, thirsty, had a good workout, didn’t get enough sleep, or am deluding myself into avoiding a workout. I don’t need some external monitoring device to tell me how to care for myself.
The truth of the matter is that without the foundation of a healthy diet, a healthy self-concept, and a solid active lifestyle nothing else you add will actually give you what you’re looking for. Save your money, buy healthy food, get a gym membership, love yourself, and stop being a sucker.
3. Only One Diet, or Training Style Works!
Ummm….no. Any training modality that is safe, makes you happy, and gets you off the couch is great! Any diet that promotes health and wellness, or food quality over nitpicking and micromanaging is perfect! If a diet or workout style works well for one person it doesn’t mean that it is going to work well for you too. I’m having a hard time accepting this, but not everyone likes burpees as much as I do. 😥 I guess that’s okay. I’ll jump off my burpee soap box and let my clients do whatever cardio exercise keeps them healthy and happy. Likewise, not everyone is made for the hardcore diet train. I, for one, am not! I love almost all foods equally, so I can’t fit into a diet plan that forces me to eliminate an entire macronutrient. Once I got past my chronic dieter’s mindset, I just can’t bring myself back to counting calories either. If I’m prioritizing protein and produce I know I’m making the right choices for my body and my body composition.
Don’t get pigeonholed into being the Yoga fanatic, or the HIIT chick, or the CrossFit dude.
Life is like a box of chocolates, open that bitch up and eat them all!
Outside of a little elbow grease, research, and a go get ’em mindset, most people know what they need to do to be their best and healthiest selves.
- Soda, Pizza, and Ice Cream aren’t food groups.
- Takeout Food will never replace good old-fashioned healthy home cooking.
- Protein is a necessary substrate for building a strong healthy body.
- Sitting on a couch until Netflix asks if you’re still there isn’t a good idea.
- Flagellating yourself in the gym for having a slice of cake is also bad news bears.
- Working out 7 days a week is almost as bad as not working out 7 days a week. Balance, people!
Care to finish this list for me?
You know what to do for you. Go do it!
— Stay Buff!
❤ -E