Fitness, Health, and myths. If you’re constantly looking at your end result (or wondering why it’s not here yet) it’s likely you will never get there. We have to switch gears and have you focused on the habits and behaviour goals instead of the outcome goals.
Process vs Prize
This prize will come when the process is followed.
Before you jump and think you’re not going to reach your goal or that you’re in a plateau, let’s take a stab at a few questions here:
- Am I being as consistent and accurate as possible with tracking or am I taking weekends off?
- How many workouts have I missed over the past 3 months?
- How often am I weighing in?
- How much water am I drinking?
- What is my stress level like of late?
- Do my clothes fit differently?⠀
- How does my current picture look vs when I started?
Now let’s look at some process goals that are going to bring you to the prize you seek:
- Daily step count target (6-10K)
- Track your food daily. All of it.
- 30 minutes of activity daily (workout, yoga, walking, etc)
- 2-3L of water daily
- Having a sleep routine and sticking to it
- Getting enough protein
- Staying under your calorie targets
These are the major habits that are going to get you where you want to go. Relying on motivation each day will not ensure your behaviours change for the better.
We need to help create the lifestyle you want to have the body you want.
Not the other way around.
Here ya go!!
1) You must hear this all the time, but even if I plan or try to avoid food that I shouldn’t eat, there is a birthday, Christmas, NYE, or a family gathering that kicks me right off track. I just can’t stop when there are chips and I empty the bowl. Any suggestions?
I think the answer lies in your question. Trying to avoid the foods you enjoy is causing a restrict & binge cycle of eating which is driving you further away from your goals. Instead, for the holiday celebrations, I want you to change the narrative. Give yourself permission to eat these foods. You’re going to feel less restricted and thus, less likely to empty the bowl of chips. On top of that, when you are at these events, put a bigger emphasis on the people and not the food. You can enjoy yourself without worrying about what food is being served.
2) Hey Jon, My problem is the gut. I have skinny legs and skinny arms. I have no power nor resistance. How can I just pull my gut in a little bit?
It sounds like you’re discussing two separate problems of which I can only give you so much advice without getting more information from you. For skinny legs and arms, there needs to be an emphasis on resistance training. You don’t have to train for hours on end or do power movements, but starting small and working your way up to using more weight and more reps will build your legs and arms. As for your gut, I would suggest taking a deep dive into your nutrition. How many calories are you eating in a day? How much protein? When you can get a real feel for how much food you’re eating, you are able to tweak things to make lasting changes to your physique.
3) Jon, I have no motivation. After a full day at work and barely 4 hours of sleep a night, I just don’t have anything to give?
Thank you for sharing this with me. It really does sound like a busy schedule and a lack of sleep can really make things difficult. One question to ask yourself is: what do you think you can honestly commit to? If it’s not workouts, that’s okay. Maybe it’s just small walks throughout the day. All in all, any efforts you make towards your fitness goals should be focused on your nutrition. Adding in more protein and eating less processed foods will give you more energy and help with any goals you may have.
3) Hi, Pina here. I’m a 41-year-old woman, and I hate myself in front of the camera. Everyone looks great and I have a huge trunk. I just looked at myself in some party photos at the office and I feel so embarrassed?
Hi Pina. First, I appreciate your honesty in sharing this with me. The one thing I can say is that you are in complete control of how you view yourself. If you feel like you need to make a change, then by all means start the process of getting there. I can’t tell you what to do based on what you’ve given me here because I don’t know enough about you or your goals.
4) How can I prepare my meals? I’m 9 hours in the office and I commute for 2.5. Groceries, cooking, and preparing are just not my thing. I need someone to kick my ass and get me to the gym and get to eat better.
Preparing your meals does not have to be a complicated process. It is as simple as you make it. If you really don’t want to prep, I suggest looking into a meal delivery service for the majority of your meals – that eliminates the need to cook or shop for groceries. As for getting to the gym, it needs to be in your calendar the same way your work or Dr appointments would be. A non-negotiable time for you to work on your fitness. That may mean waking up earlier or finding times in the evening, but it won’t happen unless it’s prioritized in your schedule.
5) Hello Jon, I’m Stephen (37, overweight, 177 cm, 125 Kg.) what are my options?
Hi Stephen. The answer, as always, is it depends. What are your main goals? If you are looking to lose weight, I suggest starting looking into a coach or at the very least a food diary to make sure you’re getting the right amount of calories for your goals. For your calorie intake, I would start with a target of around 22-24x your bodyweight in kg. Other than that, I can’t really tell you much without getting to know you more.
6) Hello Jon, you mention “squat, bench press, rows, deadlifts, lunges” can I do these at home and hope for any results? I hate getting all the equipment that then collects dust and occupies space.
Yes you can absolutely do these at home! It really comes down to what you’re using for equipment. Squats, presses, and lunges can be done with just your body weight if that’s all you have. Deadlifts and rows typically need some sort of resistance to be effective. If you have dumbbells, these will be very efficient at getting these exercises done. If you don’t, you can incorporate things like loaded backpacks to create some resistance during the movements. The main thing is that you’re challenging yourself with enough resistance to create muscle tension, metabolic stress, and muscle damage with the reps and sets over time.
7) Hey Jon, how much should I spend on apps, weights, bands, to be able to get some real results? I don’t think that they work compared to a real gym.
It really depends on what your goals are. If you are looking to lose body fat, improve your energy, and can a little muscle tone/definition, you can make some real strides doing it from home with an app (preferably with a coach), weights, and bands. The gym will give you more variety for your workouts and it is easier to progress in terms of weight being used, but your overall activity level and nutrition will play a much bigger role in losing weight than just the gym workouts.
Now it’s the time to connect with Jon Strong and get going!
Jon Vlahogiannakos, Owner of Strong Jon Fitness.
I am Jon Vlahogiannakos, Owner of Strong Jon Fitness. Whatever you’ve tried to get in great shape – I’ve been there.
I was that overweight kid growing up. That didn’t get any better going into high school. I gained up to 40lbs at a time and ended up losing it all and more to where I was skinny fat.
My dreams were to make it into a level of professional hockey somewhere, but as fate would have it, I was not good enough. It did help me shift gears and find my true passion and calling – health and fitness.
After years of trial and error, the birth of my son, injuries, and weight loss success – I can honestly say I have been where you are and I can help you get past it. I’ve made mistakes so that you don’t have to.
Connect with me:
Apply for Coaching – bit.ly/SJF2021
Get Your Free Copy of The Fit Parent Cheatsheet: strongjonfitness.com/cheatsheet
Blog – www.strongjonfitness.com/blog
Podcast – https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/strong-jon-fitness/id1539520897
Facebook – www.facebook.com/groups/FitParentSquad
Instagram –https://www.instagram.com/strongjonfitness
Email – jon@strongjonfitness.com
