CONSISTENCY VERSUS PROGRESS.

      Everyone knows of that one fitness junkie who's always seen adhering to key fundamentals of healthy living but year in-year out makes no progress. It's even worse when their physical appearance counteracts their actions. This bring a lot of questions than answers making people wonder, what isn't she/he doing right.

At times, genetics and underlying health conditions are to blame but is it always the case? 

This gives insights on the difference between being consistent and the ability to make progress. There is a fine line between the two but both can be intertwined to bring a synergistic effect. Most people get stuck on being consistent and forget to evaluate the aspect of making progress.

Does doing cardio everyday guarantee weight/fat loss?

This cuts across different areas of our day to day lives. Fitness being our area of focus, we will steer this discussion towards that direction.

Consistency in this context will be defined as the ability to show up despite the challenges. Progress will be defined as the ability to improve or grow from one point to another. Most times, through being consistent is when we make actual progress. This can be a blind spot for most people especially when there is lack of tracking.

"Insanity is doing the same thing the same way and expecting different results ".....a saying that summarizes the state of most fitness enthusiasts, who keep wondering why results are taking too long to show. This proves the fact that consistency without proper strategy and evaluation can be a spell for disaster.  

let's put this into context:

a) Weight loss and fat loss.

Aerobics class in motion.

Until the recent public recommendation by experts to incorporate some version of strength training in their routine, aerobics has been the go-to way of getting fit especially for the old folks. This perception was always backed by the notion of cutting down on wheat or skipping a few meals to lose weight.

Speaking of fat loss, belly fat has for the longest been the biggest set back for most individuals. This resulted in lots of abdominal workouts to get rid of it. The "Red pill" industry has really capitalized on this. People still wear waist trainers and sweat belts hoping to lose belly fat. Others are drinking hot lemon water and smearing slimming creams/jelly on their abdominal regions to shed some fat. 

Do the "Red pill" mechanisms work? 

I believe the psychological influence called The Placebo effect that tags along the process creates some illusions that it's working but it's impossible to out-do poor lifestyle habits. These mechanisms could be working for some people but often times, they aren't the sole cause of the change.  A probability of lifestyle change has to be the catalyst. 

The recurring pattern with almost all these individuals despite their consistent efforts is, it's never sustainable especially when tribulations come knocking.

Science has consistently shown that for sustainable results, it has to be a game of calories in versus calories out. This is a matter of eating less and moving more to burn extra calories for weight loss. It also involves some form of weight lifting activities to change the overall body composition. The transition of fat mass to muscle mass is what will create sustainability.  It's impossible to lose fat (spot reduction) in one specific area.

Spending the whole year doing sit ups, running, attending all group classes etc, might not be the solution for your goals. A proper evaluation will be a good idea before making your next move.

b) Building muscles.

As seen, some form of strength training goes without saying as a good and sustainable strategy. Key point being, the  ability to challenge the muscles from their daily use. Ideally, we use our quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes and calves muscles while walking. This means that anything that doesn't surpass the amount of stimulation on these muscles as walking does, won't really bring a significant change.

Through this concept, you can have a good idea as to why that one guy despite hitting the gym consistently year in-year out still looks the same. His gains can only be spotted via a microscope. Some might argue that genetics might contribute to it. This could be true but most times it trickles down to key fundamentals that most of these guys always omit in the process. 

Lifting a 5 pound dumbbell  in every workout session for a whole year and  
 expecting massive gains is irrational.

Often times, most of these individuals aren't challenging their muscles as much to make them grow. Lifting a 5 pound dumbbell in every workout session for a whole year, can't make muscles grow. I bet we know of such guys in the gym.

This is where the aspect of progressive overload comes in. It entails a lot of options which can be diversified in terms:

• Volume - altering either number of reps, sets or load. Ability to surpass adaptation by keeping the muscles under consistent stimulus. 
• Tempo - this is where you capitalize on eccentric (The extended portion of the muscle) and concentric (The contracted portion of the muscle). By lowering the motion of the most effective portion for a few seconds in accordance to comfortability and more muscle stimulation, could bring a huge difference in the output of the workout.
  
  
  
• Rate of perceived exertion  (RPE)- ability to gauge on a scale of 1-10 how intense a workout was, should help make appropriate adjustments. If it's always below average, then a slight increment will steer the output in the right direction.
• Reps in reserve (RIR) - this doesn't have to be training till failure all the time. Leaving 1-3 reps in reserve will be quite ideal especially for the natural guys who only sip water in between sets. This will help them finish the intended session efficiently.
  
  
  

Tweaking these variables will really help with progressive overload. Muscles have to be consistently challenged. It's not a matter of just going to the gym and lifting anything and everything that comes your way. 

Icing on the cakes has to be some decent protein intake. In this case of building a decent muscle mass, somewhere around 1.5g per body weight in kilograms would be recommended. Practically it can be hard for most individuals to consume all these amount of protein from food sources. Supplements like whey protein which has 22-24g of protein per scoop might come in handy. This is quite ideal for someone who already has their nutrition on track but feels there is a gap that needs to be fulfilled.

c) Nutrition.

In any fitness journey, it gets to a point where one outgrows eating just a balanced diet. Does this give insights why you aren't making any progress despite being consistent with your workouts? Let's delve into it.

The knowledge most of us have about a balanced diet is a combination of carbohydrates, proteins, vegetables and maybe fruits on the side. This has been the norm for the longest time. Scientific data keeps showing prioritization and specific selection of some of these macronutrients. A great example will be protein intake. At higher levels in the fitness ladder, protein tops the chat among the macros. This mainly will lean towards muscle growth and muscle maintenance. 

 

Oftentimes we think that through a balanced diet, we are getting enough ratios of everything but in real sense it might not be true. A great example could be of a guy who is 75kg guy and he is consistent in resistance training. The amount of protein needed per day to just  maintain the amount of muscle tissue he holds onto should be slight above 75g. To build more muscle, it is recommended a consumption of around 112.5g of protein per day under the basis of 1.5g of protein per body weight in kilograms. 

To put this into context, an egg has 5-6g of protein in it. This means that for this individual to keep up with his protein demand, he has to consume 19-23 eggs throughout the day, assuming eggs were his only source of protein. The question is, how many people are in a position to consume such volume of eggs in their balanced diet each day to fill in the demand?

This is not to say that other macros shouldn't be prioritized. We all need carbs either complex (take time to digest) or simple sugars ( which are quickly digested and absorbed into the bloodstream). The energy needed to push weights around comes from these foods. Whenever there is a depletion, simple sugars come in handy. Fruits and veggies also aid in getting some micronutrients and fibre in the body.

 Key word being prioritization.

Another key factor to really consider is calorie counting. This goes a long way especially for guys trying to lose weight. A balanced diet can't get rid of that fat if the amount of calories consumed the whole day surpasses the amount expended. This is where most people even the ones who seem to get it right end up failing. The tiny nitty gritties really amount to a lot like snacking which can easily  counteract all the efforts made.

d) Rest and recovery.

It doesn't matter how consistent one is, taking a break where necessary is highly recommended. Pushing through fatigue, thinking more training equals better results is often a spell for disaster. This easily leads to overtraining, increased cortisol levels and muscle breakdown instead of growth. 

"You will only enjoy the privilege of sleeping when you get laid to rest" I guess it's a saying most of us have come across. In reality, poor sleep inhibits recovery. It's through sleep that the growth hormone peaks, aiding muscle repair. Chronic sleep deprivation leads to slower recovery as seen, weaker performance, and higher injury risk. 

What your version of active rest?

Instead of taking prolonged period of inactivity as a break from working out, it's highly advised to engage in some sort of active rest. This could mean something less intense like taking walks, engaging in yoga exercises etc. This will create some progression unlike being sedentary all in the name of adhering to taking a break.

 Stress management is one of the key areas that is highly neglected mostly due to lack of awareness. High stress levels triggers a critical hormone called the Cortisol hormone which hindes recovery. This happens as a result of catabolism where the body breaks down the muscle tissue for energy instead of building it. 

Another setback for high stress levels would be a condition called Stress-induced eating disorder. This is where cravings arises inform of emotional coping mechanism. This surbotages all the efforts of being in a calorie deficit in order to lose weight. 

Often times people find themselves waking up in the middle of
the night just to snack.

You can be as consistent in your training but when such setbacks creeps in, that's when most people fall off the wagon.

Key tips to note: 

-It's alway wise to do some evaluation from time to time. This could be through journaling the journey and noting down not only the physical progress but also emotion progress. 

-Having an accountability partner would be great,for example a personal trainer who can keep it professional and help guide you where necessary. 

-Surrounding yourself with like-minded individual will make the experience a bit easier and fun because most things will be relatable. 

-Lastly, being open-minded and avoiding being confined by certain stereotypes would be the best way to go about it. Social media has made access to information quite easy, at the same time a lot of misinformation being propagated out there could drag you into turmoil.

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