The truth about the fitness challenges

People who knows me would call me a gym bunny and healthy lifestyle lover and I guess that’s true (guess trying to write a fitness dedicated blog makes this statement legit) and guess that’s why the reason sometimes girls reach out with some workout advice or their fitness updates they wish to share with me. (Which I love, BTW. I am always happy to help. Let’s call this my mission – help people to create the best version of themselves and help as much as I can from my best knowledge – so feel free drop me a line).

Couple of days ago a friend of mine shared her idea to try 30 day squat challenge..and I couldn’t help but frown hearing it. Sure I was glad to hear that she wishes to have a fitness challenge and improve her physical aspect but this was just not the right medicine to work miracles as many people believes. And it’s not their fault, it’s media, fake profiles promoting results after their 30 day challenges, before and after pictures, that are actually found on internet and “borrowed” from real people or just plainly photoshopped. All these things gives us impression that after a 30 day challenge, not only squat challenge, we will have this amazing body: lifted and round booty, perfect beach body or super toned arms. 

Of course it’s wonderful to believe and trust me – I have been there, believing that a challenges and a short term workouts found on women’s magazines would give me my dream body, but unfortunately been deluded way too many times, as I believe, rest of us, when thinking about the result and being inspired from a star/unreal people social media profiles and magazines. The thing that makes us all believe that it can be done is comparison with others. Stop doing it! It will take you nowhere!

But don’t get me wrong – I love challenges! They inspires me. Like trying out some model fitness training program, like did with Dan Roberts (trainer for Victoria’s Secret Angels) training schedule. Or the Blogilates challenge – Journey to splits.  But despite truly admire the girl and were performing religiously my stretches every day I did not manage to have my complete split just because I started from proper newbie/beginner level and expected to arrive where others would after years and years of training and practice. (If don’t believe me – check my experience and photo check-in). Just saying that you should never compare someones middle to your beginner and underestimate the work behind it.

Consider the fact that this 30 day challenge has to be tailored to everyone according to their genetics, physical level and lifestyle.

The famous squat challenge (see picture above)will not give you the perfect butt if you have never performed a squat in your life, nor beach body 30 day challenge will give you that long desired beach siren’s body if you don’t fix your diet first.

The thing is that each of our body is made different and only individual training program can work for you in combination with a diet and lifestyle change.  Without that – you will just exhaust yourself, might get stronger and see some results, because after all – you would burn some calories, even if not fixing your diet, but as soon as you will finish your 30 days challenge – you will gain back the weight and nothing will really change. Moreover if you just target spot one area – like glutes , it is not really effective for overall target area change. ( sorry to break this to you, but you have to train all body to get that perfect, round, booty especially putting emphases to your booty. But that’s only when you don’t have too much overall extra fat you have to loose. If this is not the case – forget about this challenges! You will just loose your time, nerves and end up deluded. 

Having real body changes asks a lot: lifestyle change, diet change and consistent training. 

Those perfect trained bodies are not gained overnight nor in a year, it has been built year after year in a hard work and consistency. Sorry to break this, but those fitness models live and slave/love their bodies to be where they are now. They don’t (at least majority) don’t have 9-5 office job, kids/husbands/piano classes and weekly brunches with girlfriends and movie nights with junk food.

But what they do have is a strict sleeping (8 hours minimum) eating ( many, many times per day and not includes crisps, coke and big macs but carrying around their cold bag with their previously prepared food) and working out schedule (5-10 times per week)  that brings them to where they are now. 

SUM UP

• Frget about the squat/ push up/ plank – one target zone challenges – they are useless!
• Secondly! Remember that no fitness challenge will do miracles unless you change your lifestyle and adjust your diet. 
• Stop comparing with others and focus on your body and getting tailored program for it to have real changes

Reflect, consider and for any questions/ thoughts below or send me an email (reply to all of them).