them the body they desire. In our pursuit we have tried everything from P90X
(which I own and think is an awesome program), to 5 Minute Abs and even the Shake Weight! We need to be entertained, "wowed" and have a "something shiny" moment to keep our attention and thus maintain our fitness loyalty. I know from experience being a personal trainer for 22 years that if I don't vary workouts and keep the client "wowed" and entertained they may start missing appointments and eventually stop working out altogether. Many gain back all the weight they've lost and are back to step one again! However, it has been my experience that if you are willing to wade thru all the gimmicks and focus on your goals,
develop a plan and not be distracted by every new shiny fitness fad, you can achieve your goals.
Why Are We So Easily Attracted To Anything New?
1. "New Car Smell." Everyone loves to get a new car, phone or outfit. It's exciting, different and stimulating. However, after 6-8 weeks you find that the new program has lost it's new car smell and feel... on to the next new program.
2. "Testimonial Trap". You hear from others about the results they are getting from "that other program." Now this sounds like a very logical way to shop for programs, which is why testimonials are a powerful marketing tool. But there's an inherent trap to this: typically, you only hear enthusiastic responses from those who got great results from the program, not those who found that it didn't work well for them. So it might be that 10,000 tried the program, but 1000 found it effective. Of those 1000, maybe 500 raved about it (you can't blame them after all), but maybe only a handful of the non-responders bothered to tell
anyone about it. Now there's an important point here that I don't want you to miss: The fact that the program you had your eye on only worked for 10% of the people who tried it doesn't mean it's a bad program – it just means that it only works for certain
people. That's true of all programs. Even if a program only works for 2% of those who try it, if you're part of the 2%, it's a great program – for you.
3. "Missing Tile Syndrome." The missing tile syndrome is the tendency to focus on whatever it is you think is missing in your life, even though it may be insubstantial compared to what you actually have. In other words, when you look
at the tiled ceiling, your eye goes straight to that one missing tile. By nature, people tend to notice what's missing more than what's present. Applying this to training, your program might be working just fine, until you read about another program that uses a special tool, method, or philosophy – one that your current program doesn't have. Your brain goes right to that missing
tile, quickly forgetting all about the fact that your current program is the most effective one you've ever used.
4."The Buffet Approach." Many have heard the phrase Jack of all trades, master of none. In our over stimulated society and search to have it all, many times we will take on too many programs. The flaw with this is how to know which program is getting the results you desire and second, your workouts will be all over the place and not specific your specific goals and needs. I have known people who will do yoga, bootcamp, strength training/bodybuilding type workout, spin etc all in the same week. They then become frustrated and ask why they aren't seeing better results for all the hard work and time they've invested. Do you want to lose weight and shape your body? Would you like to improve your cardiovascular system and race time? The problem with the buffet approach is that you set yourself up for failure by not focusing on one or two methods
designed to hit your targeted goals.
5. "Have I Got A Deal For You." You have a current program, you're getting results but someone or something comes your way promising "better" results. My favourite is the "trainer wannabe". We all know and see the person in your local gym. This is usually a guy who has made significant strides in his own fitness program and wants to share his "gospel" of fitness. This person will approach anyone who will listen and share fitness tips and exercise programs they've read about online, fitness magazines etc that have worked for them. You start working out with them or their fitness routine and end up frustrated and/or injured. What works for one person may not work for your body type and personality. You wouldn't have a cavity filled by someone who has had many filled, watched the dentist and researched it in magazines. Following the advice and workout routines of the "Snake Oil" trainer wanna be can not only lead to frustration but because the person isn't certified, hasn't the background to deal with existing injuries or is one dimensional in their training, may also lead to injury.
6. "The Old Shoe Syndrome". As time goes by, we tend to forget the value of what we're doing and simultaneously become more and more aware of the imperfections of our current program or philosophy. Like an old pair of shoes the program that has proven affective is thrown in the back of the closet for the shiny new workout. Remember that gains in strength, mobility, speed, and especially hypertrophy, require working hard for significant timeframes. For an experienced trainee, for example, putting on 10 pounds of muscle in a year is a huge achievement. The best friend of progress is patience, and the worst enemy of patience is a wandering eye.
Taming That Wandering Eye
While variety is good – even necessary, too much of it derails your continued progress. In order to get better at anything (and
indeed, in order to accurately assess the value of something), you've got to put your time in.. I put it like this: imagine that you take Spanish in 9th grade, Italian in 10th grade, French in 11th, and Japanese as a senior – how proficient do you think
you'll be in any of those languages, as compared to just studying one of them for 4 straight years? What we need, in my opinion, is a way to trick ourselves into thinking we're getting something new, when we really aren't. Here are a few ideas on how to do just that:
1. If you happen across a program or approach that catches your eye, don't ditch your current approach – see if you can tweak it by "merging" aspects or features of the new program with what you're doing now. One example would be theimplementation of Escalating Density Training parameters.
2. Implement optional or free time on a regular basis. This might mean at the end of every workout, or on a once-per-week basis. Even if the forbidden fruit you're lusting for is "bad," you've already eaten your vegetables, so go ahead and enjoy a little dessert.
3. Experiment with varied loading parameters, but maintain your current "best" exercise menu. Simply making a minor change will make your tired old program seem brand-new again while maintaining structure and vision of your goals. I usually recommend making variations to your program every 6-8 weeks while maintaining the core program designed to achieved your specific goals.