The right mindset to build strength

Top 10 reasons strong is the new skinny Part 3:

There's more to it than physical strength.......

When I talk about being strong, I don't mean looking like you're an over filled, over grilled sausage who's spent too long on the barbeque. I'm talking about having the strength to live a healthy fulfilled life and being functional or able to do all activities of daily life, without burning out.

To increase strength, is not (necessarily) a ticket on the vanity train, but developing physical strength will require hard work, an investment of time and money plus a wholesome, healthy relationship with food. In addition an increase in strength will empower you to understand that anything you desire is possible, if you are prepared to work for it and be consistent!

Getting stronger and stronger is great for your health, and is a goal which can almost always be progressed.........

Try this for size: 

"I originally started with a goal of a 20kg chest press, when I achieved that I went on to 25kg, now I can lift 75kg no problem!! (insert your own strength goals 💪).

Investing in your physical strength will help create mental strength and resilience. In a world, which is often shallow and judges purely based on looks. As Arthur Ashe once said:

“Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome.” 

Arthur's quote hits the nail on the head, you can spend the rest go your life getting stronger, you can't do that with weight loss. 

Matters of the mind(fulness):

In some cases of anxiety, the brain is stuck thinking about the past and things that have gone wrong, our brain becomes lazy and assumes that things will go wrong in the future this amounts to a fear of the future (anxiety). Being mindful is all about living in the current moment, concentrating on what's happening in this very moment- Exercise is a perfect way to practice Mindfulness: E.g: You've done 6 push ups, you're beginning to tire. YOU ARE LIVING IN THE MOMENT and push on to the 7th, you have no time to worry about what's happening in the next few minutes never mind the next few months or years. All that matters is the push up!

Take home: Having a goal to become stronger will mean resistance based exercise. As you focus on movement you will be in the moment which is great for your mindset, progression through a challenging workout will develop a "can do attitude" which has the power to change your outlook forever 💪.

If you have any questions or would like to talk to me about how you can improve your own, diet and lifestyle without depravation and increase strength, then why not get in touch? Call me on 01273 258212

Thanks for reading,

Andy

Andy Payne is a Personal Trainer, based near Brighton in East Sussex, and founder of Three Pillars of Fitness, Exercise : Diet : Mind. You can follow him on Facebook and twitter 

Eat the right diet to support strength

Top 10 reasons strong is the new skinny Part 2:

The goal is skinny...... the cost is variety in the DIEt and volume of food= Restriction and FAILURE, something which the health and fitness industry has profited from for far too long!

The very fact that you are here reading this is nothing short of a miracle, from the moment you are conceived until you shuffle off in a box, you / your body is burning energy.
With every breath, every heartbeat, every thought, movement, frustration and celebration you ARE burning energy, nutrients and vitamins.

✋Raise a hand if you've ever been on a calorie controlled diet and failed to stick to it for more than a short period of time. The chances are, the new diet, lifestyle or exercise regime is too far away from your old habits. Put simply you are asking too much of yourself, both physically and mentally.

You've heard the saying "Rome wasn't built in a day" healthy lifestyles are the same, it takes time to build a healthier lifestyle. The foundation of successful change in your lifestyle is a minimum amount of disruption. 

Conversations with clients often sound like this:
Client: "But Andy, I have lots of things that need to change!"
Me: "That's cool, lets change one thing at a time, lets prove we can do that one thing before moving onto another!" 

Psychologically, those who enrol in a restrictive diet experience significant changes in their cognitions concerning eating: subjects become more preoccupied with thoughts about food!

Take home.........

Trends will come and go, remember Atkins? Rosemary Connelly? Herbal life? etc etc.....All sought to sell a miracle cure, none of them created an education in food, a platform for long term change, a process of personal growth and empowerment. Shifting your goal away from being skinny to becoming strong will require a lot of energy/food and variety/ from lots of nutrients, meaning those feelings of depravation will disappear instantly.

At Three Pillars of Fitness, this is exactly what I do with my clients:

Stage 1: 
Continue current relationship with food, whilst logging exactly what's consumed.
Stage 2:
Swap sub optimum foods, with better options (same volume/ calories)
Stage 3:
Reduce calories to desired amount (total calories needed with a small deficit where appropriate-depending on goal)
Stage 4:
Maintain stage 3 and return to tracking and goal setting every 3-6 months

If you have any questions or would like to talk to me about how you can improve your own, diet and lifestyle without depravation and increase strength, then why not get in touch? Call me on 01273 258212

Thanks for reading,

Andy

Andy Payne is a Personal Trainer, based near Brighton in East Sussex, and founder of Three Pillars of Fitness, Exercise : Diet : Mind. You can follow him on Facebook and twitter