I often hear from people that the training program they are on or the latest nutrition plan they are on isn’t working.
The first question I ask is how are you assessing the effectiveness of your training program and nutrition plan?
People usually look at me with a blank stare and reply with:
“ammmmmmm because my scale weight hasn’t changed in 2 weeks and the new program I started 5 days ago doesn’t seem to be working.”
Ok, great response…..
Hmmmmmm! Maybe not!
What do I mean by how are you assessing your program and nutrition plan?
🔴How long have you been following your plan?
🔴How do you feel on your plan?
🔴How do you track your training session? Is there progress, regression etc
🔴How do you track your nutrition?- Are you over consuming calories or maybe you are not eating enough
🔴How do you feel during your training session? Weak, low energy, little motivation?
🔴How is your sleep pattern?
🔴How well do you handle stress? Is your job and home life stressful?
The list is endless and I could delve a lot deeper into important factors like stress and sleep pattern but today let’s look at how you can make a quick assessment of your own program and most importantly fix it.
How long you have been following your plan can be a very important factor. If you are program hopping and changing every 3-7 days your results aren’t going to be as effective.
Ok!!!!
We know your best friend Betty swears by trying something new every time you work out but then again Betty is overweight and eats biscuits all day so her advice is threw out automatically.
That is the problem with the fitness industry everyone is an expert because they read the latest blog posts and follow a few people on Facebook. A quality coach will get you on a long term program and not take you on a session by session basis, this approach is piss poor and leaves no room for measurability.
You need to look at the key areas of your program after the first 4-6 weeks, notice that I said weeks and not days! Is the program making you feel drained and sore for days on end while your weights on the bar are gradually decreasing?
This can be a sure tell-tale sign that your central nervous system (CNS) isn’t recovering from your workouts optimally, again this can be down to nutrition as well as shitty programming from your coach/trainer.
So here is four tips to measure your program and get back on the right track
- Keep it simple -Do not over complicate your exercise program.Are you in the gym for 90 mins or longer?
If so you need to take it back a step and focus on training smarter and getting your sessions finished in 60-90 mins (that includes warm up, mobilisation, ramping up sets etc).
Learn the big compound lifts, learn how to move better, learn some fun gymnastic moves that will keep you feeling healthier and younger while putting a smile on your face.
Finally do something you enjoy, playing sport, mountain biking, swimming, walking the dogs, climbing mountains, whatever makes you happy and active do it, it is that simple.
Recovery-
Do you feel tired from session to session?Do you find you are just getting by during the day with no energy and little motivation? If so it’s time to look at your recovery methods.
Once again the question arises is the intensity too high in your sessions?
Do you take regular de-load days? (lighten the load, change to less stressful exercises etc)
Are you getting 8-9 hours sleep per night?
Are you eating the right foods at the right times to support your lifestyle and goals?Assess how you feel 24-48 hours after your session. Are you fresh and ready to go again or are you sore and not able to move well. This can show that your exercise program has either too much volume too soon or else that your form is poor on certain exercises and you are picking up injuries.
If you have not asked yourself any of these questions you may be suffering quite a bit. You can address all these issues yourself if you just take the time to do so.
Exercise section and progression –
Is your exercise selection correct and in line with your goals?
If not then it’s time to get yourself a good coach and make a difference.
If you’re on your own a good way to measure progress from an exercise is the weights increasing on the bar while maintaining good form or also by moving on to a more advanced bodyweight exercise.
You want to be making progress on a continual basis and if something stalls you can assess your program and change the exercises accordingly.
Body Composition changes- you are still fat and have not added any lean body mass, what does that tell us?
Hmmmmmmm!!!
One of two things:
1.Your training and nutrition program sucks
2.You have not executed your plan to its full potential to get the results you desire.
You are going to be the best person to answer that question. If you have did everything in your power and could not have given anything else, then it would be fair to say that the program did not work for you.
On the flip side, if you know you did not really put the effort in and are not afraid to admit it, that is half the battle. If you could have done better with someone helping and advising you along the way then it is time to get yourself into a structured training routine in a great coaching environment.
If you follow these four easy step to assess your program it will allow you to judge whether or not you need to make changes in your program or lifestyle.
If you have any questions do not hesitate to get in contact with me here:
Dan