Building Your Best Body From Square One

I think we live in one of the most challenging times when it comes to fitness and health.
A lot of people might disagree with me on this, but there is a reason I feel that way.
Today, there is so much information available that it is difficult to differentiate what’s
good advice and what simply, isn’t. I’ve been consistently lifting weights since I was 16
and it was only within the past few years that I really learned how to build a great body.
I will tell you it is a lot more simple than people make it out to be.

I’m sure all of you at one point or another have hopped on the internet and looked up
“best diet to lose body fat” or “best workout’s to tone or build muscle”. It’s simple
right? We have a question so we ask Google or Siri hoping to get a few good tidbits of
information that will set us on the right path. WRONG! What we get is bombarded with
article after article usually with contradicting methodologies. One website swears by
keto and intermittent fasting, while another swears by a low fat high carb approach.
Then the slew of workout programs all promising to add inches and definition while
sporting a highly paid fitness model at the top of the article. See my point, it isn’t easy
to differentiate the good information from the useless. And usually after a quick internet
search you leave more frustrated than when you began. Because now you have more
information floating around in your brain that may have even deterred you from the
current fitness path you were on.

​So what should you do? Should you give up carbs for good or mound up the rice and
not even look at the jar of peanut butter sitting in your cupboard? Should you do
calisthenics or heavy barbell squats? The truth is...... They all work to a degree. Keto
works wonders assuming that you don’t have high cholesterol and can deal with the
fact that you wont be touching another piece of pasta for the next few months or years.
Calisthenics work great if you don’t have access to loads of gym equipment or if you
enjoy working out outdoors. Heavy barbell squats are awesome assuming you perform
them with good form and can handle the stress they place on the body. So how do you
build your best body from square one?
You have to decide what your goals are, and what the easiest way to achieve them is.
Once you have a goal you have to simply work on your progress toward that goal.
However, if you aren’t seeing measurable progress, you’re doing it wrong. If you’re in
the gym to get bigger and you aren’t getting stronger you’re doing it wrong. If you’re
following a meal plan but not losing inches or body fat, you’re doing it wrong. If you’re
doing boatloads of cardio, but aren’t gaining endurance, you’re doing it wrong. So, you
have to seek progress. It’s that simple. However, you can only see progress if you know
what you’re working towards.
So, let’s say you’re really new at this and you want to get a six pack. Well you need to
do a few things. Number one is set a timeline, that way you don’t have an excuse to
not work towards the goal. The second thing is you need to build up your core. The

third is you need to get your eating habits right. So how do you get your eating habits
right? Start using a food tracker like MyFitnessPal or your Fit Bit if you have one. The
app will tell you how much you need to eat. So let’s say you start at 18% body fat and
you set a goal to have a six pack in one year. Well a six pack would require you to be
somewhere in the 9-11% body fat range. So, basically if you haven’t lost at least 4-5%
body fat in six months you need to reassess and see why you aren’t on track. It works
this way for any goal you have, but you have to have a goal.
The moral of the story is building your best body is all about deciding what your
definition of your best body is. Once you have that you have to set goals to get you
closer to the big picture. Then you simply work towards the goal. Finally, you measure
your progress and assess how your journey is going. If you are making progress, great!
If not, you need to reassess and change whatever is holding you back from getting
towards your goal. Once you reassess or hit your goal then its time to set another one.
And the cycle begins again. Also, don’t be afraid of failure. Anyone who has been
successful in any endeavor in their lifetime has failed at something. I trained for years
and spun my tires until I eventually figured it out. But, you can get your best body as
long as you take it slow, work hard, and learn from your mistakes. Do what works for
you, and always try to get better. Stay strong everyone.