The way I approach clean eating meal plans and workout programs is I like to meet my clients where they are. Let’s say I have two women who come to me and they both have a goal of losing two pant sizes. Client A has been going to the gym at least three times a week for the last several years and already eats five times a day, mostly consuming whole foods. Client B hasn’t been on a regular workout program as an adult and sometimes she eats meat and veggies, but a lot of times when she actually eats, it’s take out or pizza.
Their workout programs and clean eating meal plans are going to look drastically different, but not because of what each client looks like, or what they weigh or what they have as goal. They’re individual programs are going to look drastically different because of their current habits.
For the client that is already at the gym three times a week, I can maybe get her to lift weights, not just do cardio as her daily workout routine where as the client that hasn’t done any formal exercise in years, I simply need to get her in the habit of moving daily. Her workouts may involve doing a few simple bodyweight exercises at home or going for a walk.
For the client that already follows a clean eating meal plan, I may tweak the amount of protein she consumes each day, change her portions or time her carbs differently. I would never ask someone who still eats processed food to time her carbs around her daily workouts because first we gotta get her to start cooking whole foods like meats and veggies first.
Both clients will be working toward their goals by doing this, but they are at very difference places in their lives and they are going to walk a very different path because of it.
When someone tries to begin a workout program that is over their head, it causes overwhelm and frustration. It’s not enjoyable and the person begins to avoid it. Then they begin to feel like a failure because they aren’t doing it, they are behind, etc and they give up. That is not what I want for my clients. I would rather make things really simple so the client does their workouts and feels good about herself and builds confidence. As that progresses, we can progress what she does and let it build from there.
Ultimately a pyramid can only be as tall as their base is long. Your foundation MUST be solid before you can build on it. So never feel bad about something being easy or “not enough.” Build on that and as you become successful and confident you can grow.
For the person who is already eating clean, and doing daily workouts, things can still be tweaked, but again, I’m going to meet them where they are as well. I’m not going to have that person go from doing cardio six days a week to doing cardio twice a week even though I know she’s doing too much. I’m going to get her to scale it back to five and sit with that for a while. Then once she sees that she isn’t going to put on five pounds because she did one less session, we will scale it back to four times a week and see how that feels.
Ultimately in my approach there are no drastic overhauls. There are little tweaks here and there and simply making a change, letting that become a habit and then building on that.
So if you are looking for someone who can help you make lasting change, meeting you where you are right now, sign up for online personal training and let me help you reach your goals and maintain them.
Your Coach,
Kyra
P.S. Have you ever made a drastic change only to get overwhelmed and feel like a failure? Where did you end up from there? Leave a comment below.