The fitness industry is plagued by the myth of the “quick fix”. The offerings range from pills, to slimming drinks, teas to hunger supressing gels amongst thousands of others. What these gimmicks have in common is that they have absolutely no scientific backing and a large majority of them simply don’t work.

Those who seek the “quickest” way to get a flat stomach, the “quickest” way to shed calories or the “quickest” way to bulk up are also unknowingly seeking unsustainable progress. A wise person once told me that if you’re only willing to put in a portion of the work required then you can only expect a portion of the results. The fact of the matter is that building muscle, becoming stronger, creating a stronger metabolism and being capable of maintaining weight on higher calories takes time. It takes dedication and there is no quick fix.

It is a fact that humans seek instant gratification. We live in a world where at the click of a button we can buy things, sell things, learn things, make things and have food delivered to our door, so it’s no wonder that we crave these kind of instant results when it comes to fitness. Unfortunately the kinds of progress we make quickly when it comes to getting fit and losing weight are often unsustainable and while they may work in the short term, it may be at the cost long-term success.

The way I see it is, any one is capable of eating 1000 calories a day to drop weight and stay relatively lean. Equally, any one is also capable of eating in a 2000-calorie surplus and gaining weight. Both of these methods are in no way optimal and the results are in no way enjoyable. When it comes to losing fat it’s best to do so on as many calories as possible, when it comes to gaining weight it’s best to do so on as little calories as possible, the larger the surplus, the more chance you have of gaining unwanted fat on your muscle mission.

My suggestion to you is that you remove yourself from the long accepted idea that we need to eat less to lose weight and instead, eat more. Eat at maintenance and above, train to build muscle and alter your body composition, train to increase your strength and your endurance while fuelling your body optimally to do so. Eat in a slight surplus for months, do it for years and I assure you that further down the track when you have put in the work you will be able to drop weight on a large amount of food. Or even better, you might never feel the need to drop weight because somewhere along the journey you’ll realise you love yourself, in all your strength and beauty, just the way you are.

So please, kick the quick fixes to the curb and focus on creating a sustainable lifestyle that will ensure long term, ongoing success.

If you want some extra help please send me an email rlchambers@live.com.au