Weight loss is not about a special juice that you drink once
What’s the secret to weight loss? Interesting question and one that I know a lot of people would like to get an answer to. Whenever I work with people who want to lose weight, I know one thing. Changing their nutrition and training program will be the easy part. The hard part will be to educate them and break some of the habits and misconceptions that these people have.
One such misconception is, for example, that starvation is necessary in order to lose weight. Here is another big one: “I don’t have time to workout!” , “Today I don’t have the energy to go to the gym!” or “Eating healthy is expensive!”. Losing weight is generally not a 3-month process how many people expect. Losing weight means getting a totally new lifestyle and most importantly, a completely new mindset.
That’s why many people struggle with this. I have even seen many Personal Trainers struggling for the same causes. They don’t seem to understand that losing weight requires mind training more than anything else. We at MihaPower have recognised this and we have developed a training system called MPower Mind Training System that it’s supposed to deal specifically with these things as there is a huge difference between losing weight and staying fit long-term.
When asked, many overweight people admit that they have tried many weight loss programs or miracle diets before and none has worked long-term. And let me break it down for you now. No matter what other “magic pill” weight loss program you will try, you’ll still not be able to keep the results long-term. Why? Because this is not dependent on your nutrition program or on your training. Staying fit is a mindset. It can be learned but it requires training.
Here are some of the challenges that clients and Personal Trainers face
Many people get all excited at the beginning of their weight loss program. They would do anything someone asks of them. They start day-dreaming about their end-goal and immediately turn into overachievers overnight because they feel this rush of adrenaline which drives them to want to do their best in order to achieve their goals faster. Unfortunately, this lasts 2-3 weeks and then tiredness and exhaustion sets in and they become more and more unmotivated until they finally quit around week 4 thinking the coach is not good or the program didn’t work for them.
Everybody gets a burst of energy and motivation from time to time that drives them to make radical life changes. The truth is that very few of them get to the finish line. People don’t realise that changing your life is not a sprint but a marathon. Losing weight and staying fit is indeed a life-changing experience. You don’t need to get to the finish line first. All you need to do is finish! And that requires you to stop focusing on the final destination and to fall in love with the process. It means you got to learn to love the pain. In the end, the only thing that will help us achieve our goals is perseverance and resilience! Whoever tries to sell you anything more than that is lying to you and hurting your health at the same time. There is no magic pill! Only perseverance!
Then there is another group of people who have seen somewhere on the internet really fast results (usually before-after pictures) and they already come with really high expectations. They let you know from the beginning that they would like to lose 20 kilograms in 2 months. “I know it’s possible. Can you make it happen?”, they ask. I wonder, whether these people are serious or not.
Nowadays, you see a lot of things on Social Media and “fitness” is often associated with “fast” but I urge you to pay attention to who you are hiring. Better yet, I think you should ask yourself, how that result was achieved in the first place and if your long-term health is worth to trade for a short-term illusion. Fast results can be achieved in many unhealthy ways but that is not what I stand for. I promote health (in body and mind) as I know for sure that it is the only thing that can serve anyone long-term. After having been ill myself for 5 long years of my life, I can tell you without a doubt that the most important thing anyone has and needs in this world is his/her health.
Here’s one example from yesterday from one of my clients
Here is another example. I got a message yesterday from my client. The message read “Could I please skip today’s workout? I forgot I had to do something important! I’m sorry.”
After a really long argument with her and after trying to get her to understand that she can do both in a day, she was still not convinced, so I finally said “Ok. You can skip today’s workout and you’ll do it tomorrow. please be more careful next time.” I knew she needed to see this for herself.
A few hours later, I received a picture with the training statistics from the treadmill on my phone and a message. The message read: “I went, took care of my urgent thing as fast as I could and then immediately went to the gym… and I never felt better. I was wrong … it can be done … I have lost so many years on the couch in front of the TV. Just sitting around and doing nothing that I actually believed I didn’t have time, when in fact I had plenty”.
Those lines … right there… are my biggest satisfaction as I know I haven’t only achieved to get someone to train once but I also know that our MPower Mind Training System works. I know their mind is one step closer to achieving and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Hiring a Personal Coach does not mean to buy a standard nutrition and training program. A Coach will see your journey as their own. She will feel all the bumps, all the ups, and downs that you take, together with you. A true Coach has the power to train your body AND your mind. They can teach you resilience and time management skills, optimise your diet, your training and your health and ultimately, help achieve a lasting change in your life.
I am not here to give you a magic pill and get you fit fast. Thereafter leave you with the same habits and lifestyle you had before so that you can get back to where you were before we started working together. I am here to teach you new ways and help you change your life! That’s the true value of a personal trainer! Once learned, resilience will stay with you forever. It will follow you not only in your weight loss demeanour but way beyond that, in every other aspect of your life!