Ignore the Noise
By Eugene Thong CSCS
...............................................................................
 If
I had a nickel for every time an out-of-shape gym member who interrupted
me telling them about how important proper diet and exercise are to ask
me, “Will creatine help me lose my gut?”, I’d have…a whole lot of
nickels.
I’d also probably
be a lot happier if those gym members had just listened to my advice.
And they’d be reveling in their newly lithe and athletic bodies. But
they’re not. And it’s too bad, because all they would’ve had to do was
turn down the Noise.
What is the
Noise?
The Noise
is asking about whether Hoodia Gordonii is safe while you’re still
eating pizza for lunch.
The Noise
is complaining that you can’t work out in your company gym because they
keep the TVs set to CNBC instead of CNN.
The Noise
is fretting about the best kind of exercise bike to purchase when you
can literally jump right into a
bodyweight workout in your living room.
The Noise
is worrying about minor, esoteric details before you get the
fundamentals down.
It’s a form of
procrastination and minor delusion. And it paints you as a slacker who
wants something for nothing; a moocher who doesn’t realize that to get
anything of value, you’ve got to give value (i.e., work for it).
The sad part is
you can’t even blame the Noise for keeping you from your fat loss
goals. Because it isn’t – you are, because if you really wanted to
achieve
your fat loss goals, you’d actually be doing something
by now.
Now, if you don’t
have the internal desire or the motivation to take action, well, I’m
afraid I can’t give it to you – as integral as it is to success, it’s
not something that can be given – but what I can do is tell you a
secret: The shortcut to the finish line is right in front of you.
You can fret about
not having the right sneakers for the race, or about how much your socks
chafe, but none of that is going to get you one step closer to the end
of the race. The only way to get there is to put one foot in front of
the other, over and over and over again, till you cross the tape.
From an exercise and nutrition standpoint, here are your steps:
 Eat
cleanly, 90-95% of the time.
Allow yourself a cheat meal once in a while (once a week if
you’ve got a lot to lose, a little more often if you don’t) so you don’t
go mad. Not sure what eating cleanly means? We’ve got an
entire article located here that tells you exactly what you should eat
and when. And in case you’re extremely consistent about “not
getting it”, might I respectfully direct you to
our list of 75 foods that we consider good fits to a good diet.
Lift
heavy things from time to time. Do it in a manner that doesn’t hurt
you, since injuries prevent training, and anything that prevents
training impedes progress. Check out our
Weight Training 101 articles and
exercise tutorials for more details.
If you’re
not losing fat and firing on all cylinders diet-wise, throw a little
HIIT into the mix.
Mike Collins shows you how here.
Strive
for progress every day. We know changing your life is hard; we’ve
been there. And it’s okay if you’re not perfect. Make yourself a
work-in-progress; make your body a sculptor’s masterpiece and chip away
at your bad habits little-by-little, but consistently, each and every
day.
Eat a little
better (i.e., more properly) today than you did yesterday. Try to lift
a little more this workout than you did last workout. Make yourself a
little better than you were yesterday.
Hold
yourself accountable. Don’t delude yourself; your clothes and
waistline will tell the real story. Besides, you’ll only be fooling
yourself (and not so effectively, at that). If you’re not losing
bodyfat (in the form of lost inches or lost weight), look at what you’re
doing.
Are you really
eating properly, cleanly? Are you giving your all in your workouts?
Are you truly
following
the directions we’ve laid out for you in our articles and in
Black Book of Secrets,
or are you changing the recipe?
Turn down the
Noise. Stop complaining about how you left your favorite sweatband at
home. Put one foot in front of the other and get going.
P.S.
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About the Author:
Eugene Thong, CSCS, was born a weak, skinny,
bespectacled child. Now, thanks to a steady diet of martial arts, scientific
inquiry, and heavy compound movements, he's no longer weak. His scientific
bent, Zen-like demeanor, and efficient but intense methods have made him one
of New York's most sought-after personal trainers.
 When
not helping clients cultivate their own inner 6-packs, Eugene can be found
arm barring opponents at Renzo Gracie's Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy or
sailing through the air on his snowboard. Read Eugene's semi-weekly musings
on exercise, fitness, and fat loss
at his blog
Eugene is Mike's co-author of The Black Book of Secrets. You can purchase
it by clicking
here.
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