fbpx

I think if we are honest then we can agree that at some point there has been a large period of time, maybe now or maybe for as long as you can remember that we have been unsure if we are getting the results we want from our training and nutrition. The problem with not knowing how you are progressing and if you even are is that it breeds negativity and often makes us give up on our goals, frankly that’s not good enough and we deserve to get out what we put in!

So how can you make sure that your hard work is giving you the results you want? Well quite simply you can become more aware of what your body is doing, not just looking at the scales as we have discussed before that can be quite misleading. Paying closer attention to what foods we eat and how much of them, our training, recovery and our stress levels gives us a much better idea of what’s going with our bodies both physically and mentally.

bafba2_0b9f8be7b7fd4316984238a7fb5d40bd

With your training are using progressive overload effectively to make sure you are changing your body?

Progressive overload is something we talk about regularly and is basically the principal that in order to progress you must keep challenging yourself to do better. For example let’s say this week your goals is to squat 80kg for 6-8 reps and you manage 6, next week your goal is to get more reps, and next week you manage 8. The following week you can increase the total weight on the bar by 2.5kg and aim for 6-8 again & so on. Although these are very small increments over time that make a monumental difference, but you must know what your goals are in order to progress other wise you can spend weeks, month or years just doing enough to keep you where you are. Now that is perfectly fine and if you’re happy with where you are then awesome but many of us are still working to make positive changes. Personally I have all my training written out in a diary and that means I can easily track my progress by flicking back through my previous pages, although mostly I only use last weeks page as that’s what i’m looking to improve on.

Below i’ve attached a very simple strength and hypertrophy (muscle building) plan that you can use to get ideas from and to create your own or even use you can this one. That way you can print several copies and each week try to beat your last weeks results.

bafba2_02d39a8d259b4bdb9b461f1e19de0656

When it comes to food a food diary is always a great idea, basically for 1 week write down everything you eat and drink, ideally use an app like myfitnessPal as that will also give your calorie & macronutrient breakdown. From there you can assess patterns in your diet, do you go for sugary snacks at the same time each day? If so are your blood sugars low? In which case maybe have a healthy snack between meals to keep you going and stopping you reaching for the chocolate.

It’s also a good idea to note down how you feel after eating meals and certain foods to see if you have regular patterns with foods that might not agree with you, the normal culprits of lactose, gluten, nightshades & preservatives.

When you start to interlink all these ideas and methods even if only every once in a while with the food plan for example you can really get a grasp on how you are progressing.

Ask your self these questions

What is your goal?

Does my training and nutrition match this goal?

Is my training progressing in the way I want it to?

Is my body composition going the way you want it to?

How is my recovery and sleep?

Am I happy?

If any of these don’t give you the answer you are after then you can question them and use your notes and experiences to find out why. Fro example if your goal is to build muscle and your strength is going up in the gym but your weight is not budging, then ask yourself if you are eating enough.

Simple I know but super effective, progress is made by lot’s of small changes and consistency!

Thanks for reading, feel free to leave a comment or question.

John Chapman

Join the discussion 11 Comments

  • Madeleine says:

    Hi John and Leon! Just watched the video with Marcus Butler , so glad you talked about this subject ! I am currently skinnier than I ever was and my mother was starting to get worried which I didn’t get since I only eat healthy , low carb and everything organic , gluten free the whole thing … I am slowly starting to incorporate more foods , it’s “scary” at times but I hope in a few months time I don’t get “scared” of eating bread etc ..Thank you so much for this video it was really inspiring and I could totally relate ! 🙂

    • admin says:

      That’s great to hear and we are all on a journey of progression so don’t be too hard on yourself. We actually have another transformation story coming up soon with our friend Nathan.

  • cartierbraceletlove Love the game so far! You’ve made a roguelike with a lot of complexity while keeping the interface straightforward and easy to use. Well done!
    replique cartier ballon bleau http://www.orologipopolari.net/fr/cartier-ballon-bleu-watches-c88/

  • Maisie says:

    Thanks a lot for sharing this with all folks you really understand what you are
    talking about! Bookmarked. Kindly additionally discuss with my website =).
    We will have a link exchange arrangement between us

  • Great web websitewebsite! It looks really good! Sustain the excellent work!

  • view says:

    I simply want to mention I am all new to blogging and site-building and honestly savored your blog site. Most likely I’m planning to bookmark your blog . You actually have really good posts. Bless you for sharing with us your blog.

  • Niels says:

    Hi guys,
    Thanks a lot for your channel and awesome workouts! I’ve been doing these workouts for 4 months now and I’ve been making good progress. I’ve lost about 5 kg and feel better!
    But now i’m struggling a bit with my progress. The pictures I take look great when I compare them to 4 months ago but the past few weeks I don’t see or feel a lot of difference. This off course has an effect on my motivation.. Can you help me out? Do I need to step it up On my diet plan or my training?
    To give you an idea: I work out about 5 times a week.. 3 hiit sessions (started out at 10 minutes, now doing 25..) after my hiit sessions I do weighted exercises shoulders/triceps and chest/biceps.. I usually train about 1 hour (including The hiit). I do ab workouts 3 times a week and play field hockey (so Some running) 2 times a week..
    I try to really eat lean (so lots of turkey, chicken, green veggies and I try to slow down On carbs)
    Can you help me out or do I just keep going hard and have patience? 😛
    Thanks!
    Niels

    • admin says:

      Hi Niels,

      Sounds like you’re doing pretty well all in all buddy, it might just be time to step it up to he next level. You’re already doing plenty of exercise so not need to change that! When it comes to your nutrition do you know how many calories you eat or do you ever follow a plan as such.

      You may of just hit a plateau which happens when losing fat and requires that we just reduce our food a small amount again to re-start the fat loss process. This will obviously depend on your current metabolic state, if you’re only eat 1000 calories a day for example then we can’t take more away as you are already well below your BMR (basal metabolic rate). This is the calories (energy) your body needs just to function and not taking into account exercise.

      • Niels says:

        Hi! Well I don’t really know what my calorie intake is.. I just try to eat as good as possible.. So that’s something I can change now! I’ll try to make a plan for The week and do more food prepping.. I’ll also try to know how many calories I eat.. I’ll keep you posted!
        Thanks!
        Niels

Leave a Reply to madden 17 coins Cancel Reply