What the “Fitspo’s wont tell you

I think this could possibly be the most important blog post I ever write as I have been in too many conversations lately where people have spoke about their unhappiness in their own skin compared with certain fitspo’s, yet they are training for different things and ultimately their expectations are wrong. So below I will try to surmise where SO many young people are going wrong in their fitness and health exploits on a global scale. There will be a few sweeping assumptions that will apply to the vast majority of the general public but of course there is always the odd exception, if you are one, congratulations. I think it’s a fair statement to make that the vast majority of the general population (gen pop) got into fitness and exercise in order to look good naked. From here some people found an appetite for the strength sports and ended up veering off slightly focusing more on athletic performance for a competitive sport while their training endeavours continued to help their body composition. I also think it’s a fair statement to make that the same group of young adults take a lot of motivation from fitspiration’s all over social media. Firstly, the gen pop look at fitspo’s and compare their own physiques to them and are always disappointed with the contrast they see, but what they don’t see is the dedication and borderline insanity they must go through in order to achieve such an extreme result. While in prep season for a competitive bodybuilding event many of these same fitspo’s are the total opposite to health and function, dramatically dropping calories, dehydrating themselves and putting themselves through hell for a short period.  During this time, they are weak, energy less, starving, and very unfit and useless in general.  In short they put themselves through an extreme dieting regime to look so extremely lean on stage. This takes mental strength and dedication like that of a Tour de France cyclists. So again, I think it’s a fair statement to make that the general population would lack the time, effort and extreme dedication to achieve this type of body composition and aesthetics in the first place. Secondly, when such fitspirations are so lean year around and spend the vast majority of their time in a major calorie deficit their performance in the gym declines rapidly as they lose strength and the energy to train with anything higher than moderate intensity and this is a FACT. (Anyone fitspo or competitive bodybuilder who can train with intensity during their prep phase is relying on the power of drug use) This is simply because for many of these fitspo’s, performance is NOT the goal and simply looking extremely lean is.  From being a coach in this industry for over 10 years I can tell you again that while the gen pop wish to look good naked they also wish to be fitter and healthier in general. With the rise in popularity of functional fitness which is a great thing more and more people are aware of the importance of strength and functional strength at that. Equally as many people who want to look like these fitspo’s also want to squat more, run fast and train harder. However, this is impossible to achieve if you pursue the goal of looking after aesthetics solely.   Ultimately the message I am trying to make is simple. From my viewpoint, the majority of the gen pop wish to look like their favourite fitspo’s while improving their fitness but are unaware of A) the incredible determination it takes to be in a calorie deficit while being so disciplined for so long while B) how unfit and unhealthy some of these people really are. Again before I make my own opinions known, I want to point out that this article is aimed at the gen pop the 90% of the population, not the hardcore trainers and not the competitive athletes, just the average gym goer who is lost and frustrated because they are not comparing like for like. So as much as I am an admirer of competitive athletes in different disciplines I regularly make the statement that where competition starts, health ends and this is true for every sport and discipline. Competitive CrossFit athletes are broken, powerlifters, field sports athletes all broken in some capacity, bodybuilder’s and aesthetic models are purely fit to look lean and are massively unfit. Again I think it’s a fair statement to make that the same gen pop have wrongly set their expectations, looking to achieve such an extreme look without understanding the extreme measures this takes while still aiming to improve their fitness capabilities. Both can be achieved but it’s not going to happen overnight, in fact it can take a long long time. I think the gen pop should look towards the likes of the many competitive CrossFit athletes who have achieved incredible aesthetics by simply working hard(er). Again if you showed the gen pop a picture of Brooke Ense or a Bikini model in the off season the majority will pick Brook and the great thing is she didn’t achieve this look over night, instead she trained incredibly hard and looked to improve performance and her caloric needs just about matched this so she dropped a small bit of bodyfat each year but improved her fitness. For me, this is the correct approach to fitness, health and body composition goals for the gen pop. Slow and steady wins the race every time.  By not going into a massive caloric deficit you can A) maintain a normal life B) continue to be active and improve fitness level’s over time C) enjoy a little treat in moderation all while (slowly) achieving all your goal’s. So finally, you need to understand that the fitspo’s you are following are taking extreme measures to look so lean which you are not. Most of them are not impressively fit or even healthy as a result and you should not be comparing yourself to these people unless you wish to take the same extreme measures which I am pretty sure you won’t!!