It’s frustrating, isn’t it? Year after year, you set out to adopt a healthier lifestyle, eat better, exercise, name them. And at the beginning of every year, you find yourself in the exact state you were in the previous year, if not worse. You’ve stuck to a diet plan and invested hours into a fitness routine, and yet, no positive results. Now you’re asking yourself what you keep doing wrong. Does the above sound too familiar? Then the following could be the reasons you’re failing to make progress with your fitness and health in general.
1. You’re not tracking your progress
For many people, embarking on a fitness journey means creating a plan and following it, forgetting that they also need to monitor the effects of what they’re doing. Tracking your fitness progress isn’t just about standing in front of the mirror to see any changes. It is about identifying and setting key metrics you can use to gauge how well you’re doing or otherwise.
For example, if your goal is to increase your strength this year, you need to have some benchmarks against which to measure your progress. Experts have identified and explained the standards you can use to gauge your strength levels, and you can check out the post right here.
2. You’re doing too much or too little
Even with a good health or fitness plan in place, it is possible to overcommit or do too little, regardless of your health goals. For example, spending countless hours in the gym without rest is counterproductive. The body needs enough time to heal and for your muscles to repair after every strenuous workout session. Although you may feel that the more hours you put into your workout, the better the results, you could actually be doing yourself more harm than good.
The same applies to your diet. If you’re staying away from calories to lose weight, you’re going to plateau at some point. Plus, your body will lack the energy it needs.
3. You’re not using the professional guidance
Today the online world has an endless supply of tips, tricks, hacks, and other fitness information readily available. Although this is great, there’s also a lot of information that isn’t proven — not to mention the outright false information. Additionally, not every tip you find online or in health magazines may work for you, just because it worked for someone else.
If you’ve struggled too long to make any progress with your health and fitness, perhaps your approach may be wrong or isn’t designed for you. Only trained health and fitness professionals will help you in this case. So, if you can’t see results from your workouts, speak with a personal trainer. If your diet change is helping you feel better, consult a dietician.
4. You’re not listening to your body
If you want to achieve your health and fitness targets, it is important to always pay attention to the signals your body sends you. Stress, for instance, has a huge impact on body mechanics, with too high cortisol levels having adverse effects.