Everyone is an Individual

How many times have you heard someone say something along the lines of, “Oh you should…” and then finishes the sentence with what they think you ought to be doing to improve in some way? When it comes to health and fitness that phrase is often followed by some well-meaning piece of ‘advice’, which doesn’t quite chime with you or what you might want to do. You know you, your preferences, your way of doing things, how you live your life and more. So do things to impress yourself and not others.

Sure, we are all humans, and as such we want the acceptance of our ‘tribe’ – our family, friends and possibly our colleagues. But that acceptance does not have to come at the cost of you doing things that don’t work well for you.

Here’s a little secret about me: I’m not a fan of the word ‘should’. As a coach, I will try never to use it with my clients. 

Why?

The word ‘should’ carries a lot of weight, especially when used by people we trust, and can make people feel that they need to act or do something in a certain way. Just because…

Every person is an individual with different physical and mental attributes. What works for one person might not work for another. One size definitely does not fit all, especially in the world of health and fitness. So, however, well-meaning the advice is, if it comes presented with the word ‘should’, take a deep breath and pause. Think about what you are being told you ‘should’ do.

And if a coach ever tells you that you should do something because “it works”, take some time to reflect on where that thing has worked and on whom and for what purpose.

In the gym this includes certain exercises – squatting on a gym ball while holding a barbell above your head anyone? (this was a real craze a few years back because someone put it out on social media).

With regard to nutrition it presents itself in the form of meal plans. A meal plan in essence says here is a load of food that you ‘should’ eat for the next few weeks/months that doesn’t take into account your preferences, your exact requirements, your child’s birthday party (“Sorry little one, I can’t share your cake or jelly and ice cream with you as my coach has said I shouldn’t”).

And when it comes to exercise plans, your coach should work with you to come up with a plan that works just for you, your body, what you like doing or don’t like doing (does anyone like burpees?), is specific in its time parameters that suit your lifestyle and equipment availability, and is aimed at getting you towards where you want to end up.

Please don’t work out or eat in a certain way to impress others; definitely not your coach or personal trainer! But do stuff that impresses you and gets you towards where you want to be.

Of course, you may not know how to get there. Which is why it is important to have that initial chat with your trainer and keep on chatting to them about what you think is beneficial for you and what doesn’t work. The trainer, if they invested in you, will listen and adjust things accordingly.

If you’d like a sensible chat about your health and fitness, and what you’d like to do to impress yourself (whatever that might be), then please click the gold button just below this paragraph and let’s get a chat in the diary.