The Secret To Diet And Exercise By Garrett Davis

In this piece I will not tell you that you need to go on a low carb diet, take up yoga three times a week, or go on that new all carrot diet; Though you may in fact need to do some of those things. I will not tell you that you need to read the new celebrity diet book that’s out, though you will have to do some reading. I will be telling you something much, much more valuable.

Information on nutrition is not hard to find. It’s also not that complicated, unless you chose to make it so. Basically, you have three major categories: proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. You need certain amounts of each.

As for exercise, you have fat burning exercises (aerobic), and muscle building exercises (anaerobic), while many are both. Though it is not complicated, the health and fitness industry would like you to believe otherwise. This is so they can have the chance to sell you all kinds of stuff that you don’t really need. You’re not interested in fattening their pockets though, you’d rather slim your waist.

Every year, millions of people start diets and exercise programs only to quit a short time later. They get discouraged. They get too busy. Or, they just plain forget the goal that they had in mind when they started the plan. This pattern can be evidenced by the attendance records of just about any gym in the country. Go into your local gym in January, and then again in March. In January you’ll have to wait in line for just about any machine in the place, and in March you’ll be wishing there was someone around to keep your lonely soul company while you do your lunges. Chances are that you too have started a diet or exercise program at some point only to abandon it a short time later. Perhaps you were the one who got discouraged, distracted, or just too busy. I understand. Life happens. The problem is that this sort of start-and-stop approach has never gotten you the body you really want.

At the same time, there are lots of people in our society everyday who have obtained excellent physical conditioning. Maybe some of these people just have fantastic genetics. True. Very, very few of them. The rest are dedicated to diet and exercise. So what separates these people from the rest? Don’t they have jobs? Or can they just spend all of their time at the gym everyday? Don’t they have families? Don’t they have responsibilities? Aren’t they busy? Sure they are! They have jobs, families, and obligations too! I promise. So what gives?

Mind-Set.

That’s right, mind-set. But mind-set hasn’t ever given anyone a six-pack, or gotten rid of a spare tire.

Wrong.

Proper mind set is necessary for not only getting you in the shape that you desire, but also for keeping you in the shape that you desire. You see, anyone can go on a few week long diets with a few cheats here and there and drop a few pounds. Millions of people do it all the time. And most will gain it right back in a short time. That’s why there are so many fat people. Baring any debilitating medical conditions, they are all capable of losing weight and they probably do it several times a year. They are just not capable of losing the excessive weight in it’s entirety and keeping it off.

They simply do not have the right mind-set.

No matter what kind of shape you’re in, if you want to be in good shape... No, scratch that. If you want to be in great shape...Then you will follow what I have to say.

If you’ve ever started a diet or workout plan only to struggle through the strife of having to carry it out... If you have wanted to start jogging at night but are just to tired when you get home from work... If you are so busy that you find yourself grabbing whatever you can to eat on the go... Then you have the wrong mind-set.

You started the diet or exercise program with your focus on the diet or exercise program. That is where you made your first mistake. You said to yourself, "I’m going to go on a low-carb diet." Or, "I’m going to start going to the gym 3 times per week."

Wrong approach.

Your focus needed to be: "I’m going to be in excellent physical condition. I’m going to be lean and strong. Nothing is going to stop me. Failure is not an option.  It’s as if I can already see and feel myself in my new body right now."

Does this sound a bit extreme to you?

Think about it like this: Imagine what would happen if you took the spirit of the top aerobics instructor at your gym and somehow swapped this spirit with the spirit of an overweight couch potato. So the spirit of the aerobics instructor is now in the body of the couch potato, and the spirit of the couch potato is now in the body of the aerobics instructor. What would happen? The body that was the aerobics instructor’s would become fat and lethargic. The spirit of the aerobics instructor would find it totally unacceptable to be in a body of a couch potato and would stop at nothing to change it. The aerobics instructor would never be too busy for diet and exercise. He or she would never have any excuses for not eating right and exercising. He or she would have a fire inside!

This is the mentality that you need to have if you ever want to achieve excellent physical conditioning.

Here is another key: You need to Stop focusing on your Weight.

Weight is just a number. It really is not even that important, unless you are an athlete trying to make a certain weight class for competition, or some other special circumstance. For the rest of us though, the number of pounds that we weigh should not be our focus.

First of all, how do you even know how much you should really weigh anyways? Are you a doctor? A nutritionist? A personal trainer? An expert in body composition? Are you able to calculate factors such as the weight of the muscle that you have as compared to the weight of the fat that you carry? How about factoring in your age and gender?

Very successful body composition management will never be the result of the typical, "I need to lose 20 lbs."

Besides, it may be the case that you don’t need to lose as much weight as you think you do. You probably need to gain muscle too, and as many of us know, muscle weighs more than fat. If you have the wrong mind set, you will freak out when your weight loss goals are not being met accordingly, even though your body composition is improving. In this instance you would sabotage your efforts by changing your course in order to "lose more weight."

There are all different scenarios in which people would benefit from an improvement in body composition. Maybe you are a guy who is "skinny-fat": Lacking muscle in the arms, chest, legs and back, while carrying extra weight in the form of fat. Maybe you are a woman who would benefit from a strengthened back. Maybe you are a man who has experienced pains which may be eliminated if only your core muscles were stronger.

I could go on and on. The point is that there are all different possible scenarios, and by focusing on the number that is your weight, you’re likely to short yourself the true benefits of diet and exercise, or worse yet, fail altogether.

The benefits of proper diet and exercise can be tremendous. Not only can a fit body help your self-esteem out enormously, but you may feel great on many levels. When you feel great, all sorts of other goals and desires become more attainable. You will have the energy and confidence to possibly advance in your career, learn new things, or be a better spouse. Success can be yours, and will be yours, if you acquire the proper mind-set.

That mind-set should not be elusive either. In fact, it can be found in lots of people. It not only exists, but it exists in abundance. Sure a lot of people don’t have it, and never will, but an ever increasing number of people do have it, and you can be one of them! As a conscious being, you have the power to manifest this mind-set for yourself.

Okay, more on practical ways to alter your mind-set:

But only if you send me $19.95 in the form of check or money order.

...Just kidding. Jeesh.

So if you can’t focus on your weight, and the goal is to alter your body composition, then what can you focus on? Isn’t weight a primary factor in measuring body composition? Sure it is, but as you now know, that is not what your focus should be.

Here is what I want you to do:

Imagine the most in-shape person you know. This should be someone who you actually know, not a celebrity of any sort. Just a regular person that you know who is in superb shape. Maybe it is the aerobics instructor at your local gym, or that certain weight lifter. Or maybe it is a long distance runner that you know, or a yoga instructor.

You see, there are many different paths that you can take to obtain a better body. The one that you chose will determine your outcome. I.E, Bodybuilding giving you bigger muscles, or long distance running making you very slim. Each one of these have their own appropriate diet plans. Only you can decide which is right for you according to your desires.

Now back to the person whose physical fitness you admire. Does your mental eye envision this person? ...Good.

Now think to yourself: "What is the mind-set of this individual? What is the mind-set of the aroebics instructor at my gym? Surely it is much different than that of the average person. It is a lot different than that of the couch potato, but that is obvious. The interesting part is that this person’s mind-set is substantially different than that of the average person who exercises and diets. This person has had great success, and I too can have great success, if I can change my mind-set."

Do you think that this person has a great body simply because they are into aerobics, or riding a bike, or lifting weights?

No.

They are in great shape because on a very deep level, their mind-set is that of a person who’s very fit.

You will NEVER achieve a GREAT body if you have an AVERAGE mind-set. And statistics tell us that average is not so good now-a-days. According to the latest, about 64% of Americans are overweight. Average is now overweight.

You don’t want to be average, do you?

If you don’t want to be average, then you need to ditch the average mind-set.

Befriend that person who I asked you to envision. Align yourself with people who’s focus is that of way above average diet and exercise. Talk with them. Learn from them. Most importantly, get a feel for what their Mind-Set is.

Take on the mind-set of a person who has already achieved great physical fitness.

The choice is yours. Yo-yo weight, or consistent excellence.

Now you may be thinking to yourself, "yeah, but I need to be able to have some fun...and Aunt Dolores’s cooking is oh sooo good... surely I don’t want to give that up."

Here is another secret for you. People in great shape cheat too. Mr. Olympia Jay Cutler admits to eating cookies and candy from time to time. We’re all human, and indulging periodically is what helps keep us sane. Besides, who do you really think gets more enjoyment out of such edible treats, the gluten, or the Olympic athlete? The answer is the Olympic athlete. When we truly control and limit ourselves, we truly get to enjoy the sweets of life. The sweets will taste sweeter, and Aunt Dolores’s cooking will never have tasted so heavenly.

Not only that, but you will get to enjoy those things in the comfort of your outstanding new body!

No matter what your mind-set is though, there will be times that you simply don’t feel like doing the thing that you have chosen to do to obtain your desired body composition.

As I write this, I recall that it was just last week when I really didn’t feel like going to the gym one night. You see, I go to the gym four nights a week to lift weights for about an hour with a half hour of cardio afterwards. But this night, I just didn’t feel like going. I mean, I really didn’t feel like going. I could think of just about every reason not to go. So guess what? I didn’t go.

...But don’t I have the proper mind-set, you ask? After all, who am I to tell you what kind of mind-set to have if I don’t have it myself? Well, I do have this mind set that I speak of. Having had it for almost  ten years now has made me lean and muscular. So what gives? Why would I not want to go to the gym that night?

Well, I may not have gone to the gym, but I did go to the local highschool where I managed to get in a pretty darn good workout by running the track and doing some body-weight exercises on the outdoor equipment they had. It was my mind-set that allowed me to still get in a good workout in a challenging situation. If I had an average mind-set, I would have not only circum to my desire to do just about anything but go to the gym that night, but I also would have gotten no exercise whatsoever. It was my mind-set that allowed me to overcome the obstacle that was my whimsical desire to not go to the gym, even though I had gone so many other times with no mental strife.

No matter what your path is when it comes to fitness, sometimes you will simply need a break, and if you have the proper mind-set, you will not allow that desire for a break to sabotage your results. You will overcome. You will not quit. You will not be too busy.

Your body will depend on your mind. Everything that you manifest in your life starts with what is happening in your mind. You can have the body that you desire, but you first must get your mind right. Your new body will start with the proper mind-set, and will be realized and sustained by your proper mind-set.

If, though, you are not focused on what will be your incredible new body, then your subconscious will continue to sabotage your results. If a strong, lean body is not your focus, then your subconscious will just not allow you to follow through with a diet and exercise program for any significant, sustained length of time. If your subconscious does not know what all of the discomfort of the exercising and dieting is for, then it will not want to allow you to exercise or diet. You will be in a constant state of struggle with yourself. This is actually a quite marvelous function of the human mind. Your subconscious will not allow you to do things that do not make clear sense to it. This is why so many people feel so much resistance to their fitness plans. You make these plans make sense by making the desire of the end result very clear. If you can do this, then diet and exercise will become much more natural to you.

Align yourself with one or more persons who are dedicated to fitness, and most importantly:

Think as if you are already a very fit person, and your body will have no choice but to adapt. I promise!

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