Welcome back, to all of you who have shown up and are ready to take your fitness to the next level.

In our last post, we discussed how 90% of success was just showing up. Beautiful words, for sure, but the question still remains – what do I do with the final 10% to really reach the success I’m capable of? It’s a great question, and a particularly tough one when it comes to fitness and getting the body you want.

Is it any wonder that many people say that the toughest weight to lose is that stubborn last 10 lbs? Or how about artists, who always bemoan the fact that finishing a painting or a song is by far the toughest part of the creative process. Getting started may be tough to do, but it’s nothing compared to really finishing things off the way you want.

So let’s tackle the question head-on: I’ve shown up, now what?

The answer to this can be split into parts:

1. Eat right:

A bland first answer perhaps, but truthful nonetheless. The old axiom states that ‘you can’t out-train a poor diet’, and while I don’t agree with that entirely, it’s still broadly true. Your body can only work with the materials it’s given – genetics and fuel. Most people completely overrate the role of genetics. No one is biologically perfect and using that as an excuse is limiting yourself and looking for an easy cop out. It’s also an extremely negative mindset to have – focus on what you can change, not what you can’t. You can’t change your genetics, but you can change your diet.

Limit your carbs, cutting out grains wherever possible. Eat lots of lean protein. Up your intake of healthy omega-3 in items such as almonds, fish and olive oil. Get rid of all unnecessary sugar by ending your habit for sodas, energy drinks and candy. Eat more fruit and healthy vegetables. Get dressings and sauces on the side and limit them. Watch your calories and eat more in the morning and less in the evening. This is all basic, basic stuff, but 90% of the people out there are not following it. Try adhering to it – rigidly – and watch the immediate results.

2. Train movement patterns, not body parts:

When it comes to exercise selection, I like to stick to the basics when they work and innovate a little when the basics just don’t cut it. However, I’ve found that most people do just the opposite.

Take for example, core/ab training. The latest scientific research has indicated that most people are doing completely the wrong thing in this area, yet old school exercises are more popular than ever. People are injuring themselves and creating faulty movement patterns by doing situps and crunches day after day, when really that’s the last thing they should be doing.

Then, on the other hand, you have hip and thigh training, where people are always searching for the latest machine or cable attachment that will ‘get rid of cellulite’, when really they should be doing what has worked since time began – squats, deadlifts and variations thereof.

If you’re trying to get in shape, you need to work out based on movement patterns, not body parts. In other words, instead of working your chest, you should be thinking of working your horizontal push. This may seem like semantics, but the difference, in actuality, is huge. I’ll be sure to discuss this further in a future post.

3. Get the most bang for your buck:

You need to be doing workouts that are functional – exercises that help you move better, look better and experience less pain in real life situations. Get on your feet and get off your backside. Just making a simple change like this can cause your core to fire more in each exercise, adding to the caloric demands of your exercise and working more muscles with each movement.

You also need to find exercises that help you improve in multiple areas all at the same time. One of the best exercises for this is the pushup. In just one exercise you get shoulder stabilizing strength as well as chest and arm strength, all while also working your core. Or how about static lunges done with your foot up on a bench and a dumbell in one hand – leg strength, hip mobility, core stability and balance, all challenge in one movement. If you change the way you think about working out, you can get this kind of effect with almost any exercise. This will be discussed in greater detail in future posts.

4. Ditch exercise that is inefficient and ineffective:

While this principle can apply to a lot of different things, I’m talking specifically about traditional long, slow, boring-as-hell cardio. It’s not effective for weight loss, it wastes a ridiculous amount of time, it’ll probably injure you in the long run, and to be frankly honest – the way most people do it is almost entirely useless.

Thankfully, there is another method that is effective, time-efficient and proven to succeed in both research and practice: interval training. Train really hard for a short period, then train lightly for a while to recover. Rinse and repeat. It’s the secret weapon of knowledgeable trainers all over the world and it’s probably the single most effective way to lose fat in a short amount of time. I’ll expand on exactly how to do it in future posts.

5. Train with intensity:

Talking to someone, reading a magazine, or watching TV while you workout means that you’re not putting in your full intensity. Period. You need to approach each workout with a ruthless single-mindedness. From the moment you start your warmup until the last second of your cooldown flexibility routine, your mind should be focused on one thing and one thing only – getting the absolute maximum out of your exercise session. Put your ipod in your ears, put on music that gets you pumped and focus your mind.

6. Be Balanced:

Too many people are afraid of being a polymath when it comes to health and wellness. It’s almost like people are scared to stray from one dogma, which makes no sense to me. If you want to put on muscle mass, there is plenty you can learn from yoga that will help you do that. If you want to lose your cellulite and get toned, there’s a ton of information from the weight training community that will absolutely help you get there. Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself and look outside your boundaries, you’ll be amazed at how every single school of thought has something to offer. Take what you like, leave the rest behind and bring it all to the table to create the complete and healthy lifestyle you’ve always wanted. If you restrict yourself to one way of being, you’re limiting yourself to unidimensionality. Get out there and explore.

Also, do the stuff that you know you should be doing but somehow never get around to. Get more sleep. Drink more water. Take some time to breathe deeply and clear your mind. Let go of your life and let yourself be. Everyone talks about this, few people deliver. Be one of those few.

These are the broad principles underlying my philosophy on fitness. Revolutionary? Probably not. Talked about by others? You betcha. Actually implemented by people? Hardly.

This post was intended as a very broad outline to what I have found to be truthful and successful in my journey to find the ultimate method to complete wellness, fitness and fat loss. Looking at them like this, from a 10,000 feet view, doesn’t really demonstrate how powerful they are. When you see the details from close up, though, you’ll be amazed.

This is my philosophy.

No gimmicks, no BS.

No stuff that people say ‘works’ when there’s no evidence at all of that being true. No stuff that science says works but doesn’t happen in the real world.

Just tried and true methods that get people in the best shape of their life. I’ve tried to take these first couple of posts and show you what I believe in. Now that we have the foundation in place, we will be exploring the finer aspects of these points, and delving into the actual, practical ways that you can make them a part of your life and a part of your success.

Tomorrow, we start at step 1 of the road to fat loss and wellness: getting rid of aches and pains. First up, the killer that’s getting 80% of our nation as we speak – low back pain.

Thanks for indulging me as I get my feet wet in the blogosphere and for the positive energy that you have brought to both yourself and me by reading this post.

And thanks again for showing up. Lets conquer this last 10% together.

(photo by mattcyp88)