Contributed By: Dave Vanderheiden
There has been a lot of build up to the point of actually working, which I talked about great starting points in the last article. I want to talk a little about expectations now. I want to talk about what to expect and not to expect. I want you to understand that having crazy expectations will have you fall off the is fitness journey that you are starting.
In the goal setting process I discussed a little while back, I said that your goals need to be realistic. The same holds very true when it comes to what you're expecting when you start. You have to keep that realistic mindset of how things will go. There is no REAL guarantee as to how things will go, so you need to manage unrealistic expectations.
Just because you started working out DOES NOT mean that you will lose 10 pounds in a week or that you will have those ripped arms you always dreamed of. It means you have started the process. For some people, they might lose the weight relatively easily and for some it might be more difficult. Why? Because we are all different. We all have different genetics and body types and things can come easy or hard for some. For example, you might be starting to workout with a friend and you go on the same workout and same diet. He/she loses 10 pounds on 3 week and you have lost 0 pounds or just a little amount of weight loss. You are both different so diet and exercise will affect you differently.
The scary thing with high expectations, especially when you are starting out, is that you may give up waaaaay to soon before you can see the real fruits to your labors. For me, I lost 3 pounds the first month I went on my journey. I didn't get discouraged at all. I kept working and knew that I was in it for the long haul. That 2nd month, I lost 15 pounds. That is just how my body worked with it. Yours will be different as well.
I know so many of us are perfectionists and have the crazy expectations, but make sure you keep those expectations realistic. I am not saying you shouldn't expect big things, but take it in smaller doses. Fitness and health is a marathon, not a sprint. I see so many people fall off the fitness wagon because they expect the impossible. DO NOT do that to yourself. Keep working and look at the short term goals as you get started. If you do that, you will get to your long term goals.
As always, I appreciate you taking the time to read this. If you have any questions for me, feel free to comment on here or come see me at Xperience Fitness in Green Bay and we can chat
Be better today than you were yesterday. Be better tomorrow than you are today!
David Vanderheiden is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer at Xperience Fitness in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He specializes in working with clients of different health levels, body types, and fitness levels to achieve their goals of improving their quality of life. David and his wife, Kristin, live with their two girls in Mishicot, Wisconsin.
