It’s been the staple of my approach ever since I started training people on the Internet, and for a simple reason: if I’m doing my job correctly, then I don’t need to promote.

And that’s what I’ve done for more than 10 years now. My site has a tab for online coaching, I’ve had a waiting list for about 6 years now. I’ve been able to make some incredible friends, and been honored to assist in body transformations, health improvements, and behavioral change.

Which is why you might be wondering: Aren’t you breaking your own rule by writing about this now? 

Yes, I am breaking my rule, but only because I needed to clear the air and create transparency. Many people ask, “how much is online fitness coaching?” And they deserve a straight answer. Honesty is important, especially in business. 

If you can’t look someone in the eye and tell them how things are done, you have no reason to be having a conversation about exchanging money in the first place.

I spend a lot of time talking about “be the change.” To me, it means being a catalyst. Sparking something that allows you to make improvements, find your will, and push beyond what you think is possible and create the life you want.

This can happen in many ways, but sometimes it requires you to receive help from others.

Just because I’m helping create change doesn’t mean others can’t change me, too.

Which is exactly what happened long ago on a coaching call.

Break the mold of secrecy 

You see, most people in online fitness don’t share their prices. There are many reasons, but a lot has to do with marketing.

As I shared the details of my program with Charles, he sat waiting to ask the one question he really wanted to know?

What small fortune do I need to pay? 

When I told him our price he was shocked and immediately disappointed.

“Sh8t, man. Are you serious?

“Yes, I am.” I responded. “Why, what’s wrong?”

Charles then began to tell me:

“I figured you would be out of my price range, so I gave you a call. I already signed up for someone else’s program, but it’s even more expensive than yours.”

Charles was frustrated because even though he sat on the waiting list and set up a free consultation call, he assumed that I would be too expensive. This wasn’t the first time I’ve heard this feedback.

Our team hadn’t published our prices because we didn’t want money to a determinant. We wanted focused individuals who want to work hard for their results.

But the truth? Every year we work to have some of the lowest prices in online coaching while providing more access and assistance. We work with top-level trainers and nutritionists to make sure that the programs are top-notch and designed for results. We don’t want my biases to influence what the client needs, so I have a system to ensure a client-centered approach.

I don’t want health to be determined by who has the most money. I never want that to be a barrier. This might seem counterintuitive in a society where the value of something is directly linked to the price. Yes, we need to run a business. And yes, we need to value my time.

But I also need to value the money that people have to spend on their health.

Which is why I constantly work to keep prices low while improving the experience. I want fitness to be affordable. And I don’t want anyone to feel like being in great shape is a privilege of the wealthy. So I’m doing what I can to grant people more access to the best fitness coaching available.

Then can my moment of change.

What’s the Price of Online Fitness and Diet Plans?

“You should really just let people know your prices,” Charles said.

“I know you have a wait list, but I bet many people would like to work with you if they knew you were affordable.”

The words had an impact. So here’s the truth:

Born Fitness Coaching costs $249 per month with a 6-month commitment or $1,999 for an entire year. This covers everything you need to get in better shape: your personal exercise program, your personal diet plan, and weekly coach interaction — whenever you need it, and consistent updates to your program.

This is far below the industry average when working with individuals (and not group plans), where prices typically go from about $449 to $1,000 per month. I’m not here to judge prices or cast any judgment. There are many great trainers doing incredible work, and I have no doubt they are worth it. But my team’s model is different.

We don’t do generic plans at Born Fitness. Instead, everything is completely customized for your body, your preferences, and your schedule. This attention to quality and personalization is how we’ve been able to help 1,000+ people get the body they want.

We keep our client list small and happy, and continue to try and be a price and results leader. Premier coaching at prices that won’t break the bank.

Our online coaching program is small and personal. You get unlimited access to ask questions, receive personalized diet and training plans, and a mobile app to access your workouts. Maybe most importantly, you know that my team and I have your back.

While we’re at it, let’s address some other common questions people ask about online fitness coaching.

How frequently do you open online coaching?

After reaching their goals, some of our clients graduate out of the program. That means new spots open up every few weeks. However, you must have already filled out a coaching application to be considered. So we strongly recommend applying today if you’d like to be first in line. Because once those new spots are taken, they are gone.

If you would like to work with us, click here and see if the program is right for you. We’ve done everything we can to make our coaching affordable, and ensure that you get the personalized attention you deserve. And starting is risk-free.

Do you guarantee results?

We take our coaching very seriously, which is why we offer a 30 day money-back guarantee. If you work with us for 30 days and feel like online coaching isn’t a good fit, just let us know and we’ll give you a full refund for your first month and require no additional payments.

Our entire business is built on getting results for our clients. If you invest in us, then you can be confident that we’ll invest in your success and satisfaction.

How long is the online coaching program?

In order to get the best results possible, we have a 3-month minimum commitment. Remember, we’re playing the long-game here. We don’t follow fads. We focus on bringing health and fitness into your life so it works no matter how hectic or difficult your life gets. Making lasting, meaningful change takes time. That is why we ask for a 3-month minimum.

After the first three months, we’ll continue to coach you for as long as you want. Our clients come to enjoy having someone they trust write their exercise and nutrition programs, so the vast majority stay on for a full year—with many of them sticking around for two or three years — or more. 

I already have a personal trainer at my local gym. Can I work with you too?

Absolutely. We think it’s great that you’re getting hands-on coaching. Our coaches will work with you to build a program that compliments the work you’re doing with your local personal trainer.

Once you are accepted into the program, just let us know and we’ll make sure to integrate the two.

Will I be required to join a gym?

Nope. Our coaches can build a custom training plan for you no matter what equipment you have available. It doesn’t matter if you have just have a pair of dumbbells and an exercise ball at home – we’ll build you a plan that works. We can even create an entire training plan using nothing but body weight movements.

Do I have to take any supplements?

No. While we may suggest the occasional supplement that aligns with your goals we will never require you to purchase any supplement nor do we sell any supplements at Born Fitness.

I don’t live in the United States. Can I still join coaching?

You do not have to live in the United States to be part of Born Fitness Coaching. We currently work with clients from all over the world – including Switzerland, France, Australia, Turkey, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and Japan, to name a few.

I like to do other things outside of going to the gym (running, swimming, hiking, skiing, etc). Can I do these things and coaching?

Of course! Keep doing what you love because our goal is to help you do those things better. That’s how you make health and fitness a sustainable part of your life.

We’re here to help you be the change. And the best part? You help us do the same.

To sign up for one of the limited spots in Born Fitness Coaching, you can access all the details here.

And hey, if you want to see the results of real Born Fitness clients… 

Meet a Former Born Fitness Client Who’s Just Unstoppable

How 44-Year-Old Paul T. Gained a Massive Amount of Muscle

Mom’s Got Abs: How Kristen Shed the Baby Weight

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post How Much Do Online Fitness Plans Cost? appeared first on Born Fitness.

While I knew “how” to serve, the mechanics were wrong. My toss sucked, my footwork was off, and I wasn’t even striking the ball in the right place. I could envision what I had to do (we’ve all seen a serve), but I didn’t know how to do it correctly and consistently.

Sure enough, 4 weeks later I was able to serve the ball consistently. That’s not to say I was firing aces or overwhelming anyone. But I could do it. My job from there was to get better, keep improving, and turn that 4-week investment into bigger gains.

The real fat loss secret: Most times you just need to let the process run it’s course.

If I told you I could teach you to serve in 4 weeks, what would your expectation be? Do you believe you’ll be on your way to the ATP tour, or would you just be happy seeing results and knowing you can do it?

I wanted to know, so I asked 10 people. All 10 said the expectation was progress, not an end result. That’s a good response.

You could replace a tennis serve with almost any “skill” or task in life, and the same truth would remain. And yet, when it comes to how to lose weight fast, the progress-patience ratio is obliterated.

Fast is a time consideration that needs to be redefined if you really want to see results that last and not be stuck in perpetual diet hell.

You see, most cover lines and headlines on books and magazines are awful. Sure, they get you to buy and read, but the truth is murky at best. At worst? These promises are oftentimes the reason you don’t see results, follow bad fat loss programs, and are pushed into inevitable failure.

If you want to stop the vicious cycle of reading “how to get abs” and end up worse than you started, it’s time to learn more about how weight loss works and how long it will really take to transform your body.

You Can Have Abs (No Joke)

The photo above is the cover of a book I wrote. It’s one of my favorite books I’ve written and it’s packed with great, accurate information with one exception: the 4-week promise stamped on the front of the book.

It’s something I argued against. I understand and respect my publishers decision (books must be sold!) but I didn’t like the misleading mindset that plagues most fat loss plans. In fact, in the actual text you won’t see such bold claims and there’s a good reason.

There are two prevailing beliefs about fat loss:

1. Abs are made in the kitchen
2. Abs are made by your parents. Hope to win the genetic lottery because that’s all that matters.

Both have hints of truth. You need a good eating plan to see your abs. And some people will have abs even if their diet consists of Skittles and McDonalds. Sorry, but it’s true.

But there’s another truth that no one discusses: Anyone can have abs if they are willing to be patient.

For the average person, losing fat takes time. In general, the more fat you have to lose, the quicker it will come off. Most “overweight” people can expect to lose around 2 to 3 pounds per week. They can lose more, but that’s the average. The less you have to lose the slower it will come off, with leaner people maybe losing about 1 to 2 pounds per week. And those that are already really lean, the process is even slower.

Fat Loss: 4-and 8-Week Lies

Below is a picture of my client, Justin. He looks great. The before and afters are a point of pride. But you know what? This wasn’t 4, 6 or 8 weeks.

What you see is the result of 6 months of hard work. We went in with eyes wide open, and tackled the goal the right way, with realistic expectations, and a plan that could be maintained.

The same can be said of my client David. We’ve worked together for more than a year. When we started there were no false promises or hopes. Just an honest assessment of where he was and where he wanted to go. We mapped out a plan and then made adjustments as necessary.

Here’s what you need to really know if you want to build a successful workout and diet plan: fat loss is not acute. That means you don’t have to stress every small decision.

Fat loss doesn’t react to the whims of one particular day, exercise, or macronutrient. Fat loss is a process. And it occurs when many steps are taken and executed correctly.

The biggest problem for most is over- or under-reacting. We want results immediately. And what we fail to realize is that in most cases, our impatience results in us make changes prematurely that end up stunting progress. Maybe it’s changing a diet or shifting a new workout. In many situations, a food group (like carbs) is blamed and removed entirely.

The real fat loss secret: Most times you just need to let the process run it’s course. Learn the steps, understand how it works, and then continue practice until you’re firing fat loss aces.

Look at the picture below of Olivia Langdon. She is a former client turned mentor (who you can work with directly) in Born Fitness online coaching. She looks incredible, but this wasn’t an overnight success. That was four years of patience, hard work, and readjusting her goals.

It’s funny, but the Karate Kid “wax on, wax off” philosophy was way ahead of it’s time. You start by doing simple motions and you don’t see anything changing. Heck, sometimes it doesn’t even seem like you’re doing anything.

Then one day, you know karate. Or in this case, you’re burning fat and seeing results.

Fat loss and abs are real. But the reality is that it’s a game of patience and realistic timelines. According to survey results, 60% of people that start a diet plan never make it past 4 weeks.

What makes this stat so important? For visible results, most people need to be on a consistent diet and fitness plan for a minimum of 8 to 12 weeks. So it’s no wonder why so many people start with the right intent and are even doing what needs to be done, but quit prematurely.

Be patient. Work hard. Focus on the process and not the outcome, and if the program is right, then your results will only be a matter of time.

No More Empty Fat Loss Promises

Want help figuring out the best fat loss approach for your body. Click here to learn more about personalized coaching and creating a plan design for you.

READ MORE: 

Winning the War on Hunger: Practical Solutions to Overeating

Eating at Night Does Not Make You Fat

How Much Fat Should I Eat?

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post 4-Week Fat Loss Lies appeared first on Born Fitness.

60.

92.

On the surface, the numbers mean nothing. They could be a lottery number, a gym locker combination, or the estimated age when all men mature. But if you look closer, these numbers are proof that fitness programs aren’t working the way they should. Or maybe more accurately, bad fitness has become the norm.

• Approximately 33 percent of the population is now obese or overweight, and that number is projected to climb
• More than 60 percent of people who visit gyms have trouble sticking with their plan consistently for more than three months.
• Up to 92 percent of people fail at their fitness resolutions by the end of the year.

Some might find these numbers depressing. The reality is, the numbers—while disconcerting—are a sign of hope and improvement. Because while most experts continue to spend so much time stressing the search for the perfect exercise program or diet—research is finally uncovering why so many people struggle to get in shape.

And the reason is simple: an important variable is missing that significantly influences whether you see the type of results you want.

Good health and fitness books or good diet programs work because they provide information that has been proven to achieve a particular goal, whether it’s burning fat, building muscle, becoming more athletic, or just boosting overall health.

Whether a diet and training program works is not why so my people fail. Many diets work. Many types of exercise burn calories. But certain programs are effective for individuals because each person is able to crack the code and learn how to change behavior.

It’s time to flip the script on why certain people are fit and others struggle to fit into their favorite pair of jeans.  It’s the secret in the fitness world that few people address because most never grasp why some people succeed on the same plan where others fail.

Beyond the calories in versus calories out equation, finding the perfect workout or number of sets or reps, the real breakdowns in body transformation don’t occur in the muscles or fat cells—they happen in your head.

Whether you realize it or not, your success is determined by your ability to adhere to a number of behavioral changes that make it easier for you to experience success on any type of program.

The two most common explanations for why fitness programs don’t work are:

1)   The workout (and/or diet) was no good and full of nonsense

2)   Your body sucks. Your genetics are awful. Everyone can lose weight and you can’t. 

The reality is, the second reason—while valid (genetics do play a big role)—is not a reason for your lack of success. Anyone can change and transform. Weight loss and muscle gain are not restricted to the genetically blessed.

The list of why programs don’t work is missing two essential elements that make it complete:

3)   You didn’t follow the program, weren’t compliant, and constantly made adjustments

4)   The program was delivered in a way that gave you no option but failure.

It’s this fourth element that most people overlook and never even consider, which is why so many are frustrated because it is probably the most common reason for frustration and a lack of progress.

Unless you inherently love exercise and eating good foods, shifting to new habits takes a lot of mental energy. And if you don’t take the right approach, your brain can literally prevent you from making the changes you desperately want.

Instead of blaming yourself, you can arm yourself with some basic knowledge that will make sure you mind is strong enough to carry your body to its new and improved look.

Bad Fitness 101: Don’t Rely on Willpower…

The first rule of willpower is doing everything possible to not rely on it. Willpower is a real thing, and it can be the reason why you head to the gym and eat broccoli instead of lay on the couch and eat ice cream, but it’s also the reason so many people have trouble adapting to healthy behaviors that feel foreign.

You see, you have much less control over your behavior than you’d want to believe. That’s because stress and anxiety—emotions that are inevitable—can wreck havoc on even the strongest intent, and make it difficult for you stay focused and push yourself to stay consistent with new behaviors.

Which is why it’s important when taking on a new plan to be aware of the ways that your willpower might make it difficult for you to experience success. Instead of thinking, “I must avoid all of the candy in my pantry,” you need to throw out all the food you know you have trouble avoiding and replace it with the stuff you want to eat.

If you’ve noticed that you can’t make it to the gym consistently, hire a trainer and make a special request that they text you an hour before your session.

Willpower can be faulty, so building systems that guide behavior can ensure that when willpower breaks down failure is not the only option. The more structure and rigidity to the systems you build, the easier it is to program your behavior.

If you feel that you need to walk more, you can purposely park your car 15 minutes away from work. Sure it’s inconvenient, but it will get the job done, right?

All too often we over-rely on the belief that creating change will be easy. Instead, anticipate that it will be hard and simplify your job by making it easy for you to adhere to your new behaviors. After a while, you will change as a person, and you won’t need the systems any more.

…But Creating More Willpower Will Help (Yes, it’s possible)

The most frustrating thing about willpower is that we legitimately have limited amounts available. The area of your brain that controls your willpower is located in your prefrontal cortex. You might remember this from biology as the area directly behind your forehead.

It’s the same part of your brain that helps you with all your day-to-day tasks, everything from your short term memory (What did my wife tell me to buy at the store?), figuring out some simple tasks, and even staying focused.

The point is, the pre-fontal cortex is busy at all times. So whenever you take on a new behavior—especially one that is as big as getting in shape, exercising, and eating better—it’s like having a massive project dropped in your lap and being told everyone else in the office is too busy to help.

The result is that desired actions—if new—can be very (very) hard to execute. In fact, it’s more than your brain can handle, meaning you default to old or undesirable behaviors.

Here’s how manipulative your brain can be. In a well-known study at Stanford, two groups were given a number to remember. One group needed to remember a two-digit sequence, whereas the other needed to remember 7 digits (Both short-term memory tasks). Then the groups went for a walk. At the end of their walk, they were offered an option of snacks: Fruit or chocolate cake. (This type of dilemma might sound familiar.)

What happened? Those who had to remember the 7-digit number were two times more likely to dig into the cake instead of opt for the fruit.

Researchers refer to this as “cognitive load.” The more space you’re taking up in the prefontal cortex, the harder it is to make certain decisions. That’s why you need to train yourself and prepare accordingly so that you have enough willpower to take on new tasks.

This is one of the reasons why resolutions are such a flawed concept. If you’re trying to change 10 behaviors at the same time, it’s nearly impossible for you to succeed. Your brain won’t have it, and, as a result, you’ll be more likely to find yourself in December eating cake—and not because you’re celebrating your new body.

Instead of listing off many goals or taking on too many projects, it’s best to focus on one big effort and then break that down into habits.  Researchers from Australia found that taking a step-by-step approach, such as building one habit at a time helps reduce cognitive load.

So rather than saying “I need to lose 10 pounds” it’s best to program simple behaviors that will help make this possible. This might be, “I will have an accountability team to make sure I go to the gym.” The habit is simple—building a team—rather than something more complex such as promising that you’ll exercise for 60 minutes five times per week.

The lesson: Be aware that your willpower is the most overworked employee in your brain. Make the job easier and you’ll see your habits change along with your body.

5 Ways to Boost Willpower

In order to make sure you create more willpower and don’t sabotage your efforts, here are five things you need to consider when trying to change your body, take on a new diet or fitness program, or accept a new behavior.

Create Hope

We all want to believe that we can achieve our fitness goals, but all too often “false hope syndrome” makes the process harder than it needs to be. You need to set realistic expectations of who you are, what you are capable of achieving, and want processes you need to set up to help you be successful. This goes back to building systems.

If you know that you fall victim to cravings, don’t tell yourself those days are over and that you can completely control yourself. Odds are, you’re lying to yourself and these positive intentions—while seemingly good—can be harmful. That’s because the moment you slip up you’ll not only revert back to old behaviors (not terrible when it happens once in a while—hey, we all screw up!) but more importantly it can crush your self-esteem. And once that happens, willpower becomes overrun and you fall off the wagon.

Therefore, it’s important that you start out confident, but also be realistic with what will be easy and what will be hard. Make a list. Separate it into two goals (easy and hard), and for everything that’s hard, plan certain systems that will help ensure that you’re not putting too much pressure on yourself.

Think Small (But Still Dream Big)

If you’re serious about your fitness goals, you need to determine what other areas of your life should be prioritized less. Go in open-minded and realize that making these changes will be tough; if they weren’t, you wouldn’t be in this position in the first place. So make sure you have the energy to take on the task and be prepared for the hard days. You can simplify this process by:

• Creating goals that matter to you. This will make it easier to fight for them.
• Setting up a plan
• Creating Milestones
• Trying new ways of living

All four of these elements have something in common: you’re creating new thought patterns. When brain scientists have looked at MRI’s they’ve found that our minds work off of old memories. It’s like a taking a particular route to work. After a while, it becomes you routine. But when it comes to behavior, oftentimes you simply try to tell yourself, “Don’t go that way!” That’s a recipe for failure. You need to find a new route. Don’t try to “not to do something;” that just strengthens a pre-existing behavior. Instead, create a new line of thinking, build a new neural pathway, and take that route enough times until it becomes your new habit.

Set specific Goals

This is a good lesson for anything in life: When you set goals, make them specific and tiny. You want to make it as easy as possible to succeed. We all are susceptible to a psychological concept called learned helplessness; fail enough and you come to expect failure. This is the foundation of bad fitness. And yet, all too often goals are set that increase the likelihood of failure. If you make your goals almost too easy to not fail, you’re on the right track. This builds positive reinforcement. And in no time, a series of small successes will have you feeling good and making more changes.

Set up An Accountability System

Speaking of positive feedback, having a team—whether it’s friends, family, a trainer, or workout partner—pays huge dividends for any fitness goal you’re trying to accomplish. In fact, research from the University of Chicago suggests that your likelihood of success is directly related to accountability and support. The ongoing lesson: don’t convince yourself you need to go at this alone. Build a team that can help you succeed. And the more that team is either invested in your goals—or are willing to be a part of your journey—the more likely you’ll succeed.

Create Incentives

If all else fails, bad fitness can be offset by building an incentive system that hacks your behavioral patterns and forces change. Research has shown that rewarding behaviors—especially with a monetary value—can help reinforce actions (such as going to the gym) that lead to long-term change. While it might be hard to find someone to pay you to exercise, you can invest your own money (in a trainer or gym) that might help make you less risk aversive. But if gym attendance shows you anything it’s that belonging to a gym is not reason enough to get in shape.

Your Move

“What is necessary to change a person is to change his awareness of himself.” –Abraham Maslow

Now that you’re aware of your brain’s role in the fitness plans, it’s up to you to execute. Build your own structure and systems to help improve the likelihood of success. Or find an option that considers all of those factors.

Whether it’s online coaching or any other proven tactic, you must start with awareness and then move to planning and action. Create a structure for psychological support. Doing so will change your mind, and soon after your body will follow.

Lose Fat…The Realistic Way

A weight loss plan doesn’t have to be a world of false promises and hype.

Now you can join a proven weight loss program with a personalized component of support and accountability with personalized online coaching.

Here you’ll learn how to eat, the type of exercise needed, and the actual plans to point you in the right direction.

READ MORE: 

How to Defy Genetics and Build Muscle at Any Age

Is Intermittent Fasting Right for You?

Want to Burn More Calories? Add This to Your Fat Loss Plan

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post Bad Fitness: Why You Don’t See Results From Your Workouts appeared first on Born Fitness.

Can a new way of looking at diet plans and eating, a new fat loss formula, along with a new way of exercising make a chronic disease go away and restore health? For David Musikanth, the answer is a resounding yes.

The Ultimate Weight Loss Battle

A good plan is one where you eat what you like. It’s something you don’t see in most diet plans.

For most of his life, Musikanth had suffered from Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disorder that brings on unpredictable spells of pain, diarrhea, bleeding, and constipation. It also causes fatigue and, in general, makes your life miserable.

“You can be at home and you want to go out and all of a sudden your stomach isn’t 100 percent and you can’t go out,” he says. “You absolutely can’t. You have to stay somewhere where you have facilities. Crohn’s ruled my life.”

Musikanth was medicated for the condition, and he did exercise, but even then he says it’s still difficult to control symptoms. Finally, a little over two years ago, at age 43 with a wife and two children, he reached a point where something had to change.

“You realize you’re not getting any younger,” he says. “Health is a bigger issue and it was hitting home much harder than it ever did. I wanted to do something for myself that didn’t involve doctors and treatment.”

His first stop, as it is for most of us, was the internet. What could he find? Who could help? He didn’t really have a set diet (“I didn’t think much about it at all”) and his workouts had never changed his body in any meaningful way.

Soon he stumbled on trainer Adam Bornstein’s Twitter feed. “I was intrigued by his posts,” Musikanth says. “So I just asked him some basic questions about nutrition and exercise.”

Bornstein engaged and suggested that Musikanth overhaul his approach to both eating and working out. The first change? Instead of eating the way he’d always had, Bornstein suggested intermittent fasting. It’s a simple concept: Between the hours of noon and 8 p.m., you eat all your normal meals. The rest of the time you consume nothing. “It sounded completely crazy,” Musikanth says.

Ditching Diets for Nutrition Plans

He and his wife decided to try it together – “It’s a lot easier if you have someone to do it with” – along with a change in what he was eating. “Before, there was no concept of diet. A typical meal would be like hot dogs or hamburgers and chips. And a Coke. I wouldn’t even think twice about it.”

Musikanth eliminated the garbage food, but also changed what he eat for the majority of his diet. He’ll eat chicken and vegetables. Fish. Eggs for breakfast. An occasional steak. “It was very strange at first, fitting all my meals into a set timeframe,” he says.

The biggest difference, though, was the flexibility. There was no talk of removing family favorites like pizza night and sushi. Instead, it was understanding how to build a eating style around a lifestyle, and then make sure the plan was doable.

The first three months were tough because of the adjustment of the “good foods” to eat, not because of what was restricted.

“What was amazing was where I initially struggled,” says Musikanth. “It’s not strict in terms of avoiding all foods. A good plan is one where you eat what you like. It’s something you don’t see in most diet plans.”

“But the bigger issue is how much you stay on plan versus having flexibility. In time, your body becomes trained for it. Now it’s second nature. More importantly, Adam set expectations so that when progress stalled, we knew that the plan didn’t stop working. Instead, we discovered how plateaus can be part of progress.”

Bornstein also gave Musikanth a new approach to fitness – a combination of strength and metabolic training that he’d never encountered before. “I did go to a gym, but what I did was very old fashioned, very boring kind of stuff,” he says.

“Now I walk into the gym and have to do all these strange movements. It was very weird at first. But in four months, my whole body changed. Even the people at the gym were asking me, ‘What kind of training is this?’ These were exercises that no one had ever seen.”

Reinventing The Fat Loss Formula

In those first months, Musikanth dropped 22 pounds, which took him from flabby to shredded – an unexpected side benefit. “I hadn’t been majorly fat. It wasn’t like I needed to lose this weight, but it was simply my body shedding fat. Now I look completely different.”

But again, to really appreciate Musikanth’s story, you have to look past the aesthetics. In those first months, along with the physical changes, all of his Crohn’s symptoms disappeared.

Musikanth has been on Bornstein’s plan for 2 years, is now 45, and is quite literally a changed man. “I changed everything. I did a complete change in what I ate, a complete change in how I train. I’m still on the Crohn’s medication, but I have no side effects. It’s in complete remission.”

There’s one more eye-opening bit of information you should know. Musikanth lives in South Africa. Bornstein splits his time between Denver and Los Angeles. This man managed to engage a trainer and successfully implement his plan from half a world away.

Think about that. Some people live 10 minutes from their gym and still can’t make it work with trainers.

Musikanth has thought about this. “I go to a beautiful gym,” he says. “But you look at the trainers and they’re very young. To me, what makes the relationship work is having commitment on both sides. When you see the results, obviously, you see the results. Then it doesn’t matter which side of the planet you’re on.”

The Born Fitness Family: David Musikanth

The Results

I went from 83 kgs to a constant 69-70 kgs. My body fat dropped from 20 percent to below 10 percent and my fitness level just improved like mad enabling me to do my 1st 10km run as well as complete 2 Impi challenges, which is a 12km trail run with 20 odd obstacles in between.

These would never even have been contemplated before Born Fitness online coaching. More importantly to me is that in the now 3 years of Born Fitness I have not had one incident of  Crohn’s disease throughout this period which is quite astonishing!! Even my doctors are at a loss. For me this has been the real success of Born Fitness, helping me get my life back.

Why Born Fitness

I grew up in a home where diet certainly wasn’t an issue, so I was always overweight even though as a kid I went to the gym and did routine weights. In my 20s I was diagnosed with the chronic disease Crohn’s which affected me really badly both from a diet perspective and a training perspective, it all went flat from there on.

Even though I still trained I just had no plan and I ate pretty freely as well as being on chronic medication daily. This went on until I discovered Born Fitness when I was 44! Once I had joined Born fitness my life did a complete u-turn even at this late age. I got a managed, educated, designed and completely different training and eating plan that delivered the results I so desperately craved in its 1st month!!

Certainly a plan designed just for me and diet constructed around what I eat just made it easier and much more simple to negotiate. I would definitely say that a new world of exercises in a structured plan was what instantaneously made a difference. A mix of functional cardio and focused weight training just breathed new life into my system.

Want to Join the Born Fitness Family?

Learn more about your personalized approach to fitness. Apply here. 

The post The Fat Loss Formula for Any Age: The David Musikanth Story appeared first on Born Fitness.

People just love playing word games with themselves and each other. When you work in the health and fitness industry, you often encounter the word “change.” You could argue that it’s the most common word you hear.

“I want to change.”

Do it because you can do it. It’s your life, your health, you don’t want to not try.

“I need to change.”

“I’m afraid to change.”

“Why is it so hard to change?”

Change in habit. Change in physique. Change in health. Change in mindset. Change is hard for a lot of people because admitting you need to change is admitting failure.

In other words, you were wrong.

Now there’s a word, “wrong.”

Some folks have a serious problem with being wrong. You can also add that change is all sorts of unpleasant words, from “painful” to “intimidating” to “[insert preferred profanity here].”

Simple words dictate our actions, and that explains the lack of change we see again and again. People start, people quit. Some never start at all.

If you’ve had a hard time getting the change you want – in habit, physique, health, and mindset – it’s time you met Lindy Cunningham and her husband, Chad. She’s thirty-two, he’s thirty-one. They have a two-year-old son and live in Nashville, Tennessee.

Not long after their son’s birth, they decided together to make some changes.

Lindy wanted to dump the baby fat and get back to her pre-marriage weight. Chad wanted to gain weight and get back in shape; he’d had a recent bout with mono and had lost 30 pounds.

They found trainer Adam Bornstein through his Twitter feed and eventually signed on so he could guide them to two very different goals, though both would be based on eating better and exercise.

Like most folks, they were jarred by the sudden change – adjusting their eating style, upping activity, logging workouts. But both of them had been athletes in high school. They stuck with it.

They changed.

Chad found it amusing that he had a harder time gaining weight than Lindy had losing it. Six months passed. Their son grew. Their bodies changed. They found change – or dedication to change – to be a good thing. Lindy was 5 pounds away from her goal weight.

Then everything changed.

Falling Down and Getting Up

On a ski getaway in Jackson Hole in January 2013, near the bottom of a long run where several trails filtered together, Lindy hit an ice patch or caught an edge – no one is quite sure – and she fell. She slid to the edge of the trail and hit a signpost, back-first.

“Nothing crazy,” Chad says. “Nothing fast. It just happened.”

“It” was a life-altering moment: Lindy had a burst fracture in her C5 and C6 vertebrae, which is technical terminology meaning the bones in her lower neck shattered and damaged her spinal cord.

She was paralyzed from the armpits down.

Lindy sums it up this way: “Being young, being married to someone I was just crazy about, having a baby, being close to a six month goal when it happened, the only word that touches it would be sorrow.”

Lindy, however, would not stand pat on that word. She had lung function, so she didn’t need breathing help. Her brain was fine, as well. That made everything else a work in progress, and a goal to strive for.

She has impaired arm function – her biceps work, but her triceps run at about 10 percent. Her finger dexterity is sketchy, but she can grasp things.

In July 2014, after 18 months of almost daily PT, she graduated to walking therapy assisted with harnesses. But no one knows if she’ll ever truly walk again.

“Who can tell how many thousands of hours she’s worked just to get to that point?” says Chad. “Or earlier on, to eat with an adapted fork. I don’t have anything to compare it to.”

But an interesting thing has happened in the last year and a half. All those negative terms we attach to change are still there, of course, and always will be.

Find Your Pulse

It turns out that Lindy’s approach to a new and difficult daily life isn’t all that different from the approach she first took to lose her baby weight and get results. And that fact alone has made a monumental difference not just to her own well-being, but the mindset of everyone around her.

You can hear the marvel in Chad’s voice as he describes it all.

“From the whole time it happened, the moment I found her, to the hospital, to now, Lindy’s never freaked out, never panicked. She was always good. She’s been kind and pleasant and positive and hopeful as you could ever want someone to be. She has bad days and bad times like anyone, but every day she works really hard, she’s good to whoever’s helping her, she’s nice to all her doctors and therapists and nurses. She does what they say and tries to do anything she can. She tries to help other people who have her injury. She tries to make the absolute best of it which for me and everybody else around her makes it doable.”

Lindy, true to form, deflects credit.

“How you approach a spinal injury depends on where you are in your life at the time – how are your relationships, etc. Fortunately, at the time I was surrounded by so many wonderful people. There was an incredible outpouring of love, support, and encouragement. That made it easier than a lot of people have it.”

Part of that support came from the man, who, despite her accident, still finds himself as Lindy’s trainer.

Immediately after the accident happened, Bornstein was interacting with Chad offering support and trying to find answers. And within a week of hearing the news, Bornstein wrote a bog post about her accident – ending with the hashtag “#BelieveInLindy.” It went viral.

Suddenly there were fundraisers. T-shirts. Posters. A Facebook page and endless hits on social media. And the Cunninghams found themselves buffeted on a wave of incredible and constant positive energy.

“It was a rallying central theme, what everyone circled around,” says Chad. “It was a really big deal for her recovery. Something like that helps you move forward, head towards something, and try to make things better.”

Bornstein still acts as a trainer and motivator, culminating in the Cunningham’s visiting Los Angeles when they were finally able to spend time together, after 2 years of interacting without ever meeting face-to-face.

Lindy’s workouts are a little different, of course. Each day, in fact, is one long workout. But Lindy says that one piece of advice from Bornstein stands out from the rest.

“Be strong and be relentless.” she says.

“That translates really well into a rehab situation. Do it because you can do it. It’s your life, your health, you don’t want to not try. You have to do everything you can to get the max, you know?”

As if that by itself isn’t enough, Chad puts her effort into even clearer perspective.

“You have to understand, the injury is like a nonstop 24/7 assault on your body between therapies and the sicknesses and infections and skin problems and urinary issues. It’s something all the time. To be able to work through all that and stay positive, it’s impressive.”

“For spinal cord injuries, so much of it is an emotional and mental battle,” Lindy says. “What Chad and I have discovered is we have so much to be thankful for. I’ve had positive results in my therapy and I’m learning to walk again. There’s so much joy to be had and things to look forward to.”

Their two year old son is a big part of that. “He’s an inspiration point for Lindy,” says Chad. “We laugh a lot.”

Building Unstoppable Motivation

Now … take a pause.

Let’s let some of this sink in.

First, we state the obvious: Lindy Cunnigham’s tale should serve as an inspiration to all, especially those perfectly mobile humans who use word games to get in the way of discovering real, positive change.

Second, and less obvious: Finally admit what’s really holding you back.

It’s not a word or collection of words.

It’s an emotion.

A corroded piece of consciousness. Fear? Resignation? Self-loathing?

We’re not regressing into word games just now. All people have their reasons and the real tragedy is allowing those reasons to rule. You can change.

Do it because you can.

Be strong. Be relentless.

And #BelieveinLindy. Doing so means that you believe in the power of you. 

What’s Your Story?

You have something amazing within you. Whether chapters have already been written or the book has just started. If you’re ready to write the ending, learn more about joining the Born Fitness Family.

The post The Unstoppable Force of Change appeared first on Born Fitness.

Just the other day I saw a post on The Chive about #RAKit week. For those of you not familiar, we’re talking “random acts of kindness.” This is the type of thing The Chive does: pay it forward and make others feel awesome.

And their efforts are not lost. Millions of people read the site and then follow their lead. The post was amazing and left me inspired, not to mention it hit home on many levels.

In my own relationship with my wife, the best things I ever do are the random acts that are unexpected. Flowers on Valentine’s Day are nice; flowers on a random Tuesday? Those make her feel more loved than anyone.

That mentality serves as the backbone of my own #bethechange movement. When you do something good for others it creates a domino effect. See good, do good, pass it on.

My job then is make sure that the giving continues randomly and endlessly. That’s why I’m following the lead of #RAKit Week and letting it flow here at Born Fitness. Because what happens when you just give for no reason? Happiness. Lots of it.

The #BeTheChange Random Acts of Kindness Giveaway

For the next 48 hours I’m going to be giving away prizes every 6 hours. The #RAKit-inspired loot will include items that the most appeal to people that visit my site and work with me. (And yes, all of these will be free for the winners.)

**Editors note: This list is growing. Actor Joe Manganiello just added a free subscription to his Evolution  online program, and Muscle & Fitness has tossed in a subscription and workout schwag. Muscle Milk also joined the fun with a supplement prize pack. 

• Online coaching
• FitnessLives T-shirts…the same one worn by Arnold [yes, Schwarzenegger] during his training for T5
• Be. Born. Fit. T-shirts. (not even released to the public
• Joe Manganiello’s Evolution359.com workout and diet program
• Signed books (Engineering the Alpha, Getting Abs, Women’s Health Big Book of Abs, Men’s Health Diet, Women’s Health Diet, Impact! Body Plan)
• Muscle & Fitness magazine subscription and workout gear
• Free membership to the Getting Shredded Community
• Muscle Milk supplement bonanza (1 case RTD’s, 2 tubs of Muscle Milk, 1 Monster Milk Amino, Tray of Cytomax Energy Drops)
• Workout gear
• Consulting Call (for business or diet)

Oh yeah, and I’m also going to give away $100 cash to the last winner. Because who doesn’t love a little extra money in their pocket? To enter to win, just leave your name and email below, and I’ll be randomly selecting winners and letting them know their prize. Let the #RAKit week spread and inspire you to #BeTheChange.

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post #BeTheChange Giveaway appeared first on Born Fitness.

The scene ends with Sandler telling his father he loves him, his father breaking down, and the men embracing. Suddenly, the entire court room is filled with people calling their fathers to say, “I love you, dad.”

It’s a funny scene, but one that ultimately hits at a frustrating reality: Rarely do we openly express our gratitude and appreciation for the people in our lives. Our society—for better or worse—is a reality where criticism and critiques are the most common prompts.

Positive feedback? That’s usually represented by silence. Take for instance if you don’t hear kudos in your job, it usually means you’re doing the right thing. (The old, “no news is good news.”) If you don’t receive comments on a blog post, sometimes it just means no one is trolling your site or spitting vitriol. (Of course, there are positive comments and discussions, too.)

The vocal majority is usually the angry minority. While love, positivity, and appreciation usually stay within.

I mention this all for a reason: Gratitude should never be a response or reaction. It should be a precursor.

I learned this the hard way 4 years ago when my father was in a terrible ski accident that left him in a coma. My mother wrote about the experience and the awful emotions of that day. It was one of the worst moments of my life, and I was lucky that my father fought through and is still with us today and living a fully functional life after an incredible recovery.

Everything that occurred after the accident was a combination of thankfulness and regret. I was thankful I had my father; I regretted that I didn’t do a better job of telling him that before the accident.

Do This, Be Healthier

Positive feedback is the real fuel of life. We know that it feels incredible to receive a compliment. And science backs that up. But it also feels great to deliver positive feedback and praise.

In some ways, giving gratefulness is a selfish act—it boosts sense of self, helps confidence, and can improve your health (yes, giving compliments is good for your health)—thereby making it the greatest selfish act you could do.

But this isn’t just limited to your family. Praise is the gift that keeps on giving.

It’s the reason why the crux of my online coaching program is as much rooted in being a human first, and a coach second. I’ll never forget the day that I heard from Chad about his wife, Lindy’s, ski accident, which led to the birth of #BelieveInLindy. There’s not a week that goes by that I don’t text with Chad. He’s family now, and I remind him of that and all the incredible things he’s accomplished with Lindy and their baby son Beren.

And then there’s Mary Beth, the 2-time cancer-surviving champ. She’s lost more weight than she’ll allow me to share, but I make sure she knows the best part about her is that she inspires me. Every. Single. Day. She’s just incredible.

And I can’t forget the talented actress, Ms. Gina. Maybe my wittiest online client who has impressed even the toughest, most hardcore guys at her gym. I tell her all the time how much I care about her. Because I do.

While acknowledging the ladies, I can’t forget people like David Musikanth, all the way in Cape Town. His fired up emails and pictures of his ever-growing biceps never cease to put a smile on my face.

I send them all my love. Each and every week. And I share these stories not because they are clients, but because they are people I know who I see doing good, and I think they should know about it.  It feels great to do it, and I know it feels even better for them to hear it. There is nothing exceptional about what I’m doing; this should be the norm of how we treat everyone we know.

When I talk about “Be the Change,” I’m not just referring to fitness and nutrition. It’s about spearheading a better way of life. Relationships are a part of your health too. And so much of life is about the people we meet, those we know and love, and doing everything we can to make those individuals feel valued and important.

I have a list of goals on a whiteboard in my office. One this is of daily tasks, and the other is of permanent goals etched in black ink. The one at the top of the second list says: “Remind people about what makes them great.”

It’s something I didn’t do enough with my own father. And if things had turned out worse, it would have been something that would have tortured me forever.

This is your “I love you, dad” moment. Don’t wait to spread the love. Call or text now and make someone’s day. Its’ one of the healthiest behaviors you can do.

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post The Instant Health Boost appeared first on Born Fitness.

The programs aren’t what you’d expect. No special equipment, crazy exercises, or new movements never seen before. Nothing that immediately screams, “This is a great workout.”

It’s usually just 6 to 10 exercises total, spread across 3 to 4 days of lifting. Not much variety, a planned progression, and a few special touches of “Born” methodology tossed in. (A combination of training methods I did not create, but implemented in a way I’ve found to work. This could include some drop sets, 1.5 reps, cluster sets).

It’s not that I don’t want to share these workouts with everyone. After all, depending on the goal, they are the plans that lead to the most fat loss, muscle gained, or strength increases.

But when I’ve shared this approach with new clients a funny thing happens: People quit. They say the workout isn’t personalized. They question the philosophy and complexity, and doubt that anyone could see results for that type of plan.

Even when I explain exactly what I’m doing, I’m met with resistance.

• This is too easy for me.
• You don’t know what you’re doing.
• I think you only know how to program for beginners.
• This won’t work for my body.

The list of excuses goes on and on.

What’s interesting is these same people see incredible results from the workouts. I recently had someone lose 10 pounds in 4 weeks, yet insist the program wasn’t working.

With exercise and diet there’s an expectation for what will create success. Combine that with an unrealistic belief of how fast you should see results, and irrational frustration byproduct that results in quitting even in the face of improvement.

It’s a problem encountered by many trainers: Because of the Internet, everyone is now an “expert.” If your workouts don’t look better than what they can find online or in the magazines, then there’s the presumption that the workout won’t work or they could do the same thing on their own.

Seeing Is Believing: Which Workout is “Better?”

I want you to consider the following two workouts. I sent out a sample survey to 100 people and asked them which workout was better for gaining strength. (I’ll save you the rep scheme and sets because there’s a 4-6 week progression involved. Normally this stuff is important, but in this case, they aren’t essential to answering this question.)

Plan A

Day 1

1) Snatch-grip deadlift
2) Dumbbell Bulgarian split squat
3a) Dip
3b) Dumbbell row

4) Conditioning

Day 2

1) Front squat

2) Step-up

3a) Barbell push press
3b) Close-grip chin-up

4) Conditioning

Plan B

1A) Bench press

1B) Incline dumbbell press

1C) Dumbbell overhead press

1D) Skull Crusher

1E) Ab wheel rollout

2A) Deadlift

2B) One-arm dumbbell row

2C) Face pull

2D) Lat pulldown

2E) Barbell curl

3A) Squat

3B) Hip thrust

3C) Dumbbell step up

3D) Hanging leg raise

3E) Jump rope

Can you guess which was rated better?

More than 70 percent of people rated workout B as the more effective plan.

The reality: Workout A would be far more effective and realistic for about 99 percent of the population. Especially from a strength perspective. Can I see the extremely rare case when Workout B could maybe, possibly be better? Sure. (Maybe.) But this is the kitchen sink workout. Every exercise in the sun is thrown in. There is no way that I could even imagine doing squats after completing who knows how many sets of 10 other exercises.

Not to mention, workout B looks like it could easily take 3 hours. And any type of planned progression would be nearly impossible to execute.

Remember, the purpose of any workout is results. That’s it. I just want my clients to achieve the goals they set. And it’s a relentless pursuit that has led to a lot of success with my online clients.

Programming: Part Science, Part Psychology

It might upset some, but understanding human psychology and the “fun” factor of fitness is something that must be considered. The majority of people don’t inherently love exercise. If I trusted a coach and they told me to do just 2 exercises to achieve a goal, I’d do it. That’s the point of hiring an expert. You use them to help you achieve your goals. You should feel free to question everything, but you need to trust them at some level.

I mentioned that I rarely am able to share my favorite workouts—at least for my new clients. This is an important lesson for some trainers. As much as I want to stubbornly say, “Either the client gets it or they don’t” that’s a narrow-minded view that would leave too many people without the help that they need. And I’d rather help and make it fun, while removing the preconceived barriers.

Your job is to create a relationship with your clients. Be aware of the questions and hesitations they have, and give them a reason to trust you. That starts with getting them results, but it also might mean making the workouts appear a little sexier (at times) if you notice that the “appearance” of the programs is causing trust issues. [Note: this is something you should assess on a client-by-client basis.]

I firmly believe that you must meet your client where they are. If they trust you from the start, then there’s no need for this. But the moment you see hesitation it’s important that you

1)   Explain your entire philosophy

2)   Make sure they understand why you’re doing what you’re doing

3)   Assess their trust in your approach

The first two steps are paramount, but the third is what will keep you engaged with your client. If you see them wavering, that lack of trust can lead to a problem with execution. So swallow the pride and make it more fun. Throw in some different exercises and progress using your philosophy. Add some vanity work (like curls) to keep people engaged.

Training is part science and part psychology. You need people to buy in to your approach so they can bring intensity, and stay motivated and focused. Your job is to work with people—so your primary focus should always be figuring out how to map your philosophy and skills to their needs

If things aren’t working, don’t blame the client. When you make it about them—and understand what they need—then you can build a stronger relationship with your client. That’s how you build trust and respect, and as much as anything, that will be the cornerstone of your ability to help more people.

After that happens, then it’s on you to continue to deliver great programs and deliver the results.

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post The Illusion of the Great Workout appeared first on Born Fitness.

I just received the following text message from my wife.

If you read closely, it’s clear that “Shirtless Friday’s” on The Berry finally has her wanting me to return to a leaner, meaner version of me.

You see, for the last few years (let’s just call this “marriage”) my goals have changed. My focus hasn’t been on body composition. I’ve stayed within 12 to 14 percent body fat, but with the exception of during our preparation for Engineering the Alpha, I haven’t been targeting a super lean body or dropped below 10 percent.

This is a shift from my single days. I spent the back half of my 20s living in vanity heaven. When I was a grad student, I trained like a crazy man, carb cycled like it was my job, and became very lean.

Then when I was working at Men’s Health (around the time I first met my wife), I got down to 6.8% body fat for a story. You can read the article here.

Since we’ve been together, my focus has been more on strength than cuts; more on cheesecake than oatmeal. More on wine than protein shakes…ok, that’s a lie. I still love protein shakes. And protein ice cream. I’m happy with my body. Happy with the way I look. And still train with great enjoyment and eat “clean” about 90 percent of the time.

Then I received this text and I couldn’t help but smile.

It’s a challenge. The first fitness challenge ever presented by my wife. That’s 5 years of her not caring how I look or what I do. It’s a big part of what makes her great; body image doesn’t exist with her. It’s all about health and happiness.

But when there’s a chance to rise to the occasion and fulfill a request from your wife—just for the hell of it—well, it doesn’t get much better than that.

Getting Shredded: Is it in you?

I called my wife and asked her if she was serious. (Full disclosure: I actually walked out of my office…which is in our home…and into my bedroom.)

She was. She doesn’t actually care if I get super lean, but she thinks it’ll be fun for me. And for her. And I couldn’t agree more.

I’m already crafting a workout and diet plan to get shredded, and enjoying every second of it.

This isn’t about building more muscle or getting stronger. This is fat loss and aesthetics. Pure and simple. I’m training to look good naked and making no apologies about it.

And it got me thinking: I wonder if anyone would want to do this with me? Literally train with me—side by side (virtually, of course)—and try to get shredded. This isn’t my typical online coaching. In that program I work with you step-by-step to build a plan and approach that works for your life.

In this approach, we’d be like a bunch of college kids entering the University of Leanness. (I’d also would be the professor.) Our mascot, of course, would be The Shredder.

The Getting Shredded Program

I decided to go all in and create something special. Getting Shredded became a community effort of people working together to drop fat, receive coaching and workouts, and do it all at a starting point that’s cheaper than a Chipotle burrito. (Yeah, I’m serious.)

To find out more about the Getting Shredded program and join the community where I answer questions each day, you can learn more here.

Be The Change,

Adam

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post Getting Shredded appeared first on Born Fitness.

Sure the hours appear great. And summers off are nice. But the illusion of a life of relaxation underscores the incredible amount of time it takes to prepare, teach, grade, and then prepare some more. Toss in stressful interactions with students and parents, and teachers find themselves in the frustrating position of so many others: Early mornings, late nights, and very little time in between.

Add to it a salary structure that few would call comfortable and food services (offered by schools) that have been fattening up children for the last few decades, and you have perfect storm of unhealthy.

(I can hear the heads nodding.)

I know this because I’ve been a teacher. My mom is a teacher. My wife’s mom is a teacher. And many of my friends have chosen the education route.

After years of being asked the same questions and seeing the same problems pop up in education, I decided help was needed.

Why Teachers Struggle with Fitness

I wanted to understand why educators struggled with their health when most teachers are inspired by a desire to set a positive example and lead. Typical areas of blame such as “laziness” or “lack of desire” should be tossed out. Like anything in life, this isn’t about labeling people as a certain way; it’s about identifying the circumstances that serve as a catalyst and reason for undesired behaviors.

Most teachers I know bust their ass and work extremely hard without much acknowledgement or appreciation. So putting in effort isn’t the issue; educators know efforts. Instead, it’s a matter of identifying the roadblocks. With that in mind, I started spending more time speaking with teachers to understand the real issues that limited healthy efforts. My initial areas of focus were simple:

1. I tried to determine the breakpoints that made eating the right foods so difficult
2. I interviewed teachers to find out just how much time they had to exercise and what would make that process a little easier to squeeze into their day.

I took it all together and then started designing programs for the educators of the world. They came in all shapes and sizes—just like students—and my job was to teach and lead them to better health.

I tested the programs on a group of 10 teachers. It was a small sample size, but it was a all that was needed to start. Like most coaching programs, the assistance went a long way towards changing physical appearance. But the the benefits of eating better and finding a practical way to squeeze in quality exercise paid off in other ways. The 10 teachers all reported:

• Having more energy for life inside and out of the classroom
• The ability to function the way they want and thereby perform the way they want at their job. Coffee wasn’t abandoned but it was no longer a lifeline
• The feeling that they were setting a better example for their students
• A general sense of feeling better about themselves and their lives.

Be Teacher Fit

While the years of working with teachers was rewarding, I sensed that more could be done. So I took the lessons from the teachers, surveyed a larger group, and then designed a comprehensive health and fitness program for an occupation that seems like it was ignored and priced out of receiving health assistance.

I’m not someone who makes excuses, but I’m also a realist: Teachers can’t possibly afford high-end personal training that could cost hundreds each month, spend money on groceries, and afford a gym membership when they might be making $25,000 per year (or less).

My findings came down to 3 simple conclusions:

1. Teachers need a guide that simplifies healthy eating in a way that fits into their busy schedule. For most, snacking all day won’t work. Neither will cumbersome meal plans or lots of time spent cooking.
2. Exercise needs to be efficient and focused and planned around the teacher’s schedule.
3. Support is necessary. Work builds up quickly for teachers, and the first thing to falter is usually personal health because no infrastructure exists to help protect it.

To solve for this problem, I created the Teacher Fit Program. The elements were designed by teacher’s needs and built for their lifestyle.

The program consists of 2 components:

1)   The Teacher Fit Healthy Guide (FREE)

When you sign up below, you’ll be sent a free guide to eating and living better. This isn’t your typical approach of counting calories or stressing about multiple meals. It’s a practical guide that shares what you need to know about eating, meal planning, creating a healthy menu, and determining what types of exercise can work for you.

In talking to teachers it became very clear that the basic understanding of the minimum effective dose was not clear. Now, the information you need is all stored in one place to help you live a healthier life.

2)   The Teacher Fit Fitness and Nutrition Program 

The hardest thing for teachers is spending more time figuring out what to eat, how to exercise, and receiving the support they need to live the way they want—all at a cost they can afford. To solve for this, The Teacher Fit Program simplifies the approach and offers a comprehensive program at a price that most teachers can afford. When you join this community specifically designed for teachers you receive:

• Private 1-on-1 help from a Born Fitness Coach that will work with you towards your goals.
• Access to a messaging system so you can have help at any time.
• A new training program sent to you each week so you know exactly what to do. These are efficient programs designed for your schedule. (We build programs for a gym or a workout you can in your home)
• Diet Help and Nutrition Plans, customized to your individual goals
• Recipes and food choices to help fuel your body and feel satisfied
• Access to a private community of teacher’s all working towards similar goals with community support from Born Fitness coaching

Joining The Program

The Teacher Fit Program was designed specifically for teachers to remove the barriers and empower anyone in the education space to look and feel the way they want.

To join the movement, simply fill out the form below and you’ll be sent your free guide and receive more information so you can join the program. Like most courses, enrollment will happen in cohorts. I’ll be accepting applicants for only one week, and then you’ll be moved to a waiting list that will be revisited each month. So if you want to join, send in your application now.

It’s time to arm teachers with what they need to be the change and take back their health.

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post The Teacher Fit Program appeared first on Born Fitness.