Not a day goes by without seeing or hearing about the latest fitness ‘hack’ or diet ‘hack’. There’s a whole industry based around ‘biohacking’ and generally finding new, innovative and smart ways to get to better, smarter, fitter.
Now I’ve got no issues with using technology and new research or innovative supplementation in order to improve your training, your health and any other marker you’re looking to improve. I use a lot of them myself. But that’s not what I’ve got a gripe with here.
What I’m referring to is the endless stream of shortcuts and hacks like ‘7 minute workouts’ or ‘6 weeks to six pack abs’ or ‘diet hacks that allow you to eat unlimited doughnuts’.
What a load of bullshit.
Seriously.
I saw one just this morning saying that you should stand on one leg when you brush your teeth…
When was the last time you overheard a conversation down the pub, and one person was talking about how they made an amazing transformation and lost 50lbs and finally completed that race they’d always wanted to do, did you hear then say: ‘oh yeah, well I just stood on one leg whilst brushing my teeth, that did the trick, who knew!’
Maybe the blame partly goes to all the computer nerds hacking into their neighbours wifi because they’re too cheap to buy their own? I don’t know.
Either way, when it comes to your health, your fitness, your performance and generally your life, let me be the bearer of bad news.
THERE IS NO HACK. THERE IS NO SHORTCUT.
Hacks and shorts won’t get you there.
The world record holder in powerlifting didn’t win by finding a shortcut. The person who just got a promotion over you at work, didn’t get it because of some hack.
You know what the ultimate hack is?
Consistency and hard work.
That’s it, full stop.
And really, you should embrace this.
Anything worth achieving in life doesn’t come easy. And that’s a good thing. It comes via persistence, grit, consistency and hard work and to be honest, are you ever proud of anything you’ve achieved by taking the short cut? Or even by cheating?
There is only one way, one path and we all know what it is deep down inside of ourselves. And what we often find is, that the path is actually by just doing the one thing that we’re avoiding. As the saying goes, if you’ve got to eat two frogs, eat the big one first. Just do it. So when it comes to your health, your fitness, your family, your career, your mindset really should be one doing the right thing, putting in the effort, the sweat and the tears and earning you place on the podium.
So how about you try this.
Ignore all the hacks, all the shortcuts, and all that bullshit noise.
And just put your head and get on with it.
Here’s your ‘hacks’.
If you want to run faster and longer, put on your running shoes and get out and put in the miles.
If you want to lift more, get stronger and build muscle, then start shifting some heavy barbells and do it consistently with compound movements and progressive overload.
If you want to generally build more muscle and look better and be healthier, then make sure you hit your protein target on a daily and weekly basis. The target will be unique to you and your goals but it’s generally higher than you think. 2.2g per kg of BW is a good starting point. Adjust up or down from there.
And if you want to lose weight or gain weight, then create a sustainable diet and nutrition plan that you can adhere to consistently forever. No hacks here. Just trial and error. The biggest ‘hack’ will be learning how to cook.
Stay Viking everyone.
Rant over.
Stuart
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