Reflection

Sometimes we have no control over obstacles that life throws at us.  Life doesn’t run smoothly all of the time, and you should always expect the unexpected nothing can be perfect and plain sailing. 

It’s almost 12 months since I was paid off from the job that I loved, the people I enjoyed working with and the life I had in Aberdeen.   Then to loose my 2^nd job working in a beautiful city which challenged and motivated me.  There has been days in the past 6 months where I would quite happily lie in bed and not participate in life and for those close to me they know  I found last year very challenging and difficult.  My life changed so much and I made a number of mistakes that I am paying the price for as well.

The past month I run myself right into the ground, tired, exhausted, constant migraine’s I couldn’t shift, not sleeping, not eating, emotional mess and then something happened that I didn’t see coming which added more stress to the situation.    The last 2 weeks I have had to take some time out from work, training, nutrition and just life in general for a much needed rest and refocus.

Someone told me last week that although things seem really bad now, 12 months down the line I will laugh about it, and everything is just magnetised because its all come at once. 

I still believe there is always a positive (not for every negative) but a positive worth zoning in on to bring you out of the hole.  One thing for sure my positive I have no control over and as they say everything happens for a reason. 

The past 2 weeks has made me realise that if something is bothering you, there is no point ignoring it because it won’t go away and you need to address the issues for change to happen.    I am always telling my clients the same thing when they embark on lifestyle changes, so I guess I need to listen to my own advice!

Progress Update

I have just completed week 6 of my new training programme, and starting to see some really good improvements in the weight I am managing to move without sacrificing form. 

For the past 3 weeks I have not been able to get past 395kg on the leg press, but on Thursday I finally hit 400kg .   Although I have been training progressively, and hitting my macros (calories increasing dependant on the training cycle), I am a firm believer that what is going on in your personal or working life contributes to performance in the gym, entering the gym with the right mind-set is a contributing factor to how you perform.   Some people are able to switch off, others use working out as a form of venting frustration or de stressing, I wish I was one of those people.

For the past week and a half I have been feeling a lot happier, and on Thursday I received some good news just before I went into the gym - I have no doubt that this contributed to helping me hit my 400kg target and has raised my spirits in general.

My macro’s as mentioned are being altered dependant on the micro cycle I am doing in the gym.   The past 2 weeks are higher carbs, and I am starting to become ‘fluffy’ but I still feel happy with my body.  I found last year’s bulk tough mentally, but this time there is a much more sensible approach to reversing into a surplus. 

A good trusting relationship with your coach is the key to success, I feel being accountable to someone works much better for me and takes the stress out of the mind games.   Last year I took control over my own prep for comps.  The benefit of this was I learnt a lot about my own body.  However there were more disadvantages than benefits.   I don't feel I achieved the best results possible, I made a lot of changes along the way, mind games got the better of me and I felt very isolated – I also turned to the person who had previously helped me for help too late.  The most important lesson I learnt was I needed to be accountable to someone.

I have been with several PTs / Prep Coaches over the past 4 years and only one of them understands me, my body and what I want to achieve.  I believe and trust in that person and I also  "learn" from them. In return that person believes, challenges and motivates me.  .

Here is to a successful year of change – steady and slow J

Training

I started a new training programme 4 weeks ago and decided to handover all control to someone else.  

Sometimes I feel that I am a failure of my own success when it comes to prep.  I over think things, I make too many changes to nutrition and training and I am so paranoid about how I look - constantly fighting mirror demons.

Initially I decided no comps in 2016 but now I am not so sure.  As with training and nutrition any decisions on comps has been handed over.  If that person feels I am ready for stage again this year i will do it.  Again selection of comp and federation will be taken from me.

Really happy with the changes in my body.  My weight is less than my stage weight in November and I am consuming more than 500 calories now per day than what I was on.  Good increases across all body parts.

This time there is no race to the finish line, it's all about consistency and response.

Already I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off me with not having control over my diet and training and perhaps this is a reason why I am responding so well.

It's also good to be back in the gym and enjoying training again.

Calorie Deficits and Plateau

If you walk into any newsagent and cast your eye over the female ‘weekly’ magazines, you will find at least 2 with headlines stating how you can drop a dress size in 14 days or loose a stone in 30 days. The reality is that this is a quick fix, and anything you did loose during that period, you will likely put back on just as quickly as you lost it.    In order for this type of weight loss to occur it involves a horrendous calorie deficit.

Very few people choose to take the healthy approach to weight loss, by evaluating their current diet and making small simple changes, most are after ‘quick fixes’ and to implement change over the shortest period of time possible. 

Those people who choose to go on horrific calorie deficits certainly do pay the price long term.  I have seen a number of people develop sensitivity to particular food groups, their health has suffered and worse still their results plateau leaving them confused on what to do next.  Another factor is obtaining meal plans from people who are not qualified, or perhaps follow one protocol.  At Nemesis we follow a number of different protocols because we understand that one type does not fit all.

In August a lady who had been on a very low calorie diet, which also contained ‘fasting’ for a certain amount of hours during the day, approached me.  There is no denying that at the start her weight reduced and she was seeing results, but as she continued change slowed down.   She started to notice changes in her health, she was tired all the time, crashing at certain periods of the day, lacking energy in her workouts, noticeable changes in strength and feeling miserable. 

I did not realise the extent of the issue until we had our consultation, where I realised that this was not going to be easy.  My client had potentially developed sensitivity to particular food groups due to her diet being very limited.  She was burning around 600 calories in the gym, but was only consuming between 500-600 calories per day.  She had a job, which was mentally challenging and was relatively active and her metabolism was non-existent.

The first step was to start increasing her calories.  She was already in a huge deficit of her BMR and increasing the calories to this straight away was too much of a risk.  Instead I increased them by 300 per day, and gave her a set diet plan.  We sat down and went through the diet plan and why certain food sources were chosen and why. 

I made it very clear that this client needed to concentrate on reducing her food sensitivity and speeding up her metabolism, and weight / fat loss is not on the cards for at least 3 months.  I must admit I was very sceptical if she would trust the process, especially since her goal was to loose weight.

Within 14 days my client had moved from a set meal plan to making her own food choices – something she had never done before, as the previous plan she was on was a set menu.  Within a fortnight we ended up having to increase her calories more than we originally forecasted because she was loosing weight and body measurements at every weekly check in.  Her metabolism was slowly speeding up.  She continued to introduced new or more of food sources she had been originally been denied, and the results stayed constant. 

After 12 weeks, she is still 300 calories short of her maintenance on her current statistics, and is about to embark phase 2 with Nemesis.  We will still be increasing her calories until plateau with statistics occur.

To give you some perspective of her fantastic results.

	Weight	Chest	Hips	Waist	Arms	Thighs	KCALS
Week 1	195	100	108	99	36	63	1580
Week 13	182.3	85	94	75	36	56	2235

I am bowled over with what this client has achieved during the 12 weeks.  She trusted the process and advice given, followed it 100% and it was a huge relief for both of that there was no long-term damage.

Every time I see her in the gym I notice huge changes not just in her body composition but her confidence, skin and wellbeing and she is constantly telling me how much energy she has and how she is performing better in the gym and feels happier.

In order for weight loss to occur you do have to be in a deficit, but there is a line, which you don’t cross and that is starvation.  Decrease your calories slowly and sensibly to prevent your metabolism slowing down otherwise you will head straight for the brick wall.

Steady and Slow

As we approach a new year, it gives us time to reflect on the past and changes we want to make for the future.  A great deal of new years resolutions is related to weight loss or improving health.  

In the past 12 months since Nemesis started we have coached around 40 clients.  All our clients have different goals, aspirations and starting foundations.  Some of those clients are able to stick to their plan 100% and other’s deviate or struggle.   All our clients are asked to complete a detailed questionnaire that provides us with information regarding their goals, current lifestyle, work balance, exercise and fitness levels as well as their nutritional habits. We then assess what type of programme is best for the client.  We have turned down a number of clients who have asked to sign up, and this is mainly because they are after ‘quick fixes’ and unwilling to change certain things in their lifestyle.  If you do not embrace change – nothing will change.

We also made the decision several months ago not to take on any clients who ask for 12-week programme, our minimum sign up is for 4 months, and this is only for clients who have a good starting foundation.   We believe the key to long-term success in a lifestyle and body transformation is to ensure that the programme is healthy and sustainable long term.  We also noticed that clients who followed a 6 – 12 month programme with Nemesis are the one’s who achieved the best results.

The problem with people today in the pursuit of a transformation is they want to do it in the quickest amount of time, and they focus solely on the reduction on the scales.  We make it very clear upon sign up with Nemesis that we do not use the scales to measure ‘success’.  Although all our clients are made aware of this prior to signing up with Nemesis, 9 times out of 10 within 3 weeks that client is emailing us demotivated that they have remained the same or gained weight on the scales (despite changes in the mirror, and on body measurements!).  We have even seen clients drop out at this point unable to change their mind-set, which is heart breaking for us as coaches. 

It’s very sad that we live in a society where the scales rule and dictate if you’re successful or aesthetically pleasing and I do believe that social media, slimming clubs and magazines are responsible for this.

To put it into perspective, the scales takes into account far too many factors

·      What types of food sources you consumed the day before

·      Stress

·      Anxiety

·      Ovulation

·      Menopause

·      Menstruation

·      Lack of Sleep

·      Sodium

·      Water Consumption

·      What training you did the day before

·      The type of training programme you are following

Just to name a few!

I am constantly reminding my clients ‘when was the last time someone asked them how much they weighed?’  If they lost 1lb on the scales, I ask them the following week ‘did anyone come up and notice you lost 1lb on the scale? Did they guess you lost 1lb?”

If your body measurements are reducing then your clothes feel looser, and this is visual change - people are more aware of the changes your body is making as well as yourself. 

I always use this photograph as a comparison for my clients.

In photo 1, I was between a size 16 – sizes 18.  I weighed 136lbs, with 36% body fat.  In photo 2, I am a size 8 – 10, I fluctuate between 142lbs and 146lbs and I go between 10.1% - 13% body fat.

When I was bigger, the size of my clothes or the figure on the scales didn’t actually bother me.  I hated how I had a ‘muffin top’.  I was constantly pulling at my jeans and giving myself the ‘Simon Cowell’ look.  I hated how my arms wobbled.  I had no butt; it was flat, saggy and full of cellulite.  My skin looked dull and lifeless.  I constantly had colds and migraines and felt tired all the time – especially at work around mid afternoon.  I hated how I looked, and couldn’t believe how much I had let myself go and was extremely unhappy.  I remember going into female changing rooms to try on clothes that looked great hanging up or on the mannequin, but by the time I had squeezed the outfit on, and standing in the middle of a 1m square changing room cubicle with ‘bad mirrors’ I felt even more horrendous.

Yes I weigh more now than I did back then, but I don’t care – I FEEL GREAT.  Nobody has ever asked me how much ‘weight I have lost’ but they have asked how I manage to get such a nice butt, or arms, or how tiny my waist is.   I no longer have to tuck in that tummy into my jeans.  I feel super tight and toned, and I try on clothes all the time and look and feel fantastic. 

If your thinking about changing your lifestyle with a healthy approach whist transforming your body then please visit our website.  We don’t do fad diets, we don’t starve our clients and we support you throughout your plan with us.  We are in it for the long haul.

The hardest part of a transformation is letting go all of the conflicting information that you have read, changing your mind-set and putting 100% trust into your coach and 100% commitment into your change.  You get back what you put in.  If you deviate, you push your goal further away. 

Everyone thinks that a transformation is hard work, and it really is simple train consistently and eat healthier.  No miracle diet pills, juicing diet, 1200-calorie or point tracking is sustainable long term.

‘If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is!”.

DO IT ONCE, DO IT RIGHT – MAKE THE CHANGE.

Deadlifting

We all have our week points, some people choose to accept this, others work on it until they defeat it.

I have mentioned previously I was never a fan of deadlifts and prone to injury.

- Ego Lifting

- Lazyness

I have completely changed from the mindset of ego lifting and I rarely boast how much weight I can push/lift/press.

My focus is on time under tension and form.  I must admit I can be a lazy cow when it comes to deadlifting it's a chore loading and deloading those weights.

I am on week 3 of my pyramid programme, and can't get past 92kg without sacrificing form and tempo and I just refuse to do it.  Over the next week I will be reverse dieting further and I am hoping some good carb loading pre workout and my move to Edinburgh will refocus me.  

I find I perform well in the gym when my life is less stressful.

Never sacrifice tempo and good form for weight.

UKUP - Matt Marsh Official Photographs

Just sharing some of the stage photographs from the British Finals I received from Matt Marsh