Almost every single day I get asked what I think about some sort of new fitness trend (i.e. intermittent fasting, keto, isagenix, joe’s youtube workouts). My response is always “sure, those can work great, but why make it harder than it needs to be?”

Let me explain.

The formula for most common fitness goals is remarkably simple:

Of course, there is a ton of nuance that goes into every one of these, which is what keeps me studying every single day. But at the most basic level this is it folks!

Here is why I am pointing this out. My experience is that people are absolutely obsessed with consuming the latest content. They want the quick fix, the newest thing, or the magic pill. So much so that they are willing to spend a lot of money while ignoring some of the most fundamental scientific truths.

In short: people are far too concerned with the CONTENT, and not enough with the HABIT.

The most fundamental principle of life (in my opinion) is that consistency rules everything. You can do bad work for a long time and still be pretty good at something. And if you are lucky enough to do great work for a long time, you can achieve anything.

I am a big believer that the best diet and exercise is the one you are going to do. In my coaching practice, I always ask myself “will this person be able to sustain this recommendation as a habit for the next 50 years.” If the answer is yes I give it to them. If the answer is no I don’t think it is sustainable for them then I don’t even bring it up, but rather i start somewhere else.

I think the importance of developing the habit applies equally to general population folks as it does the elite athlete. I can say from my experience, I have felt completely overwhelmed with the amount of information that I needed to remember on a daily basis to perform (i.e. eat x amount of carb pre workout, do these 3 drills in sequence in my warm-up, etc). To the point that I was more focused on following those things than I was on the fact that my job was to perform. I also think if general population or elite athletes are really smart, they will seek coaches who work and have an innate passion in that area to take care of everything so all they have to do is show up and do the work.

If you take your goal, and you apply the basic formula, you can then start deciding what habits are required. For example:

So when you set your goals this year, don’t ask yourself “what do I need to do?” rather ask yourself “who do I need to become?” This inquiry will spur a series of reflections and ultimately habits which are required to get where you want to go. This is 10x more powerful than whats going on in your instagram feed.

So can intermittent fasting work? Absolutely it can. But so can eating a balanced diet with a small calorie deficit, and then you don’t have to worry if you are on/ off a fasting day for your spontaneous golf round. Can Keto work? Absolutely it can. But now you have to program into your week supplementing essential aminos and missing vitamins. Most times, when these things do work it is because people are paying attention to their diet and exercise for the first time in their lives.

Making lasting change in your body is one of the hardest things you can ever do. Make it as simple as possible for yourself. Focus on building strong habits.