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Evidence-based articles & blogs to help with making training more effective, nutrition more flexible & life more enjoyable.
Eating clean is bullshit. The term 'clean' is subjective as all hell, and means nothing, really. It doesn't take into account the amount of calories that you're consuming, or where those calories are coming from. Your body? It doesn't discriminate.
When I first started to train, all I wanted to do was be lean.
You see, I wasn't overly happy with what I saw looking back at me in the mirror when I took my shirt off, so I decided I needed to do something about it.
At the time (I was maybe 19 or 20), I didn't really know much about nutrition.
I spent many hours pouring over articles & interviews supposedly written by athletes I admired regarding their diets & the way they trained, in the hope that I would stumble across the 'secret' to getting a six pack and stealing looks on the beach.
From my extensive research (and by extensive, I mean very limited), everything seemd to suggest the same thing.
You've got to eat 'clean'.
You've got to do your cardio.
You've got to train more or less every day, because if you can't use the #nodaysoff hashtag on social media, is it even worth it?
Don't even think about drinking alcohol, or eating junk food, or even food that is somewhat processed.
So off I went.
Most of my meals were meat & veg. I at very few carbs - chicken & broccoli was a staple.
Boy did I hate it, but I kept telling myself - 'it would be worth it'.
I got into the routine of doing cardio almost every single day.
It started off just a few times a week, but I thought if I could lose weight doing 2 sessions a week, imagine how much I could lose if I did 5 sessions, or 6 sessions of cardio a week?
Taking a day off meant missing an opportunity to lift weights and get closer to the end goal, and at the time, I couldn't bear that thought. So I trained every day, on top of the cardio I was already doing.
I didn't drink, I didn't eat meals out & I ate exclusively lean meats, green leafy vegetables and very small quantities of rice, oats & protein powder.
And it worked.
Until it didn't.
Because after a while, I realised that adhering to this sort of approach was going to be very difficult.
It didn't take long before my cravings for junk food and pizza went through the roof.
Willpower is like a muscle, and after enough time, that muscle gets tired.
And when my willpower muscle got tired, it got tired in a big way - I would eat the house down, doing my best to consume all of the foods I'd been depriving myself of in as little time possible.
Before the guilt would set in and I'd aim to train for even longer, do even more cardio and eat even 'cleaner', if that was even possible.
I needed to make up for the damage I'd just done.
But you see, there were several issues here.
My approach to dieting was in no way sustainable.
There is no way I was going to be able to eat only 8 foods for the rest of my life.
Did that mean I would simply never have the opportunity to look the way I wanted without living a completely miserable life?
This vicious cycle of restriction, binge-eating and further restriction was unbelievably damaging, and only got worse over time.
But just as pressing, was that my approach to dieting was in no way quantifiable.
I couldn't measure it, or track it, or collect data from it.
When I stepped on the scales only to see my weight fluctuate or sky rocket, I didn't know what to do, other than more.
It was an unbelievably deflating feeling.
I felt like I was trying so hard, but couldn't understand why things weren't working in my favour.
I'm sure you've been there, if you've ever tried to lose weight.
It is devastating.
Pouring so much time and energy into something that isn't offering you the return on your investment.
Feeling like the world owes you one, because nobody that tried this damn hard deserves such little success.
There had to be another way.
I followed this cycle for almost two years before it drove me to ask more questions and gain more of an insight into the 'how' behind fat loss.
I spent many more years experimenting on myself & understanding how to do things more sustainably.
I knew I wasn't ever going to lose the urge to train and love the way I looked.
I genuinely believe we all deserve to look and feel the way we want - whatever that looks like.
And now that I have the answer - and yes, it is unbelievably liberating - I want to share it with you and guide you along the way as you experience the sort of success with your own physique and your own dieting, that I have in the last 10 years and thousands of my clients have too.
Here's the thing -
Eating clean is bullshit.
The term 'clean' is subjective as all hell, and means nothing, really.
It doesn't take into account the amount of calories that you're consuming, or where those calories are coming from.
Your body? It doesn't discriminate.
But if you're wanting to lose body fat, you do need to be burning more calories than you're consuming.
There's a few other things you need to consider, but if you aren't burning more calories than what you're eating, you're never going to put your body into a position where it looks elsewhere (like the stored body fat you're walking around with every day) for the fuel you're not feeding it.
You don't have to do cardio.
You can, if you like, of course.
But when you realise that cardio is simply a tool that you can use to help with sending yourself into, or further into a calorie deficit, you can choose to make your decisions regarding cardio-related pain accordingly.
You don't have to train every day, either.
If you are, there's a good chance you're actually not training hard enough to build and maintain muscle.
If you were, you'd likely need a day or two, or three, to actually recover from the hard work you're putting in, inside the gym.
You still grow and improve on days you don't train, and taking a rest day doesn't make you any less hardcore.
Not to mention, training every day is mentally draining - you're far less likely to ever get to a stage where you aren't enjoying things if you allow yourself some freedom within your programming.
Something I wish I knew sooner.
And finally - giving up the best parts of your life, like socialising with your friends, drinking alcohol & eating at restaurants - is only going to make you resent the results you probably aren't getting by being so restrictive.
You can do all of those things AND still lose body fat - if you're burning more calories than you're consuming.
Here's the thing though...
Knowing these things and DOING these things are two very different... things.
Which is why I am here to help you with the doing part, and ensuring 2022 is the year you achieve your fat loss (or muscle building) goals and never, ever, look back.
The 2022 New Years Coaching Program launches today, and it continues to evolve.
It is the most complete coaching program I have ever offered, and this year there are some even more exciting inclusions to make your life easier than ever before.
Access to my bespoke coaching dashboard gives you access to more progress & tracking metrics than ever before, giving us a complete 360 degree view of the progress you're making & areas we could be improving upon.
Checking in with me, personally, every single week, will allow us the opportunity to discuss the challenges you're facing and implement strategies I wish I knew about when I started, to keep the scales consistently moving in the right direction.
That means less guesswork and less frustration for you.
There's a brand new training app too, to help you track every single rep, set & kilogram you lift every week, every training block and over the course of the program.
Training isn't about burning calories, and the new app experience will ensure we can prioritise your strength progression every single time you step foot in the gym.
Nobody wants to lose weight and look smaller - this is how we ensure you lose weight, get leaner and become more muscular in appearance.
Here's the kicker though this year.
When you lock in your spot for the challenge, and set yourself up for success in 2022, you'll get access to the training app, your training program & the community group IMMEDIATELY.
That's right - FREE COACHING for the remainder of 2021.
That means the sooner you sign up, the more coaching you receive, without paying anything extra.
The New Year's Coaching Program is a 12 week personalised coaching experience that begins on January 3, 2022.
Register today & you'll get access to the training program TODAY too.
For the next 48 hours, there's also an early bird discount.
That means you can score 20% off the program, which is already staggeringly cheap, simply by signing up before the weekend.
I've made every mistake under the sun, so that you don't have to.
Work with me over the next four months, and let's put a couple of COVID years behind us in a big way, by prioritising YOU in 2022.
Remember, success loves speed.
You have 48 hours to register.
REGISTER HERE
See you on the inside.
- Nick
