Summer is over and there are limited beach and pool days left, but that doesn't mean your training and nutrition has to slack off. If you met your "summer body" goal, or you didn't, nothing says you have to revert back to previous habits. Getting in the gym and following some short-term diet to shed a few pounds is a great start, but a lifestyle shift is important to make the lasting difference. I heard a few people comment about settling for what they have as summer hit, as if the results they got during the winter and spring were the end result. This bothered me because they considered that they were out of time, and done working towards their goal.
I want this to be an encouragement for those that need it, and a "high-five" for those that kept it going. It is not easy to change your body composition, but once you get to you where to want to be it is easy to keep - as long as your habits have changed to support the new physique. This is not a criticism, so if you are happy with yourself and healthy then I am not talking to you. This is for those of you that found a reason to settle for less than YOUR goal. Sure, there is less of a reason to get out in a bathing suit, but don't think you can hide from your goal in your clothes. Keep it going and put in the work every day to eat and train the way you were to prepare for summer. If you struggled to get where you wanted to be that doesn't mean you failed, it only means that you either had more work to do than you had time to do it - or something else was missing.
Many people hit the road on foot or bike to lose weight, and many people hit the weights to build muscle. If you want to shred or bulk up you need to be doing both! Muscle is responsible for your movement , and it needs fuel. That means that the more you have, the more energy it will require to move. Building muscle with resistance training increases your metabolic rate - which means you burn more just doing daily activities. Cardio-type training will typically burn more calories than a weight training workout, but then those calories are burned. Why not set yourself up to burn more all day?! I would encourage you, no matter your goal or schedule - or season, to keep working hard with a weight training program that includes high intensity "cardio" exercises. That will ensure you build a leaner, higher calorie burning body, and increase heart health, endurance, and sustained results. This is only part of the effort. You need to find your balance of nutrition, calories, and out put to be more efficient. Food provides energy for movement and recovery - so keep eating! Just don't eat the foods or quantities that don't contribute to your goal!
Keep moving, friends! And remember that you are not alone on your journey, engage with us to get over speed bumps and obstacles that are holding you up as you work towards your goal - even when it is not about to be bathing suit season!