Friday, May 16, 2014

Stonewall Fitness: How Do You Know If You're Making Progress:

By David Smith

There is no secret that the focus of most people’s fitness is weight loss. In talking with clients, class participants, gym members and friends, especially in the LGBTQ community the first goal people tell me is that they want to lose weight, get lean/tone up or become more “defined”. However more often then not I see people who are discouraged and mad at themselves because they don’t see the progress that they expect and they numbers they want, especially in regards to weight loss. To not consistently be dropping pounds seems to be a sign of failure in the midst of all the sweat and exhaustion that has come from the countless hours at the gym. Are you not losing the weight or making the gains you expected? Let me tell you, it’s perfectly okay and it certainly doesn’t mean you should stop.


When I started my journey toward better physical fitness and on my quest to earn a spot on the Olympic Team, I was 50lbs heavier and very much motivated. However in the 5.5 years since I started, initially I used weight to measure my progress but after the first 4 months my weight had plateaued and I wasn’t seeing the kind of changes on the scale that I was. I didn’t even look very defined either. Now there are no “weight” standards per se to be on the Olympic Team since you are judged on your performance and abilities rather than you’re size and looks but that’s not to say that most Olympians don’t look really good and hot. It’s important to remember that their looks, body types and muscles, especially on swimmers (hence the sports popularity!) are a side effect of all the hard training and discipline that they put in to push themselves to compete at that level.

If you’re feeling discouraged because you are not seeing the weight loss or the definition or the progress you were expecting, think about it in different terms. Compare yourself now to where you were when you started, think about an exercise you really struggled with, pushups for example. How many pushups were you able to do the first time? How many can you do now? Do you take fitness classes? Zumba is a great example of a fitness class that many people have a hard time with at first. My first Zumba class I was so uncoordinated and felt like an idiot, I struggled to get the moves down and felt like a spider trying to dance. In addition it was a challenge just to keep up, thinking that my heart was going to rip out of my chest like a scene from Alien. When I went back again and took another class I found not only was I more coordinated and knew the moves a bit better but I could keep up better and found that I was actually getting into the dance. That is the definition of progress!

Being able to do even one more pushup than last time, that’s progress! Not having to stop and rest so many times, or even not having to rest as long as you did last time? Progress. Being able to maintain your balance for longer? PROGRESS! Your body is capable of so much more that limiting your definition of progress solely to weight loss only limits the capabilities of your body and mind.

Looking thin and hot won’t get you as far as the you’d like to think because at some point you’ll be expected to do more right? Not to say weight loss doesn’t have dozens of benefits but better overall physical fitness has been shown to improve people’s life in all other aspects. It’s important to see your fitness from a broader perspective and how your weight loss can tie into other aspects of your life. From helping a singer expand his vocal range to lifting people out of depression, being able to function more in daily life and get through the day with more energy. I’ve seen people go from not being able to run a mile without stopping to running a full marathon in less than a year and they did not lose a single pound nor do they look like a Greek god. What’s more interesting and motivating than how you look? How about those little things you can easily do now that was a struggle before. Think about how far you’ve come since you’ve started, all those little things that were outside your comfort zone and now people look at you in awe, impressed and wondering what your secret is. Most importantly it’s about accomplishing more than you ever thought possible.

Next time your feeling discouraged, don’t be mad because you only lost one pound or seemed to plateau and aren’t making progress because you are. It’s the little things that count right? :-)


David Smith is an exercise professional, athlete, blogger and owner of Stonewall Fitness. He is a certified personal trainer and holds a Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and Nutrition. He is an active athlete and Gay Games medalist training and competing in triathlon and swimming. He is passionate about bringing the LGBT community together through exercise and fitness. Help support David with his athletic endeavors! Visit www.gofundme.com/bttrflyr and Read more here...