Fat Loss Fail: 5 Reasons You're Not Ripped

[01dragonslayer]

Many people fall short of their fat loss goals. Learn 5 common reasons why and what you can do to change your habits and get ripped!
If you are training for fat loss, you are not alone. Fat loss is one of the most discussed topics in the fitness industry and among gym members.
If you ask half the people in your gym what their training goals are or what they hope to accomplish by going to the gym, half will say fat loss. How many of these people actually reach their goal? Most never reach their goals of having a six-pack or even taking a couple of inches off of their waist.
Why? Here are five common reasons why people fail to get ripped.

1. Your Diet Starts Tomorrow​

If you haven’t discovered by now that fat loss is almost always a nutrition problem, now you know! Take some time to learn about proper nutrition. For those who already have an idea of what proper nutrition looks like, the biggest reason that you fail at fat loss is because you don't apply the knowledge of good nutrition that you have learned!

You can calculate all the macros, calories, micros, resting metabolic rates, and whatever else you want to calculate, but those numbers are worthless if you never start your diet or keep telling yourself you’ll start next week. Then Monday comes around and instead of starting your diet you decide you need a little more time to prepare.
The next thing you know it’s been a month and you are no closer to being ripped than you were a month before. Or even worse, you’re fatter than when you originally began planning your diet.
Don’t fall into this trap. Start now! You can always adjust along the way, but quit planning to plan and start making small changes to your diet today. The biggest mistake you can make on the road to getting ripped is to never start, so just start! Not on Monday, NOW!

2. Lack of Consistency​

Results come from making steady progress day in and day out for extended periods of time which should really be measured in months, or even years depending on where you are starting from, not weeks. Getting ripped is a process and you must be consistent. Focus on showing up to the gym day in and day out over the long haul.

Right now it's popular to perform workouts that leave you crushed and vomiting on the floor. While this may have a place in the gym, these workouts should be spread out over months of training. This gut wrenching intensity should not be applied to your daily training because you can't maintain high intensity for very long before running yourself into the ground and having to take a break.
Consistent, less intense training will beat sporadic, high intensity training performed inconsistently for those trainees looking to get ripped. This is especially true for those who are dieting and struggle to find the energy to train intensely.
Train consistently over the long haul with a consistent nutrition strategy instead of running yourself into the ground for a month or two and then having to take a break because of injury or exhaustion.

3. You Booze, You Don't Lose​

Alcohol is a red light if you are trying to get ripped. It's that simple. It's not just that alcohol itself has seven calories per gram, making it more calorically dense than carbohydrates or proteins, but also the fact that it compromises your ability to make good choices when it comes to nutrition. You know what I mean! Who hasn’t stopped at a drive thru after a night of drinking! In addition, alcohol creates a hormonal environment that is primed for fat storage.

If it’s your goal to get a six pack, skip the six pack on Friday night and find something else to do besides going out for a beer or ten. Stay focused on your goals, and once you achieve them, then you can go out and celebrate with your friends!

4. Lack of Progression​

Another huge reason that people fail to get results is they fail to progress their training and nutrition methods once they have plateaued. In training it is very common for people to get comfortable with a certain workout program (which is fine if there is progression factored into that program) and the exercises, loads, reps, and sets stay the same from week to week.
Initially this works, but after a couple of months the body catches up and progress stalls unless you implement some form of progression that will allow you to make further gains.
The same is true with your nutrition. You can get your bodyfat down pretty low with simple, balanced nutritional practices, but the last couple of pounds require progress with practices like carb or calorie cycling and nutrient timing to help with the last remaining fat hiding the definition you are after.

Don’t get stuck doing the same training and eating the same ways or you will end up stalling and lose momentum on your quest to get ripped. Ensure that your training and nutrition change as your weight and strength change! Progression and consistency are the keys to unlocking your gains.

5. Stress​

If you are trying to get ripped, you need to learn to relax and deal with stress. Not only does being in a constant state of fight or flight cause your body to cling to bodyfat, it can also cause you to gain more fat!
When you are stressed how well do you follow your diet? It’s pretty easy to blow off your diet and training when you feel like you don’t have time or you are feeling pressure from other areas of your life whether that's work or family. This is especially true if you use food as a way to cope with stress.
Find ways to manage stress to find your abs and the rest of the definition that you are seeking. Some of the best ways to reduce stress are to ensure that you are getting enough restful sleep, massage, meditation, and taking care of any personal issues that have been causing you stress. You might be surprised just how much relaxing and reducing stress can help you get lean!

Getting lean is simple. You need to train smart, eat appropriately, and make sure that your lifestyle supports your goals. Although the process may be simple, that doesn’t mean that it's easy. Best of luck on your quest to get ripped.