The truth behind gym fitness

The core truth that most people can’t get the desired results despite trying their best in the gym is not that you don’t work hard enough or don’t buy enough classes, but that 90% of fitness results are actually determined by your diet, sleep, and daily activities outside the gym. The 1 or 2 hours you stay in the gym actually determine the upper limit.

A while ago, I went to the gym with Xiao Zhou, who just got a 3,000 yuan annual card. In order to keep up with the progress of wearing short-sleeved shirts in the summer, he signed up for 12 private lessons. He took 2 hours of exercise every day after get off work, lifting weights and doing aerobics. Even the coach praised him for his willingness to endure hardship. As a result, he went on the scale for half a month. Not only did he not lose weight, but he also gained 2 pounds. He squatted in the rest area and munched on protein bars, almost wanting to transfer the card for a discount.

If this matter were to be discussed in the fitness circle, two groups of people would each have their own reasons: One group is the hard-core party that believes in "training is king". They think that his training intensity is not in place, and he checks his phone between sets and uses force in his movements. If he can increase his bench press weight by 20 kilograms, what's the point of fat? You will lose all of them; the other is the pragmatic group who "prioritizes life". They say you ask him if he went to have a barbecue with his friends to celebrate after training, or if he stayed up until 1 o'clock every day before going to bed. A cup of full-sugar milk tea will replenish the lost time in training. No matter how hard you practice, it will be useless.

In fact, both sides are right, but the applicable groups are different. If you are a bodybuilder preparing for a competition, and your core job every day is fitness, then training accuracy, weight, and capacity are of course the first priority. You can even eat boiled chicken breasts to get calories; but if you are like us, an ordinary person who works from 9 to 5 and occasionally works overtime. If you can squeeze in an hour to go to the gym every day, you have to save the time of queuing in the subway during the evening rush hour. Then really don’t put all your hope in that hour.

Speaking of which, I have to mention the "body fat report anxiety" that many people encounter when they first enter the gym. The last time I went to do shoulder training, I was stopped by the new trainer as soon as I entered the door and said that he would measure my body fat for free. When the result report came out, it said that my visceral fat level was 7 , is on the high side, so I need to buy a course to adjust it quickly. I just had a physical examination at a tertiary hospital the day before, and the visceral fat was all within the normal range. I took out the physical examination report, and he made an excuse on the spot, saying that the machine might not be calibrated, and turned around to stop other newcomers. That’s not to say that all personal trainers are pitfalls. I also know many good coaches who have a professional background and have coached amateur competitions. There are people who can guide newbies when they are starting out. They can help you avoid many pitfalls in exerting force and avoid injuring your meniscus by practicing squats. But now in the industry The threshold is indeed low. Many coaches get a certificate after only half a month of training and start working. Their minds are full of sales KPIs. If you encounter them, they will just tell you that there is a problem with this and that. They will never ask you if you have any old injuries or sports history. They will just turn around and leave.

There is also an open secret in the industry. When gyms sell annual passes, they are essentially betting that you won’t come. I had a meal with a friend who runs a community gym before. He said that their store sold 1,200 annual passes, but in fact, less than 100 people came every month. If the people who had the cards came every day, there were no equipment, and there were long queues in the showers, he would have lost money. You see, those who come every day in the first month of the annual membership, every week in the second month, and not see anyone for half a year in the third month are the gym’s favorite “high-quality customers.”

The masters you usually see in the gym who practice very well are basically not the ones who spend all afternoon here every day. There is an elder brother in the gym I often go to who has been practicing for 8 years. Every time he comes, he carries a lint-free sports bag. After changing clothes, he goes straight to the strength area. He completes the three major exercises in 40 minutes, plus 10 minutes of core training. After wiping the equipment, he leaves. He never takes selfies in the gym or chats with others. He said that he has to help his children with homework when he gets home, so how can he spend so much time. On the contrary, those who wear brand new fitness clothes, take photos in front of the mirror for 20 minutes, walk on the treadmill for 10 minutes and then take a shower and get free body care will basically not see any change when their annual card expires.

I have been working out for 3 years, and I have encountered a long list of pitfalls. At first, I thought the longer I practiced, the better. I soaked for 2 hours a day, rewarded myself with hot pot after training, and stayed up until 1 o'clock watching fitness videos. As a result, after a year, my body fat rate has not dropped at all, and my waist has been injured. Later, I adjusted my rhythm and slept 7 hours a day. I changed my cup of milk tea from 5 times a week to 1 cup every two weeks. Every time I went to practice, I focused on the 4 movements and practiced for an hour before leaving. I lost 3% of my body fat in 3 months and gained 40 kilograms in the three major sports. It was really more useful than just sitting around all the time before.

To put it bluntly, a gym is just a place that provides you with professional equipment. It is neither a magic house that can make you lose 10 pounds a week, nor a leek pit designed to cut off ordinary people. The results you want to get never depend on how many Moments you post in the gym or how much money you spend, but whether you can take "fitness" out of the one hour in the gym and integrate it into your daily routine of eating well, sleeping well, and sitting less and walking more. After all, what really needs to be changed is never the few moves you do in the gym, but your unhealthy living habits.