What I’d Do Differently If I Restarted My Fitness Journey Today
I’ve had a regular fitness routine for almost two decades now. I’ve gone through a multitude of phases based on the latest research, anecdotes, and random self-experimentation. Some phases propelled me forward to a healthier and happier version of myself (the goal of any fitness journey, right?).
But there have also been phases that have pushed me far back, almost wiping away years of progress.
This is my advice on what to avoid if you want to make progress more consistently on your fitness journey.
1. Don’t listen to people just because they look good
While there may be a few qualified fitness professionals online, the majority of people are loud yet incompetent. Now, with the perspective of a skeptic, I observe the sheer number of influencers and everyday Joes who share their opinions about nutrition, exercise, and wellness as though it were undisputable fact.
Here’s the truth: Even randomized controlled trials, the gold standard of scientific research, can get it wrong. Moreover, even those high-quality findings may not ring true for you. We’re all different. Some people thrive on a carnivore diet while marathon training, while you might perform best on a Pilates-only workout plan, eating a vegan diet, or fasting.
I’d go as far as to say, in 90% of instances, don’t listen to people’s advice. Sometimes that’s especially true if they look good. It may be luck of the draw, and their aesthetics are skewing your ability to be rational. Trust your body and what works and what doesn’t work.
2. Take progress pictures once a week, not once a day.
This may look like straightforward vanity, but I’d dread my self-prescribed progress check-in day. I’d take pictures from every angle and then go on the photo collage app to compare a side-by-side to the previous week, month, year, etc. It was hard for weeks, until one day, I saw a new cut or new line I hadn’t seen before.
You should take progress pictures to track your progress. Not to sound like a therapist, but it’s not just the photo, how do you feel? Do you feel stronger, more energized, less out of breath? Are you sleeping better? Are your clothes fitting you better? Do you feel more confident?
Unless you are training for a physique competition, there’s really no need to track the way your body looks so intensely daily. An occasional snap weekly can be a good indication of the direction you’re moving in. But progress takes time. All you can control is what you do today.
3. Mobility work is more important than most things.
I was a notorious stretch-skipper. I’d finish my final set and walk out of the gym quicker than it took for the song I was listening to, to finish. The result? Extremely tight hamstrings, shoulders, and terrible spinal extension. Look, most of the research shows that stretching won’t make you magically stronger. But you’ve got to look at things long-term.
I want to be the 70-year-old still working out, having a six pack, and feeling great. I want to live a long, healthy, and mobile life. That’s why we exercise, right? Yet it’s too easy to forgo the mobility routine. I stretch daily in morning and night and it’s made a major difference. Just taking 15 minutes each day to stretch has actually made me stronger in every aspect. My favorite stretches? Raising one leg up and resting it elevated for 5 minutes per leg while on my phone and hanging from a pull up bar and eventually doing monkey bars. This has changed everything for me and made me stronger in all ways.
4. Don’t sweat the small stuff — a 1% performance enhancer is not major.
I used to spend hours reading research, listening to podcasts, and watching YouTube videos and documentaries about niche fitness topics.
For example, I remember going down a rabbit hole on protein and food timing.I’d learn one thing: Protein should be consumed within an hour window of training. But the next minute, I’d learn a different thing.
The truth is, it doesn’t really matter that much.
Unless you’re a professional athlete looking for that 1%, I can guarantee you that when you eat your protein (1 hour or 3 hours before your workout), is not going to make that much of a difference.
While this wasn’t the case for me, I see many people who experience analysis paralysis and end up doing nothing. Niche performance-enhancing questions will become so overwhelming that they’ll opt to do nothing. I guarantee that in every instance, doing something is better than nothing.
Basic information that you already know: eat protein to build muscle, carbs give you energy, sleep helps your performance, drink water — is the foundation of any fitness progress. Pricey supplements, precise meal timing, and other elaborate fitness “hacks” never really amount to much.
5. Do what you actually enjoy.
There has been an influx of niche fitness clubs in the past few years. They make you think this new work out is the “next best thing” but in reality they’re just moving their body and enjoying the experience.
Don’t exercise because you want a certain aesthetic result or chasing a trend. Move your body because it feels good and it’s part of your lifestyle. As an added bonus, do an activity that you thoroughly enjoy. Whether it’s pickleball, baseball, dance, pilates, or good old-fashioned weight lifting and walking like me. Learn what you love, and any progress is positive.
6. If it sounds too good to be true, it isn’t true.
When intermittent fasting became a thing, I fell into the trap. I stopped eating breakfast because I agreed that the research was intriguing. Perhaps I’d lose some weight, feel more energized, or stimulate autophagy..
While fasting can be great for some people, it’s not something we can objectively glorify. It’s not a one-size-fits-all. It’s not as easy as “just skip breakfast.” If it sounds too good to be true, ramp up your skepticism. The same goes for any wellness trend, supplement, piece of advice, or new finding. Be wary. The reality is forget fasting, the science is just based on being in a carolic deficit. So if you eat one time a day or ten times a day, track the calories in vs burned and you will lose weight – it’s a biologic fact.
7. You have to slow down in order to listen to your body.
This advice can be extremely abstract for people who are disconnected from their body’s innate communication. I was one of these people. I couldn’t tell you if I was sad or happy, hungry or full, tired or energized — yes, there was probably something seriously wrong with my psyche. Nonetheless, telling me to “listen to my body” was a totally abstract, nonsensical direction.
I was living life 100 miles an hour, working long hours, and spending the rest of my free time in the gym. I wasn’t happy, and I wasn’t secure in my body. I was constantly in fight-or-flight mode. When I started to slow down and develop a mind-body connection through mindfulness and even just simple self-awareness, I started recognizing my body’s cues.
While this may sound like an obvious thing for some people, not everyone is that lucky.
Slow down. Check in with yourself. Your body is remarkably competent at communicating whether it’s hungry, full, tired, or energized — and these are just the basics. Now I’ve learned to distinguish when I need protein versus carbs, or complex versus simple carbs.
8. Stop waiting until you feel motivated.
Motivation is a funny thing. People position it as a character trait. I’ve been told numerous times that I’m “just a motivated person.” In my head I reflect on all those times I was extremely tired but would still end up in the gym. I wasn’t motivated. I was just consistent and regimented.
Motivation is fleeting and temporary. Sometimes you’ll feel excited to sweat it out in the gym, other times it will be a true drag. But what differentiates healthy people from unhealthy people is whether they give in to temporary.
Sometimes I want to stay in bed rather than work, should I do it? The peaks and troughs are what create the human experience. You become the person you decide you are.
9. Update your identity or stay stagnant.
When it comes to fitness, you can approach your habits in two ways: outcome-based or identity-based.
Outcome-based habits focus on achieving specific results, like losing 10 pounds or running a marathon. The motivation comes from reaching a clear goal, with every workout aimed at hitting that target.
In contrast, identity-based habits are about becoming the kind of person who prioritizes fitness. Instead of focusing solely on weight loss or performance, you adopt the mindset of “I am someone who works out regularly” or “I am an active person.” This mindset shift turns fitness into a long-term lifestyle rather than a short-term goal.
While outcome-based habits provide immediate motivation, identity-based habits tend to lead to more lasting change. The best approach? Combine both: set specific fitness goals while shaping your identity around being someone who values health and activity. This way, your habits align with both your aspirations and your deeper sense of self, ensuring consistency and long-term success.
10. Fueling your body is the best way to upgrade your performance.
Forget supplements, hacks, or quick fixes. If you want to look better and feel better almost instantaneously, fuel your body correctly. For the majority of people, here’s what that may look like:
- Eat carbs around your workouts to fuel output and support recovery.
- Eat roughly 0.8 to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight.
- If you’re hungry, eat. But make good choices and aim to be in a caloric deficit to lose weight..
- Fill your home with nutritious snacks and throw out the junk.
- Don’t ever compromise on your sleep.
- Drink more water than you think you need.’
11. You don’t need to eat bland foods to be healthy.
Remember that something is better than nothing. While it may be highly optimized to snack on broccoli or only get your protein from organic grass-fed steak, it’s not exactly enjoyable or accessible.
I’ve found it significantly easier to stick to any healthy eating plan if I eat foods that are tasty and easy to source. For instance, I’ll snack on greek yogurt, fruit, protein bars, etc.
Sure, they might not be the most perfect nutritional example in the entire world, but they’re better than junk food or starving myself. You can still reach your goals with a little more flexibility.
