You’ve been at this fat loss thing for a while now and it seems to be working…
Down a few pounds.
Crushing a few workouts.
Eating veggies isn’t THAT bad.
Now I don’t know about you, but aren’t you kind of waiting for the shoe to drop?
Because you know that in the back of your head you ALWAYS screw this up and no matter how many times you say “NOT THIS TIME!”, you’re still waiting for that thing that knocks you off track.
It might be an event.
A plateau on the scale.
A stressful week at work or home.
Wanna know what it is that knocks you off? What can ACTUALLY keep you on track this time??
CONSISTENCY.
That, my friends, is the secret to fat loss.
What Is Consistency?
By definition, to be consistent is to do an act or practice in the same way over time (Oxford Languages).
In the coaching world, I consider consistency to be the ability to do something repeatedly through nearly all life circumstances.
Consistency is the foundation of habits.
In its simplest form, fat loss (or any form of body composition) is about habit change.
Want to lose weight?
Your current habit is to be in a caloric surplus, so in order to lose that, a caloric deficit needs to become your habit. (a caloric surplus is the only way to gain weight and a caloric deficit is the only way to lose weight).
Want to know if you’re in a calorie deficit? CLICK HERE for the [GUIDE] Calories 101.
Want to workout more? Build muscle? Establish endurance?
Your current habit is NOT working out or doing the practices to build muscle or endurance.
If you want to change that, then you’ll need to become more active or adjust your current style of activity.
Fat Loss Areas for Consistency
But let’s back this up because fat loss IS the reason you’re here…
How does a calorie deficit become a habit?
Research primarily suggests 3 areas where individuals need to develop consistency in order to lose weight and keep it off.
My experience as a coach reflects the same.
#1 Nutrition
As mentioned before, losing weight requires a consistent calorie deficit, but that’s not the whole picture…
Because shifting to a calorie deficit in principle is EASY; making that a sustainable habit is simple, not easy.
A consistent caloric deficit requires you to be:
Full – Your willpower can only last so long when you’re hungry… Hanger is a very real thing that drives you to low-nutrient, hyper-palatable foods.
Energized – If you don’t have the energy to keep up with your daily tasks, your lack of activity can pull you out of a calorie deficit. More importantly, low energy levels and fatigue do NOT contribute to quality food choices.
Craving-Free – One quick craving at the wrong moment can lead you to a craving-driven binge taking you right out of your caloric deficit. Dropping into a caloric deficit in an unhealthy way (slashing calories and eating junk food) is a sure-fire way to crave more low-nutrient, hyper-palatable foods.
For our Complete Performance Team, we encourage consistency with:
- Fruit & Veggie Intake
- Number of Meals
- Hydration
We put this together in the simplest meal plan EVER – CLICK HERE for a copy!
#2 Activity
Nutrition isn’t the only component of a calorie deficit…
Activity is the other 50% of the calories in vs. calories out equation.
Just like with nutrition, this is an area where people tend to overcommit and later find themselves unable to consistently keep up with the demands they’ve enforced on themselves.
Too often when people start to pursue fat loss, there are 2 areas that CRUSH consistency.
Do Too Much –
I get it – you have the momentum, the excitement and the time to do it… for now.
But overcommitting yourself will NOT make activity a habit.
It will actually do the opposite…
Once you’re falling behind on work and social activities, you’ll realize how much you’ve overcommitted yourself.
At this point, something’s gotta go…
Last I checked, work pays the bills and you can’t (nor are you willing) dump your family.
Do It Too Intensely –
Many start back with their workout goals and commit to 5, 6 or 7 workouts per week.
They start their diet by swearing off their favorite foods, eating only at certain times (intermittent fasting) and/or dramatically slash calories.
Usually, the excitement around getting started and FINALLY losing the weight clouds your honesty lens.
You can’t actually understand what it’s like to live this diet for the rest of your life.
Like I said, you can keep up with too many and too intense workouts for too long and you’ll find you can only maintain consistency for a short period of time.
Remember friend, this IS a lifestyle.
For our Complete Performance Team this looks like:
- Number of Workouts
- Step Goal
- Daily Activity
#3 – Sleep
Sure, losing body fat and building muscle is all about Calories In vs. Calories Out…
But if I were to rewrite that equation, I’d include a BIG asterisk to note the importance of sleep.
Sleep is your greatest tool for recovery and stress management.
It’s where your body builds the most muscle.
And it’s the best time for clearing the system of waste for excretion.
For sleep, we encourage our Complete Performance clients to have a consistent:
Bedtime –
This starts with a cutoff from the chaos – your time to be done working, cooking, cleaning and shuffling kids around. It’s the start of your down time.
Then, starts the nighttime routine filled with calming activities designed to prepare your body for sleep.
And it closes with the time you’re catching Zzz’s.
Wake Time –
Better known as the time you’re doing sleep math to find out how many more minutes of sleep you have left.
My best advice – assume you need more time in the morning than you think.
For our clients that also includes a suggestion to move the alarm clock away from the bed to prevent you from hitting snooze.
Morning Routine –
What wakes you up and starts to mentally and physically prepare you for the day ahead.
Wanna know what makes a great morning routine?
CLICK HERE to check this out!
How Do I Establish Consistency?
You know what it means to be consistent…
You know where you need to be consistent in order to lose body fat…
But how do you build that?
Well, in short – keep it simple.
The complexity of fat loss (something we ALL seem to add) is what makes consistency so difficult.
To keep this simple, here are 3 areas to put your focus in helping you build consistency.
#1 Master the Basics
When our Complete Performance members start with us, our first tasks are ridiculously simple.
My advice for you?
Start WAY more basic than you think.
We like to think 2 levels back from where you want to start.
As an example, let’s say you want to start your journey tracking your macros, but you’ve never tracked macros before.
One level back might be tracking your calories.
Two levels back might be:
- Writing down everything you eat.
- Following our 3-2-1 Plan.
- Eating off a food list.
As a good rule of thumb, if you cannot commit to this with 10 out of 10 confidence, scale it back until you can.
#2 Habit Stack
When starting with the basics, habit stacking is a great tool!
If you’re not familiar with habit stacking, this means you pair your new habit with an old habit.
Habit stacking is how I use #OreoWednesdays
One of my LEAST favorite tasks is recording videos (love the result, don’t love the action).
Every Wednesday morning, I record videos from 7:00-8:00 AM, and when I’m done, I get 4 Most Stuffed Oreos ❤️
Trust me, it will motivate you 😉
#3 Keep Your Word
Last, but certainly not least – Keeping your word.
A large part of consistency lies in doing what you say you will do.
Most often, your consistency streak comes from you breaking the promise to yourself that you’ll do what you said you would do.
If you’re going to get up and workout in the morning, do it.
If you’re going to order a salad instead of pizza, do it.
If you’re going to start getting your 10,000 steps in, do it.
Your word matters because consistency matters.
Looking for a way to start building consistency?
Grab a copy of the Simplest Meal Plan EVER to get started today!
