Let me tell y'all, having your own fitness journey is not for the faint of heart..
In the cover photo, the picture to the left is when I was working out consistently INCONSISTENT, ignorantly eating in a caloric DEFICIT and doing a LOT of cardio because I love to run. This routine was eating away at my goals of putting on muscle. This routine was going towards the goal of Cutting (losing body fat, getting leaner).
In the picture on the right side, this was when I finally learned what exercises worked best for my body to build muscle and bulk (which technically took 6 months to figure out), working out consistently, eating a caloric SURPLUS and lifting weights.
My Goal in my fitness journey for the last year and going into 2019 is to Bulk/Build Muscle (building muscle, putting on healthy weight, getting stronger). If your goals are similar to mine, you'll appreciate these tips that helped me to create substantial changes in my fitness journey.
You Won't Last By Comparing Yourself To Others
GiphyThis can only lead to depression. It's 100% a waste of time.
I recommend to use people as inspiration only and then put your phone down. go live your life. and get in the gym.
Your body is only going to grow like yours anyway, comparison does not HELP you.
If You're Not Tired of Eating, You're Not Eating Enough
GiphyDuring a Bulk, You need to eat in a Caloric SURPLUS, not a caloric deficit. A Caloric Surplus is where you eat more calories than you burn. You can use different apps to do track your eating!
If you eat fewer calories than you burn, you'll go in the opposite direction of bulking muscle and begin to have more lean muscle.
You MUST Trust The Process
GiphyThis is very cliche but this is the only way it will work.
You have to do what you gotta do and then have faith that it's working.
Stress ruins the bulk.
Um Hello...? TRANSFORMING your body is not supposed to be easy.
GiphyIt is what it is.
There's no discount on real transformation. If you want real, sustaining transformation for your body then please be aware that there's no such thing as shortcuts to success ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
If You Don't Clap For Yourself Or Have A Cheat Meal Every Once In A While, You're Not Gonna Make It
GiphyI LOVE hot wings. I could literally eat them all day!
You have to ENJOY this journey. While I've been studying fitness and nutrition for a year now, I really think that the 80/20 rule should work well for most people! I learned it after playing with different food combinations and found that my body likes it! The 80/20 rule for me is eating healthy food 80% of the time and enjoying whatever else I want 20% of the time.
I was able to put on 5 lbs of muscle in one month after 6 months of not knowing what I was doing. Personally, I have a fast metabolism but I don't have to eat 6-7 times a day to see gains. I eat 3 meals per day but I try to make sure that they have a lot of protein and carbs.
Nutrition is what will make or break your gains! You got this sis!
