Why so many people fail in their efforts to lose weight and stay active

Between 2014 and 2015, a staggering 63.4 per cent of Australian adults were overweight or obese — well over half of our nation’s population. That’s almost two in three adults.

This is an increase from 1995, which was 56.3 per cent, illustrating that the problem is getting worse. Combine with this the statistic that 56 per cent of all adults in 2014–15 were not sufficiently physically active and that roughly 90 per cent of the population don’t follow the healthy eating pyramid and we have a massive health problem.

But why do so many people fail in their efforts? To be blunt, it’s because they want a quick fix, an instant solution and progress has to be rapid! There is no patience, no commitment and people are willing to spend their hard-earned money on cars, massive TVs, eating out, going to concerts, you name it. But anything is seen as more valuable than a financial commitment to one’s health and wellbeing. I see it all the time.

People will ring or email me and, interestingly enough, it is the ones who enquire about price first before anything else. Either go elsewhere for a cheaper price (which is fair enough to a point as everyone has a budget) or if they do start with us, they are usually the ones to drop off or fail in their attempts to make the changes that they “supposedly” want. I say, supposedly, because the commitment to an educated and step-by-step approach to weight loss or to regular activity takes time. It has purposeful built-in steps to help set them up for success and not failure. It helps them through the behaviour change process. Overall, they do not value the time it takes to make long-term and lasting change. They also do not financially value better health and wellbeing enough.

If a client comes for personal training to my company, they are subjected to a four-step process that we almost guarantee will lead to the results that they are after. There is no time frame put on this, but it is spelt out and it is accompanied by an explanation that behaviour change to truly be embedded will take you six months. That doesn’t mean you need a personal trainer holding your hand every step of the way for six months, but I can almost guarantee that if you do commit to just one personal training session per week for six months that you will have been educated, empowered, structured, held accountable and know all you will ever need to know about how to get the very best out of yourself, and that you will never look back!

What price do you put on being fit, healthy and energised for the rest of your life? Based on our minimum session pricing of $90 per session for 26 weeks you are looking at $2210. How many coffees, alcoholic drinks, donuts, cigarettes, nights out could you cut back on to make this cost more viable? Again, I ask what price do you put on your health?

The four steps that we drum into our clients are …

• Calendar/logbook – we provide a yearly calendar/logbook to track your exercise habits, mindfulness and daily postural exercises – this is to ensure accountability and behaviour change.
• Exercise – we work with each and every person to fine tune the right amount and type of exercise for them. We modify it as we grow together.
• Nutrition Diary – we ask our clients to complete a nutrition diary for four to eight weeks (more or less if required) filling in what they eat and drink daily and have them rate themselves from one to 10. We educate around nutrition following the Australian Dietary Guidelines.
• Our OMRON bio-impedance scales – these scales take weight, BMI, body fat percentage, muscle percentage and visceral fat.

Then we work hard to drill in these four steps. If you are doing the first three steps well, number four looks after itself. If not, then we need to work harder on either or all of the first three steps. Sound too good to be true? Trust me, I have been a university-qualified trainer for more than 25 years and in my very own business for nearly 10 years now, I have seen hundreds of our clients follow these steps successfully and the results have to be seen to be believed.

This article is not designed to sell our services, but as the title of the article stated, I wanted to highlight why so many people fail in their efforts. I sincerely hope that this article helps serve as a catalyst for change and if you would like to just have a chat, please don’t hesitate to contact me and I will try and help you and point you in the right direction!

For more information, exercise guidance or if you have any questions, feel free to contact me by heading to justintimept.com •