Fitness tips are like opinions; everyone’s got one.
Friends, academics, professionals and influencers all have their take on the most life-changing workout, nutrition and mindset advice they would give.
Having transformed hundreds of lives across almost a decade, I’m no stranger to these common threads of guidance (or misguidance).
With this in mind, I think there are certain “tips” that are lesser-known or even contrarian, but that are just as important if not more than the conventional wisdom.
Here are 10 underrated, fitness-life transforming tips.
Tip #1: Drink half your bodyweight in oz. of water.
The benefits of adequately hydrating your body are many. Including:
- Athletic Performance: Reduces injury risks through temperature regulation and joint lubrication.
- Weight Management: Drinking water can help you feel full, which can prevent overeating. It can also reduce bloat and water retention.
- Digestion: Water helps break down food so your body can absorb nutrients, and it also helps remove waste and toxins. Adequate hydration can also help relieve constipation by softening stool and making it easier to pass.
- Energy: Proper hydration allows nutrients to be transported throughout your body efficiently, which can help your brain get the fuel it needs to function at its best. This can improve mental focus and memory, and positively impact your productivity.
- Cognitive function: Hydration can also promote good mental health, which can have a positive impact on your overall cognitive function.
So how much water? You might see some people lugging around a galloon or huge water bottles. That’s not necessary. Good rule of thumb? Half your bodyweight in oz. of water. Say you weight 180lbs, then drink 90oz daily.
Tip #2: Regulate your sleep – quantity, quality and circadian rhythms.
Work hard….rest hard? The human body grows through challenges and then recovering from those challenges. But if you’re all go, go, go, sleeping only 5 hours a day because you’re such a badass, you won’t be so badass for long after you burn out, in the form of injury, chronic illness, and diminished mental-emotional capacity.
How do we actually improve our sleep though? Three steps:
- Have a regular sleep and wake time. This regulates your circadian rhythms which helps your body sleep faster, better and stay asleep.
- Sleep a consistent 7-9 hours on average. Everyone is different, life isn’t perfect and some days we have less than more, but generally speaking this is a good rule of thumb.
- Sleep in a cool, dark room. Get blackout curtains, set the thermostat to a cool 69º-72º.
Tip #3: Something is better than nothing.
Say you were dying of thirst in the Sahara Desert. And a man on a camel approached you with a glass half full of water.
Would you tell him to go screw himself just because it wasn’t a full glass of water?
Yet why do we choose to not workout if we can’t get the full workout in?
Something is definitely better than nothing in fitness, so if you can’t do your full workout, do half. Do a few sets. Bang out 20 reps of squats and pushups, or just go for a walk.
Just do something. Your mind and body will thank you for keeping the habit.
Tip #4: You’re not supposed to shake, cry and approach total exhaustion at the end of every workout.
To be human is to have limitations. To be effective is to have good sense.
How long can you go on abusing your body?
Some of us need to learn to get to work. Others need to learn to slow the hell down.
It makes more sense to go at a steady, challenging pace instead of a brutal one that either 1) has you quit after a few days or 2) that punishes you with chronic colds, injuries and pain.
Tip #5: Choose your hard.
Everything in life is hard. Some more so in the short term than the long term.
In the short term:
- Working out.
- Getting up bright and early.
- Meal prepping.
In the long term:
- Obesity.
- Diabetes.
- High cholesterol.
Everything requires energy and sacrifice.
But will we choose the discomfort of discipline, or the pain of disease, the destruction of aging bone, muscle and movement – the denial of a fit, healthy, body we feel comfortable and confident in?
Which sacrifice will you make?
Tip #6: Stop skipping meals.
Everything else is important until your health is destroyed. Then what becomes most important is your health. All too often though, we choose to neglect or punish ourselves in many different ways, including skipping meals. When you do, you bring on yourself:
- Disrupted sleep
- Heartburn
- Cravings
- Potential eating disorders
- Hunger
- Anxiety
- Diminished productivity
Unless you are intentionally fasting within a structured schedule, if you want to have the capacity to meet the day and get things done, including pursuing your fitness goals, have your meals.
Create boundaries and respect the time you need to feed and nourish yourself. You’re not a machine. You are flesh and blood.
Tip #7: WALK.
When in doubt, go for a walk.
Can’t lift weights? Walk.
Stressed? Walk. Why? Because walking has been show to improve:
- Mental health: Walking can improve your mood by releasing endorphins, which are neurotransmitters that boost mental health. It can also help you reduce stress and anxiety.
- Sleep: Walking can help you fall asleep faster and sleep more soundly by increasing melatonin levels. It can also help reduce the effects of insomnia.
- Physical health: Walking can improve your blood pressure, blood sugar, and blood cholesterol levels. It can also strengthen your bones and reduce your risk of osteoporosis. Walking can also help with digestion by stimulating food movement through your intestines and massaging your internal organs.
- Immunity: Walking can boost your immune system by increasing the production of white blood cells, which help fight off infections and diseases.
- Weight Loss: Walking can also help you burn calories, helping you to get and stay lean.
Especially important for people who lead sedentary lives, adding 5,000 steps a day can be transformative.
Tip #8: Supplements are meant to “supplement” proper diet, training and recovery – not replace it.
There is a solid, reliable short-list of research backed supplements that are worth the dollar. Including:
- Creatine
- Protein powders
- Caffeine
- Fish Oil
- Multivitamins
There are others that are less strongly backed, but nonetheless show some evidence-based effectiveness, such as:
- Yohimbe
- Ashwaganda
- L-carnitine
There are also those that are more marketed than they are worth your paycheck:
- BCAA’s
- Testosterone
That being said, nothing can replace the effectiveness of proper diet and sleep.
All the creatine and pre-workout in the world is taking your paycheck and lighting it on fire then flushing the ashes down the toilet if you don’t get the basics right.
Have a steak. Have your veggies. Drink your water. Go to sleep. Then optimize with supplements that are worth the dollar.
Tip #9: If you do cardio, lift weights. If you run, lift weights.
A holistically healthy human has both muscles mass and strong cardiovascular health.
Too often men and women who can barbell squat their own bodyweight start huffing and puffing going down the stairs to get the mail.
Too often men and women who can run marathons couldn’t save their own life if they needed to use their muscle.
If you’re a gym rat, go for a run.
If you’re a marathoner, pick up some weight.
Tip #10: Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
Human valuation is an impossible task. Given that:
- We are constantly changing and evolving.
- That we are infinitely complex.
- That we cannot predict with absolute certainty how we will act in the future.
For these reasons it is impossible to give a human being a valuation, to value him above or below anyone else, especially because of something so frivolous as how much weight he or she has on him.
We can definitely rate our performances however, and choose to feel healthy negative feelings of disappointment, jealousy, and regret when we fall short and when we would like to aspire to have what others have.
That’s much better than unhealthy negative feelings of shame and jealousy that make us anxious, withdrawn, avoidant, self-destructive and obsessive, compulsive, addictive.
Further, it’s self-disempowering to compare yourself with anyone else. What good does that you? Absolutely nothing, except, again, cause counterproductive shame and avoidance behavior.
Everybody’s got an opinion.
A hack. A life-changing tip.
Some are true and useful, some are exxagerrated, some are plain wrong.
In this article, I’ve tried to show you what I think, after a decade of transforming lives through our fitness coaching studio, are the underrated, most impactful tips that can truly change your life.
Hope this helps! If you need our help though, call me at (908) 341 – 0232 to book your free No Sweat Intro consultation where we’ll discuss which one of fitness transform programs is best for you
Coach B.
