What happens when you train hard every day but neglect the things you eat? Waking up every morning to see no change in the number on the scale can be a discouraging thing, especially when you continue to put forth a quality effort.
You can train as hard as you want but there is no such thing as outworking a bad diet. All the time someone will commit to the gym on a regular basis but will not commit to taking care of their body the other 23 hours they aren’t in the gym. In CrossFit we have a pyramid through which we prioritize the areas of focus for developing an athlete. The base in any pyramid is the most important as this is where the rest of the structure is built from, without it, the pyramid will not be whole or strong. At the base of CrossFit’s pyramid is nutrition, there is nothing more important in daily living than how one fuels his or her body.
It is paramount that a person’s normal diet consist of quality food, in appropriate proportions, while allowing the body to carry out daily tasks with vigor and alertness. When it comes to eating quality food there are several steps you can take towards setting yourself up for success. It is helpful to develop a schedule for how you prepare your meals so that you have ample time to make every meal. Starting the week off with all your meals prepared will save time throughout the remainder of the week. Stick to the outside aisles at the grocery store, vegetables should take up the majority of the space on your plate, and lastly develop habits that allow you to remain successful when everything isn’t going the way you envisioned. Nutrition is a battle to continue to practice the healthy habits that you have put in place.
Day to day success is greatly influenced by the habits a person practices. Keep yourself and others accountable, we are striving to build the best community possible here at CrossFit Torrent and are fully committed to supporting each and every one of you.
It is up to you to develop your own habits that work best, these could look like eating out less each month, skipping dessert a set number of times a week, or as small as replacing that can of pop with a glass with of water. Set goals that you can follow and measure, make them challenging but attainable, and lastly keep them simple but understand the power of simplicity. There is no magic pill or special formula, consistency and focus will take you places you never thought were possible.
Training hard is a small part of the bigger energy balance equation, nutrition should remain at the bottom of your pyramid. By maintaining sound habits and giving a full effort every day you can be confident in your ability to eat well and train hard. Commit yourself to loving the process and understand that small, repetitive changes over a long period of time yield massive results.