A large part of my job as a performance coach is to experiment with different fitness and nutrition modalities. On the nutrition side, I have tried just about everything from ketogenic diets to vegan diets and from protein-sparing modified fasting to complete fasts. On the fitness side, I have done elite level athlete training to simple rehab protocols and from 7-minute muscular failure workouts to 2-hour last man standing workouts. I have not tried everything, but I have done more than the average workout bear.
A question that I am frequently asked is, “Should I X, Y, Z with my fitness and nutrition?” and “What is the best workout, nutrition, diet plan, etc. for me?” Now, these are great questions and questions that I can typically answer just not often in the way the asker wants me to answer. The answer first starts with a list of questions.
Questions like:
– What are your goals?
– Why do you want to accomplish these things?
– Do you REALLY want to accomplish these things?
– How much are you willing to give up?
– What are you NOT willing to give up to achieve them?
– What have you tried in the past?
– What is your daily schedule?
– How much time do you have and want to commit?
– How much money are you willing to invest?
– What is your game plan when things get challenging?
– Do you have a support structure in place?
– Have you had your blood work done? Is it normal?
The list goes on and on. You see you are an individual and although you share many things with other humans there are many things that are different. Thus, for the BEST plan for you, it must be tailored to you. So you have two options to find the best plan if you choose to venture down the path:
1. Experiment and track results
2. Hire a coach to short circuit the process
Either way, the goal is to determine what works for you through experimentation.
Thus, the best fitness and nutrition (or anything for that matter) plan for you is the one that works for you.