When a new person walks through the doors of CT-Fitness , they're usually good to go. It doesn't matter if they want to tackle a marathon, shed a few pounds, or hit a new PR, they're ready to start now.
If you've ever worked towards an important goal, you can probably relate to that feeling, right? Once you decide to lose weight, for example, you start weighing yourself every morning, eager for the scales to start going down. Or, you try to do pull-ups every day, eager to see your chin go over the bar.
You probably also know that's not quite how it works.
Great goals take time to achieve! You don't wake up one morning 20 kg lighter. You work hard week after week and follow a nutrition plan. Then you wake up a week two pounds lighter. Rinse and repeat.
A coach is responsible for channeling that excitement and motivation into a lasting path to achieving any goal.
One of the most common questions we get from beginners is:
How soon can I expect to see results?
Here are our tips for setting your expectations correctly and achieving your goal.
CONSIDER THE FACTORS AT PLAY
Many factors can influence how quickly you see results with any type of fitness or nutrition program. Here is a non-exhaustive list.
- Where are you now?
You need to keep your starting point in mind. The analogy I'm going to give is that of a road trip. If you're going from Denver to Colorado Springs, it's not very far. If you're driving all the way to Los Angeles? It's a bit further. It's obviously still doable, but the trip will be much longer.
- Where are you going ?
The starting point is just as important as the ending point. Are you trying to make it to the CrossFit Games or become a magazine cover model? It's potentially doable, but those are pretty lofty goals. Are you trying to go from 25% body fat to 20%? It's a little easier to manage.
Look at it this way: the higher the goal, the harder it will take to reach it. Many people can go as low as 7:00 min/mile; much less can go down to 5:00 for a mile.
- What is your level of commitment?
Let's put this in a nutrition context. There's a big difference between tracking your entire diet, sticking to within a few grams of your macro values, and turning down holiday sweets.
Obviously, we want you to enjoy life, but if you really want to achieve a goal, you have to commit to the process.
These are not all the factors, of course, but some of the most important. Some of the other things to consider:
Do you have a support system in place? Does your family agree?
Do you have a compelling reason to make this change? Why now ?
Do you have a solid plan?
Is your environment conducive to change? If not, what can we do to prepare in advance?
SO, HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE?
There are a lot of factors to consider, but we think it will take around four weeks of regular work out or 20 total workouts if you follow "the plan" and come in five times a week.
Will you reach your end goal in four weeks? It depends on the lens, but probably not. But you can see HUGE gains in just four weeks if you're willing to stick with the program.
There it's done ! All that's left to do is set a goal, commit to it, and start working. We promise you'll start seeing results, and we're here to support you every step of the way!