The festive season is over, it’s time to get back to training

It’s around this time of the year where the belt is loosened around the dietary restraints, the training regime isn’t kept on top of quite as it was, and the opportunity to meet up with friends for a few social drinks becomes more frequent.

In a week’s time you’ll be assessing the damage done over the festive period and deciding where you want to by the time the season swings around. How much do you want to get lean? How much do you really want to become more athletic?

Let me take you through the trade-off process.

The first week of January is a breeze as really all you have to do to improve on the previous month is drink less alcohol, eat less junk food and increase your exercise levels a little. Seriously, that’s it. That in itself when applied consistently will make you feel better, it will make you move better and make you look better.

Now we’re moving the right direction, things have to move up a gear. No longer is just avoiding bad things enough to make a positive impact, here is where you must start to become proactive. Ensure you’ve a protein source in each meal.

Hit at least one litre for every 25 kg of bodyweight. Bring your total hours training to the five hours mark. Again, once you’re consistently achieving this then the body will react by becoming leaner and improving athletically.

Next level means you trade off a little more. At this stage we’re probably coming into February. You’re going to have to sacrifice some of that social life.

You want to kick on to the next level physically? No belly full of pints at the weekend or trips to the coffee shop for a latte and a caramel square.

Make sure you’re bringing enough micronutrients into your body by upping the veg content of your meals. Take your total hours training up to eight, and make sure at least two of them are at a high intensity.

Dedicate more time to recovery, and get at least seven hours of uninterrupted sleep EVERY night.

Do all this consistently over a sustained period and you’re body will continue to adapt. As an athlete you will improve and physically everything is in place to help you to continue to get leaner.

If you’re end goal is to move beyond this level then the trade-off becomes larger again.

At this point you’re going to have to track your macronutrients and start getting specific with your bodies dietary requirements. You’re going to have to put a lot of time in to prepping your food, as well as increasing both the time spent exercising and the intense exercise time within that.

You’re going to have to sleep more as the body will require even more recovery time. You will make daily sacrifices.

You might find you have to invest in the help of a professional to help you get to this level, as breaking through toward the point of elite athleticism takes an attitude that most don’t have, and a drive to do the things the majority won’t be able to.

I’ve lived most of my adult life somewhere between paragraphs four and five, but this year with a wedding on the horizon I’m biting the bullet and setting my targets on fulfilling my athletic and physical potentials. I understand the trade off, and now so do you!

If you want more help with fat loss, diet or training don’t hesisitate to contact me through Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @PGthePT or log on to my website www.pgthept.com and join the newsletter for more nuggets of knowledge like this straight to your inbox every morning from Monday-Friday.

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