Putting the "Evolve" in Fitness Evolve(d)

  

When we created Fitness Evolved in 2010, we were looking for a name that, for one, stood out and set us apart.  But, we were also looking for a name that would, in just a few words, explain what we do- not just sound cool (it does that too! :)  We chose "Fitness Evolved" because it describes our approach to health and fitness in its relation to the current model and standard.  We created a more well-rounded, broader, "evolved" way of looking at health and fitness.  Our approach attempts to take into account the entire body and as many factors as possible to give our members the most complete approach to health and fitness we can.

Most of the approaches we see on TV, in magazines, and in the mainstream are narrowly focused on not only instantresults, but results mainly being the ideal body composition image we see in Hollywood and in the media.  They are "shortcuts" with only a few aspects of true health and fitness taken into consideration.  We've been convinced that as long as one appears healthy and fit, then they must be that, and should try to be like them.  Appearance is onlyone aspect of health and fitness, and appearance is not always reality.  Many of our shortcut approaches are too intense and uncomfortable to be long-term sustainable.  While our approach, in our opinion, is more evolved than most, the word "evolve" also describes the process which is in opposition to the above.

As many of you who have joined Fitness Evolved are experiencing, finding true health and fitness is a journey... an evolution.  There are no shortcuts, unfortunately, though we have found many new and cutting-edge ways to speed up the process!  

Our approach follows a saying that is well known, and is actually one of the foundational principles of how our body and brain adapt (neural plasticity!):  "Form Follows Function."  You've heard this before, I'm sure.  But it's probably never been impressed upon you exactly how true and important this is.  It's been physiologically proven that our body is continually adapting it's structure to support the functions that we carry out the most- for better or worse.  It's why athletes' bodies look the way they do, and also why the "office athletes'" bodies look the way that they do, and everywhere in-between.  There are healthy and non-healthy adaptations going on constantly every day.  I'd venture to say the lean, muscular bodies we see as a result of the 800 calorie/day crash diets and/or the intense ab and weight routines make a body look good, but are not really a healthy adaptation (more like a survival adaptation!) that is sustainable long-term and is actually detrimental to health and metabolism.  Quality and healthy adaptation doesn't happen overnight.  It's a process that can seem tedious, but much more enjoyable and sustainable.

 

The basis behind our training is this:  "Creating short term functional gains to promote long-term structural change."

We are only able to spend a few hours, at best, in the gym each week.  Those hours should be spent working on the attributes above so that the hours outside the gym are full of better, more fluid movement that allows and encourages the body to evolve. It's why we never let our members leave the gym without moving better than when they came in.  Those hours outside of the gym are what your brain and body will adapt to the most.  And, over time, will allow you to healthily and safely evolve into the body you want.  

Our very first tag line was "Evolving Fitness One Body at a Time."  We chose that for a reason!  We're giving your body and brain the tools it needs through a new approach to fitness that creates a long-term structural change that's happy, healthy, and looks great!

For more info and exclusive access to an exclusive "Form Follows Function Special Report",  join our mailing list by clicking here.

The Biggest Myth of Them All: "It Only Takes 21 Days!"

This is the final video in our series on habits.  We've shared this series because we think it's so vitally important to reaching your goals.  Knowing how and why habits actually form and easy to implement strategies to change or create them goes a long way in creating the life you want for yourself.  Last week's video did a little "myth-busting" in showing us that just a 1x/day reminder usually isn't enough to actually stimulate a change.  Because habits are so hard-wired, we require much more frequent reminders and novelty to get our brain to pay attention enough to begin to make the change.  This has been a great series with loads of information.  Each video is only 4-6 minutes in length.  If you missed any of the previous videos, see below. 

 

 This week's video busts another of the myths that seem to sabotage our progress, and one of the biggest ones out there:  "It takes 21 days to make a habit change."  Dr. Cobb makes a really good point:  If it really only takes 3 weeks to make habits, all of us would eat well, all of us would exercise well, etc.  That's obviously not the case!  He gives us some background on where this myth came from and where this really applies:  very simple habits, not complex lifestyle changes like diet, exercise, and so on.  Cut yourself some slack!  The final 3 minutes are especially important as he talks about the brain's wiring and if you "have a day off", all is not lost!  

Here's this week's video.  Enjoy!

 

The Myth of the 21-Day Habit Change

Here are the links to the books he mentions in the video.:

 Change Anything: The New Science of Personal Success 

 The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do To Get More of It 

Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard 

 These are incredible tools to help empower us to take control and create the life and body we want and deserve!

Habit Myth-Busting: The Myth of the Alarm

We're continuing our series on habits because we think it's so vitally important to reaching your goals.  Knowing how and why habits actually form and easy to implement strategies to change or create them goes a long way in creating the life you want for yourself.  Last week's video was about "Shrinking Your Challenge Windows."  Most of us tend to look at bad habits or behaviors as a 24 hour/day problem when in fact it's typically a short window in your day each day.  This is incredibly empowering in any behavior and habit change endeavor.  This has been a great series with loads of information.  Each video is only 4-6 minutes in length. 

 

 This week's video busts one of the myths that seem to sabotage our progress, and gives us some insightful information on what to do about it.  Many of us have seen, and even tried setting an alarm on our computer, iphone, ipad, etc. to remind us to do or not do whatever it is that we're trying to do or change.  As we've been learning over the last few weeks, habits are hard-wired in our brains and we our brain actually physically resists changing those habits.  Often times that reminder only one time a day is not enough stimulus for us to actually make that change.  It's not that you're not disciplined or lazy as much as you just haven't given your brain enough stimulation and incentive to change!  Our brain also craves and needs novelty.  Even if you've done the multiple times/day alarm, after a while we get really good at ignoring it.  It's time to create another reminder or "trigger."  Here's this week's video.  Enjoy!