Building Lean Muscle: Mental Training Is The Final Piece Of The Fitness Puzzle!

Building lean muscle can be almost mythical in nature because it is so hard for many to achieve. If you’re reading this article you may already know the three conventional pillars of any effective fitness routine; weights, cardio, and diet. It is nearly impossible to build lean muscle while neglecting any of the above three principles. We understand, difficult as it may be, that we must hit the gym regularly and consistently eat healthy in order to shed enough fat to see the lean muscle beneath. However, the reason it can be difficult is because we failed to prepare the most powerful muscle of all, the mind.

PROGRAMMING YOUR MIND: You must realize that you have two body images in your minds eye; the lean, fit body you’re creating and the fat, out of shape body youre leaving behind. Im sure weve all sabotaged herculean efforts in the gym by hitting Cinnabon or the taco shop right after. We ask ourselves why did you just do that? You know you burned 700 calories in the gym and ate 1000 calories in that Cinnabon!?! Conditioning your mind is absolutely vital to accepting the new fit body image you want and giving up the old fat image it holds so near and dear.

3 WEEKS TO MOLD YOUR MIND: Research and studies have proven without a doubt that it takes a minimum of 21 days or 3 weeks for your mind to accept behavioral changes and convert them into habits. If you’ve ever sabotaged your efforts at the gym by hitting McDonald’s or the pancake house, you’re not alone. Sometimes we justify these actions by telling ourselves that we deserve it but its just your minds push to get you back to your fat self. Its not that your mind wants you to be fat, its just that it has formulated this fat body image over an entire lifetime and old habits die hard. So you must be extra dedicated to your fitness and diet regimen for a minimum of 3 weeks in order to begin to cement the new fit and healthy body image into your brain.

I DON’T KNOW IF I CAN STAY MOTIVATED FOR 21 DAYS: If you don’t think you can stay true to your fitness plan for 3 weeks then don’t try to. Break up that time into manageable chunks. Maybe you can be successful by planning one week at a time. If that’s the case make sure you reward yourself for successfully accomplishing a successful week, day or work out. Write down your goals in a positive light and as if they’ve already been accomplished. For example, Ive been building lean muscle by hitting the gym 3 times a week, eating 5 times a day, and incorporating lean protein and veggies into every meal.

That rock hard body is waiting for you, you just need to reach out and take it! Begin today, get on an effective fitness plan, write your goals on a 3×5 card, and stick to it for 21 days. YOU CAN AND WILL DO IT!