There are few things as exciting as new boot campers eager to make serious lifestyle changes and make up for lost time in their quest to get fit and healthy. Their motivation and passion are contagious, and watching transformations is one of the most fulfilling aspects of being a trainer.
But in their excitement, many boot campers make a common mistake – overtraining. The thinking goes like this: “If 20 push-ups are good, then 30 must be better,” or “If 35 pounds challenges my muscles, then I’ll really get ripped if I do 50!” In other words, more is better and leads to faster results.
Unfortunately, this just isn’t the case, and taken to the extreme can lead to getting hurt and MISSING workouts. As with most things in life, moderation and consistency in fitness are the keys to success. Too much of anything can be a bad thing, and there is no need to do more than the minimum needed for maximum results.
For example, consider medication. If 200 milligrams of Advil takes away your headache, you do not need to take 1000 milligrams. It will not make your headache go away any more effectively, because 200 milligrams will make it disappear completely! Taking 1000 milligrams is not only wasted effort, but it could have dangerous effect on your health.
It is important to realize that over training in fitness not only doesn’t deliver faster and better results, but it can lead to injury and burnout. Pushing your body beyond what it can effectively handle will usually result in a strain or muscle tear.
Likewise, for those just starting, if you blast out of the gate at top speed with an intensity that you can’t possibly sustain, you will burn out and likely give up. The wisest choice is to practice moderation and consistency.
Remember, what you do every day is more important than what you do every once in a while. Those everyday activities may not be terribly exciting while you are doing them. And you may not feel like you are making progress. But give the compound effect time to work. Your effort will pay off. You will become stronger, more fit, and others will begin to notice.
Take care of your body and your mind by practicing the “Minimum Effective Dosage” strategy. Do what is necessary to get you to your goal, one step at a time. Better yet, work with a certified fitness professional to determine your programming needs.
To your success,
Coach Travis Barrett MS, CSCS
P.S. If you’ve found any of this helpful, please be sure to share, like, subscribe to this channel (and my YouTube channel listed below). DHP is exclusively built on word of mouth. We need your help in order to continue to grow and help more people!
P.P.S. - Whenever you're ready, here are 2 ways I can help
1) Subscribe to the DHP YouTube Channel for our most up to date free information about training, nutrition, and recovery
2) Private Coaching
Check out these testimonials below
Traci Counley said “I have been working with Travis for 6 years and he is an amazing coach! I have had several personal trainers over the last 15 years and by far Travis is the most dedicated, thorough, and up to date trainer I have ever had the pleasure to work with. He programs workouts for me on a really progressive and easy to use iPhone app and I do the workouts in my home gym. I love this flexibility and the ability to track my workouts easily. He really gets to know you as an individual and focuses on your goals and how best to achieve them. Travis has an extensive background in kinesiology, various training methods and power lifting and is constantly adapting to the needs of his clients to get them in the best shape of their lives. He consistently seeks out additional training and workshops to expand his fitness knowledge and then passes that onto his clients with new workouts. If you are committed and follow his scheduled workouts and put in a little extra time for mobility work, I guarantee you will be satisfied with your fitness goals. I am in the best shape of my life in my mid 40’s and the strongest I have ever been and the reason why is because Travis has me on a program that changes every 4 weeks and uses different exercises with different rep ranges, intensity and volume each block. He is amazing at coming up with new exercises that work muscle groups in different ways so that you are consistently making gains. He also uses the concept of periodization effectively to maximize strength but also works in appropriate deloading weeks. I cannot say enough great things about Travis not only as a strength and conditioning coach but as a human being. He is one of the kindest people I have ever met and is very easy to talk to and work with. Working with Travis has been the best decision I’ve ever made. Make the commitment now to the best trainer out there!
Emma Price said “Travis has been phenomenal to work with! As an avid runner and a stay at home mom, I was struggling to find a workout routine/program that wasn’t all “fluff” workouts and cardio, yet was also nervous to do anything at the gym beyond a treadmill due to a 15 yr old chronic back injury. Enter Travis! He has 100% met me where I’m at and created a path forward. I’m an absolute novice, and he’s helping me become comfortable in the gym, has handled all my questions and concerns, and most important to me, is helping me get stronger and more limber without hurting or aggravating my injury. Travis is extremely knowledgeable and attentive to detail, which I highly appreciate. As well as meeting in person, he uses a great coaching app we can communicate through and where he can share videos of the workouts I need to do and in return I can share my videos so he can check my form. I’m just a regular person, not a gym rat or body builder, so I was a bit hesitant to seek out a personal trainer, but it has been one of the best decisions I’ve made! Travis is just all around a great guy and amazing coach!!”
Fredrick Lee said “Travis is an absolute professional! I’ve been in special operations for over 12+ years and have had many injuries. I was about to get another back surgery when I started working with Travis. Within 6 months I was pain free, 6 months later I was reaching performance and strength I haven’t seen in years!”
