Fitness: ‘I Had To Cut Many Things From My Diet, Yet No Visible Change In My Body’

Exercise is crucial for maintaining good health and can be a powerful way to lose weight. However, expectations are met with disappointment when the desired physique for venturing into fitness is not met in the process.

Many become frustrated with their disappointing weight loss results or sometimes plodding progress despite regular exercise and keeping to the diet. 

This has pushed a lot of fitness hopefuls away from their daily routines and, in the most extreme cases, drop out of their fitness journey entirely. 

Even though exercising has other essential health benefits, including reducing the risk of chronic disease, improving mental health, and increasing overall well-being, one cannot deny that people exercise primarily for physical gains.

Some fitness enthusiasts who gave up on their journey spoke to Naija News on reasons they quit after working out for a while.

I wasn’t seeing any changes despite working out three times a week for three months – Juliana

Juliana said she had begun her weight loss journey because she wanted to feel good and confident about her physique. However, she quit after exercising for three months and did not see any visible results.

She said, “I started in the second quarter of this year because my friends were all in it and encouraged me to do as well. I started it and enjoyed myself. I went to the gym three times a week and, in most cases, four times a week. 

“I had even to cut many things from my diet, things I enjoyed eating, and despite doing this, the change wasn’t so visible. No one noticed a difference, which made me quit after the third month.”

I could not stand the pain – Shola

For Shola, her low threshold for pain made her fitness journey short-lived.

She said, “I attended twice, and the training was intense. I thought I was going to die after the training. I dislocated my waist in the process and was taking ibuprofen for days. After that, I stopped going. I’d rather save up and go under the knife to endure such pain again.”

I did it for a month and could not continue – Ogochukwu

Ogochukwu said, “I went four times a week, but my numbers were not decreasing. I weighed 112kg when I started going to the gym, but after four weeks of constant exercising and not one pound of loss of fat, I did not see the point to continue.

“I think I was getting muscular but not losing any fat, which was the major reason I had gotten into the gym in the first place.”

Different Factors hinder people from reaching their fitness goal 

Fitness and wellness coach, Patrick Augustine, listed factors that can inhibit people from reaching their fitness potential.

Some of the factors Augustine listed include, Finance, poor dieting and impatience.

Augustine said, “People don’t see results because of too many factors. People have short-term goals, like say you want to start a fitness journey, and you feel like, I will just dedicate one month to it, I don’t have money to pay for a gym or an instructor, if I do one month and no result, then it is not working.

“They always like putting little effort and expect huge results, and it doesn’t work like that. The effort you put in is what you will get. People should always understand that when they are trying to achieve something, especially one that takes a lifetime, you do not expect to see result in two three months.

“You have to go hard the first few months, and your dedication should not be about getting result the first few months because I do tell people that when it come to fitness, the first thing you should look out for, is general body fitness, before dedicating time to tone your body to the physique you want.”

He continued saying, “Poor Dieting; a lot of people do not keep to their diet plan and do the exact opposite of what they are being told to do and eat. Gym is not magic. It is a place you sacrifice all. People must understand that fitness and gym is 20 percent, and your diet is 80 percent or more. You can’t be trying to build muscle and eat tonnes of carbohydrates, it will not work. Lack of Proper diet and nutrition is a major factor hindering people from seeing results.

“Finance; It is easy to start a gym plan, but continuity is the problem. So, many people are broke, making it difficult to sustain their fitness journey until desired results are seen.”

On what they can do to start seeing desired results, Augustine suggested these;

1)Progress tracking: They should have a progress tracker like a weight scale and data diary. Constant checking of the weight scale helps the body lose weight. It conditions the mind.

2) Proper dieting: They should work with good diet plan vendors. People who are highly skilled in the aspect of dieting. Letting certain food go won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. Nutrition is 80%, and workout is 20%

3) Study insulin and glycogen: A proper knowledge of how they work will help. It shows how the body breaks down food and how the timing of food intake affects the body. Extensive research should be done on that.

4)Blocking out social media content: There are too many lies and edited physiques on social media. People should not be carried away by what they see, 99% aren’t real.

5) Consistency: Make that sacrifice, put in the work, and show up every day. Create long-term goals. They should never give up.

6) Find a partner: Working out alone is boring, and it takes a lot mentally if you are solo. Find someone with a shared interest and mindset.

7) Professional coaching: Coaching is the hardest part of fitness. It’s hard to follow a particular routine created by a coach, well understood. A professional coach would motivate you and show you routines you can’t imagine.