Around 8 years ago I was on holiday visiting The Big Apple with family.

We were staying in down-town Manhattan and I was simply blown away by the hustle, bustle and sheer ‘scale’ of it all.

If you haven’t been I highly recommend it, it’s astonishing.

On our second day we decided to visit the famous and iconic Statue of Liberty.

I remember it was a chilly but clear day and we were on the boat that takes you up to and past the Statue. It was a surreal experience actually.

Despite my protests, my Mum was getting ‘snap happy’ and taking multiple pictures of me. I didn’t think much of it at the time but those photographs are what inspired me to tell you this story today.

A few months ago we decided to have a relaxing day in the flat on a rainy, cloudy and dull Sunday afternoon in Edinburgh and were browsing through some old photographs, as you do.

We were looking through the New York photographs I told you about above and we happened across the photographs of me on that boat in front of the Statue of Liberty (as you can see in the image above).

I actually gasped out loud in shock when I saw myself in the pictures…

My cheeks looked incredibly chubby and I had a definite ‘chunky’ appearance. I’ve maintained a fit, lean and strong body for years so seeing these old pictures was really shocking for me.

Thinking back, I remember exactly how I got to be like that…

Being a naturally tall and ‘lanky’ person, way back when I first got into exercising at the gym I was determined to use weight training to build my muscles (known as ‘bulking’ in the fitness world) so I was no longer ‘skinny’ or ‘lanky’ looking.

I spent a good few weeks researching:

** Reading countless articles
** Frequenting blogs and forums
** Following the ‘experts’ on social media
** Devouring multiple copies of Men’s Health magazine…

…just searching for that ‘Magic’ training programme and nutrition plan that would accelerate me towards the muscular frame I envisioned for myself.

Truth be told, I was pretty overwhelmed.

Everything I read was telling me something slightly (sometimes completely) different.

I was confused but decided just to pick one of the standard 12 week training and nutrition plans and follow it.

Fast forward to the end of the programme and 12 weeks of diligently following the plan and I had gained around a stone in weight…

…and whilst I certainly got a stronger and ‘bigger’ over the 12 weeks, after seeing those pictures again I realise how much of it was actually ‘fat’ weight rather than ‘muscle’ weight.

On reflection, I realise the problem…

All of the plans I came across (including the one I decided to follow) was simply a standard programme; one that most likely worked for the AUTHOR, who then decided to share it.

The problem was, it hadn’t been customised to ME as an individual and as it turned out, it wasn’t right for me (clearly, after gaining fat and not a lot of muscle, as it turned out).

Fortunately I managed to lose this extra weight pretty quickly as I gained more experience in the gym and with nutrition; a journey that eventually lead me to where I am today – running my own training and nutrition company.

The reason I’m telling you this today is because it demonstrates why MOST diet plans, FADs and fitness programmes people follow actually FAIL.

Just like I experienced, aside from the overwhelming amount of conflicting information, the vast majority of the plans are not customised to YOU and are simply ‘one size fits all’.

That is exactly what one of the primary objectives in our signature programme, the 12 week transformation, is to tailor every nutrition and exercise programme to YOU as an individual…

…in such a way that works for your unique body type, fitness level, lifestyle, preference and level of understanding.

And it works VERY well in helping our personal training clients lose weight, change their body shape and improve their health and quality of life.

If you’re going to (or have started) a programme to help you achieve your fitness goals, please ensure it’s tailored towards YOU and not a ‘one size fits’ all, or you may end up a stone heavier, just like I did!

And if you need help with that, we’re here to assist you every step of the way. You can find out more about how we can help you and apply for your free consultation with us by clicking here.

With best wishes,

Luke

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