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These past few months, I've read some interesting comments from readers who feel their method of eating and fitness is the only way to go.  I'm sure you've heard of them before.  Those that don't eat carbs ... those that stay away from fat ... those that eat and drink an enormous amount of protein ... those that don't exercise ever ... those that exercise way too much, those that only exercise with slow movements, etc.  You know what I've realized.  All of these schools of thought are extreme.  Out of all of these, I bet you can guess which one really gets to me.  That's right, low-carb eating.  I have to say, of all the comments I receive, those that leave comments in support of low-carb eating are the most mean-spirited.  I never have understood why the people who leave these comments seem to want to start a fight over why their way of eating is the best way to eat.  Then it dawned on me - with all the extreme ideas in fitness, low-carb eating is just one of them. 

My feeling is, and I've seen this from first-hand experience with clients, extreme fitness concepts never work.  Sure, they may bring quick results, but I've never seen lasting results.  Why is that?  I think it's because extreme concepts are not easy to live by.  It's easy to pump yourself up for a few months of following an extreme dieting and workout plan, but the majority of us will start to fizzle out.  That's not necessarily a bad thing.  If the body is overtrained, it's defense mechanism is to fizzle out before serious damage results.  Same with the other extreme fitness and diet approaches.  The mind and body have a hard time staying in an extreme state, and as a result, you start to lose accountability and drive to continue.

My conclusions ... just stay consistent and balanced.  Instead of working out until you pass out, try consistently performing moderate-level workouts your body and mind can handle.  Instead of trying to eat no carbs, no fat, or no sugar, make smarter chooses in what you do eat and try for a balanced approach instead of an extreme approach.  Not only is a balanced approach a more natural way of living, it will also lead to a mind and body that is more consistent and accountable, and it will help prevent you from stressing out so much about trying to live on the extreme side of some concept in diet and exercise.  I'm sure I'll still get heated comments/feedback from the extreme wellness individuals, but oh well.

Dan Falkenberg, BA, ACE-CPT, NASM-PES

Dan Falkenberg is the cofounder of Your Live Trainers.  He can be reached at DanFalkenberg.com.

The Fat Dissolver Program, it features over 50 of the exercises I use with my own clients.  You can download them to your computer, watch them on your iPod/iPhone, or turn them into two DVDs of your own.  Grab it today for only $4.95!

Tags: exercise selection, nutrition, weight loss