Adventures in Wonderland...

I deal with the same questions on a regular basis:
"What can I take to get me big?"
"What can I take to help me lose some weight?"
"What kind of exercises can I do to get rid of my stomach?"
"Is there something I can do to make THIS (points to a part of the body) go away?"

Unfortunately, society has trained us to look for the easy way out of things, eating, losing weight, gaining muscle, exercising...it doesn't matter what aspect of our life, there are solutions to make everything EASIER. The sad thing is that these things are not making our lives easier...they really make our lives HARDER. All of the conveniences that we have become accustom to have actually made us lazy as a society. Having a car to get everywhere has made us less active, to the point people will drive around a parking lot for 15-20 minutes to park close to the front door of a store instead of just parking further away and walking. Food is already made so all we have to do is heat it up, when it only takes about 30 minutes to cook fresh homemade meals from scratch. 

There are Alice in Wonderland products advertised everywhere that will make you put on muscle or lose body fat. Honestly, this isn't Through The Looking Glass and there is no drink, pill, wafer or anything for that matter that will make you gain muscle or lose body fat. Even the things out there that do work aren't a magical solution, you need to eat right and exercise to reap the benefits. In the Wonderland story, Alice is pretty reckless trying things that she has no clue as to what they will really do to her. Many people do this every day with supplements and diets. The biggest mistake I see people make is not tracking their food or training properly or at all. For most, they have convinced themselves they know what a portion size is and think that it is correct. Without weighing and measuring the food you will never have accuracy. Without tracking calories burned or weights lifted every week, no accuracy. Logging your meals and training is an important part of your health and fitness. It's a great way to really see what is happening overall. 

I tell people every day, if you are trying to put muscle on or lose weight IT'S SCIENCE. Being in a caloric surplus or deficit of 500-1000 calories from your daily intake for maintenance weight is the healthy way to reach your goals and maintain them. It's not just about how many calories you are eating or how much you are burning...it's also about the BALANCE and QUALITY of both the calories AND the training. Eating whole foods that are minimally processed, balanced nutrition at each meal and supplementing where needed is truly the only way. It's very simple and the solution is always right in front of people. Through social media, advertising and bro science the general public has been convinced that if you just cut corners with this or that you will arrive at your destination in no time. You could try to join the rest of the world with instant gratification, but think about it. Will you truly be winning in the end? 
 
Remember the story about the tortoise and the hare? Slow and steady wins the race, keep plugging away because in the end you will be victorious. 

"Don't dream it, be it."