The fitness space is filled with men with six-pack abs and women with small waists and giant glutes.

As career-driven professionals, we are inclined to think, ‘I can do that too’ because we are overachievers.

So, we embark on our fitness journey. We lose weight, maybe get a sort of a six-pack for the summer. After that, it all goes away, and we gain back all the weight and more.

Why?

Because career, family, and social life took priority, and we never got back on track.

When’s the last time you thought you were a superior human being because you woke up at 6 am before work every day to get that gym session in?

Then Coronavirus happened, we all started working from home, and your routine fell out the window.

This is what I call the ‘All or Nothing’ mentality, which leads to the cycle of constantly losing and regaining weight.

What we forget is that people we see on Instagram being ambassadors for the fitness industry are full-time fitness models, athletes, or personal trainers.

What they don’t even tell you is that they don’t have a six-pack all year round.

We are not full-time fitness models; we are working professionals.

What makes us thrive is feeling more energised, more productive, and pain-free. Not having a six-pack.

The diet industry in the USA alone is worth approximately $71 billion in 2020.

This is driven by the awful statistic that roughly 95% of people who start a weight loss diet regain the weight back and often more. In one study, only 1 out of 14 contestants on the popular TV show ‘The Biggest Loser’ managed to keep the weight off long term, and even so, the contestant that did become a spin instructor, not a regular desk worker.

The crazy part is that when we go on a diet and successfully lose weight, we will likely gain it back. Yet, we are still inclined to go back on the same diet which got the weight off in the first place. That is like buying the same car that broke down 6 months later, just because it worked for 6 months.

The simple reason is, the diet industry tells us that it was not the diet that was wrong; it is because YOU did not stick to it. Did you ever sit and wonder whether having no carbs for the rest of your life is something you can honestly stick to?

I am not saying a healthy diet and exercise is unhealthy; it most definitely is. But finding healthy eating habits, you can stick to and an exercise routine you actually enjoy is key.

We do not need to look like fitness models. Still, we do need to maintain a reasonably healthy weight, which we can maintain by healthy eating habits and incorporating some movement into a mostly sedentary lifestyle. A lifestyle that makes us thrive as working professionals.