MM#6: Don't Get Shredded For Summer

Happy Monday Friend!

This week at a glance:

A mistake many people make in fitness is pushing too hard: trying to get too lean too fast. This almost always backfires.

There is a better way — I had to learn this the hard way.

A Quote:

A Tweet:

Using my own tweet this week.

I wanted to give an example of a hard set taken to failure.

Many people, when starting out, underestimate what muscular failure looks like.

Content

I read The Theory Of Everything by Ken Wilber a couple of weeks ago.

It’s one of those books that really put me on my ass — I don’t know if I’ve ever heard someone succinctly explain such a wide variety of concepts.

Super interesting read!

I’ve been seriously into fitness for about 4.5 years now.

It started as a hobby and has gradually morphed into what I want to spend my career on.

Last year, I decided that if I was going to write about fitness and start a coaching business, I should look like I know what I’m talking about.

So last March, I booked a fitness photoshoot and proceeded on a journey to get “shredded.”

The shoot took place on July 16th.

But from about mid-June onwards, I was pretty darn lean.

My abs were clearly defined, and I had the beloved serratus anterior (aka the “side muscles”) that put the icing on the cake for an aesthetic physique.

I was stoked for beach season.

Vancouver has some nice beaches, and right around mid-June, my girlfriend (now fiancé) and I went to the beach for the first time in the year.

This was my moment to proudly display my best-ever beach body in public.

The reaction I got??

I don’t really know what I was expecting…

Was I imagining that bros would be running up to me asking about the best ab exercises?

But one thing became very clear to me last summer.

Nobody cares about your physique.

The whole “get shredded for summer” idea is stupid.

You do fitness for yourself - for your own energy, accountability, and self-respect.

If you’re working out to impress people when you wear a tank top or bathing suit, you are in this game for the wrong reasons.

And your results probably won’t last.

And it’s not just that others don’t care about how shredded you are.

The real kicker is that you don’t care.

Quick break before we continue —

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If you’re interested, book a free call to discuss how I can help you reach your goals:

Being shredded is vastly overrated, and I can promise you that it won’t make you as happy as you think it will.

Your Happy Place

If you’re overweight, out of shape, and you set out on a fitness program to build muscle and lose fat, the first few weeks & months will be borderline euphoric.

It’s honestly amazing.

Do this for long enough, and you’ll get to what I call the “happy place.”

(I couldn’t resist the Happy Gilmore reference…)

But in all seriousness - the “happy place” is where you:

• Are eating enough calories to enjoy restaurants and living like a normal human

• Are enjoying your training and feeling strong in the gym

• Have a healthy sex drive

• Love how you look

• Feel happy and energetic

But alas, the happy place isn’t good enough for some.

Some people push beyond the happy place in a desire to get shredded, driven by the misguided idea that losing that extra 2% body fat will improve their life.

How wrong they are.

Push past the happy place, and dark things start to happen.

Every single aspect of what makes your happy place a happy place comes to a brutal end.

• You struggle to live like a normal person and become afraid of restaurants and socializing.

• You get weaker in the gym.

• Sex drive lowers.

• You are noticeably less happy.

There is only one improvement:

Diminishing returns

For 97% of people, pushing into the seriously “shredded zone” will involve diminishing returns.

The efforts are no longer worth the rewards.

It is so much harder to push beyond your happy place and get to that next level.

It requires massive sacrifice.

Is it worth it??

No — not for nearly everyone.

The exception is fitness models and physique athletes.

If you’re not training for a physique competition, you have no business pushing past your happy place.

The Takeaway

If you’re on a fitness journey — be aware of where you reach your point of diminishing returns.

Monitor your mood, energy, strength in the gym, and sleep.

Your dream body isn’t where you’re insanely shredded.

This is so much better than 3% better definition in your abs.

Don’t worry about impressing people you don’t know in summer.

Don’t fall for the false desire that being 2% leaner will make you happy.

The best thing you can hope for with fitness is to find your happy place: the magical zone that is sustainable.

-Colin “Happy Place” Matson

And if you liked the sound of that special coaching offer…

These are the results from one of my clients this year.

He’s down nearly 20 pounds. He’s getting stronger every week and loving it — on route to finding his happy place.

You won’t find 8 weeks of custom coaching for the price I’m offering right now anywhere else.

It won’t last, so if you’re interested in getting in the best shape of your life in a way that’s sustainable, book a free call to see how I can help you get to where you want to be.