The end of January marked my fifth month working at a commercial gym. Having had the opportunity to talk to a variety of people, I have also had the chance to discover what confuses them about exercise and nutrition.
 
The problem is the amount of conflicting information in the media, on social media platforms, or packaged as books and newspaper articles by so-called “experts” who have some sort of self-interested agenda.
 
Bombarded with contrasting messages like “Sugar addiction will kill you”, “Fat is bad”, and “Carbs are the devil”, how are you supposed to know what to do?
 
This article is a small collection of honest messages about training and nutrition designed to help you make sense of the madness.

When I was seventeen, I spent six months as an exchange student in America. I lived with two host sisters, one of whom went to the gym every day.
 
Whenever she was about to leave the house, I would wish her a good workout.
 
Every single time, she would give me an odd look and reply, “You don’t work out because you enjoy it,” as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
 
Eventually, I realised what she meant. She only went to the gym because she was scared of gaining weight. Her main goal was to burn calories, so she ran on a treadmill for half an hour, counting the seconds until it was over.
 
Raise your hand if that’s you or has been you at some point in your life.
 
You can’t see me, but I’m raising mine.
 
We live in a culture obsessed with losing weight, mainly for aesthetic purposes. When someone dares to say they genuinely like exercise, they get made fun of.
 
But what can working out do for you besides weight loss and maintenance?
 
In this article, I’m going to explore three benefits that go beyond these usual suspects.

​“Eat less and move more.”
 
“Abs are made in the kitchen.”
 
“If you want to lose weight, you need to do HIIT.”
 
These are only some of the claims I have seen on the internet about exercise and nutrition for weight loss.
 
The question is: Who can you trust?
 
What’s the best way to lose weight for good?
 
Do you need exercise or can you just diet? Do you need to watch what you eat or can you just train?
 
In this article, I’m going to cover three different weight loss methods:
 

1. Exercise only
2. Diet only
3. Exercise and diet combined

 
I will do my best to explain potential benefits and downsides to all three.

​Squat, bench, and deadlift are staple exercises for lifters of all ages. They are the three main lifts performed in powerlifting competitions, so they are a “must do” for athletes. They are also compound movements that work out different muscle groups at the same time, which is ideal for anyone who wants to build strength, sculpt their physique, and improve their body’s efficiency performing everyday tasks. Lastly, they’re the best exercises to show off and ego lift.
 
Good old ego lifting. I’ve been there often, trying to push a weight that was way out of my league because my workout log said so. But what does actually happen when you lift too much?
 
Having had a bad case of ego lifting at least once on each of the three lifts mentioned above, I noticed different consequences. And no, it wasn’t only injury. There are also less obvious outcomes, ranging from hampering your gains to developing bad form habits.