Psychology and Lifestyle

To be a life-changing fitness pro, you need to take responsibility for both the advice you offer, and your client’s ability to follow that advice. Yes, even those “difficult clients.” The ones other fitness professionals tell you to fire. Here at Precision Nutrition, we don’t fire our clients. We take a completely different approach. In this 4 part video series – filmed live at the 2011 Perform Better Summit in Long Beach, California – we’ll share that approach with you. And, by the end of the series, you’ll be better equipped to get unbelievable results with every type of client you work with. Even the challenging ones.

To be a life-changing fitness pro, you need to take responsibility for both the advice you offer, and your client’s ability to follow that advice. Yes, even those “difficult clients.” The ones other fitness professionals tell you to fire. Here at Precision Nutrition, we don’t fire our clients. We take a completely different approach. In this 4 part video series – filmed live at the 2011 Perform Better Summit in Long Beach, California – we’ll share that approach with you. And, by the end of the series, you’ll be better equipped to get unbelievable results with every type of client you work with. Even the challenging ones.

We’ve all seen amazing before and after photos, the kind where the transformation is so huge it looks like two different people are posing. But the photos only tell one small piece of the overall story of body transformation. What really happens in the months between the photos? How do these people lose fat, gain lean muscle, and find their smile? Well, in this video (and the accompanying article) we’ll tell you exactly what they did. And how you can do it too.

Last week we unveiled our latest project, a free e-book detailing my recent experiments with intermittent fasting. The number one thing readers asked for? A a printable version. So we created just that. Click here to download a free PDF version of the book.

Being lean shouldn’t be an end to itself. Instead, it should be a “side effect” of a lean lifestyle. While this surprises a lot of people, here’s a fundamental truth. How we live may be even more important than what we eat.

It’s hard to stay fit when working out in hotel gyms and eating at chain restaurants. Or so you’d think. Here are some useful, time-efficient strategies for working out and eating well while traveling. If there’s a will — and just a few spare minutes — there’s definitely a way.

Mysterious hunger is when you “feel hungry” but you know you can’t be. It’s when you’re “hungry” for more food even though you’re already full. In this article we explore how you can actually feel hungry but be experiencing a totally different emotion instead. We also share a dozen strategies for uncovering the mystery of “mysterious hunger.”

New mom – Amanda Graydon – is on a mission to help moms around the world stay fit, healthy and sexy during (and after) their pregnancy. In this article she shares her top strategies for avoiding fat gain and stretch marks while staying healthy and ensuring a safe environment for baby.

In the PN Certification Program, we’re careful to remind fitness professionals never to dismiss clients as “unmotivated” or “lazy.” An elite fitness professional can help all kinds of clients lose fat, build muscle and improve their health, but it requires tailoring your approach. Here’s how we do it at Precision Nutrition.

Thanks to the enteric nervous system, we really do have “gut feelings”. Emotions can feel like hunger… and fat can make us feel better.

Coach Ryan Andrews spent 10 months as a school cafeteria worker. Here are 18 lessons he learned about food choice, food quality, and kids’ food education.

Through his books and articles, it’s estimated that Dr. John Berardi has published nearly a million words. But even the most diligent of readers is left without an understanding for the man behind Precision Nutrition. Because despite the million words Berardi has written, only a few thousand have been written about him. Today, that changes.

This week’s review asks: Can you “sleep yourself skinny”? How does stress and screen time affect weight loss?

Once a scrawny, anorexic, distance runner, S2B Coach Paul Valiulis has transformed both his body and his mind to become an inspiring role-model and mentor. With a new body, and a new life, Coach Paul wants to show other guys that this kind of change is possible.

20 is an auspicious number for Coach Chuck, for it marks the transition between his own scrawny adolescence and his new brawny adulthood. And Ralph the turtle, who lives in the water behind Chuck’s new house, is a fitting metaphor for Chuck’s patient and steady progress to brawn and self-fulfillment.

Sometimes “free time” is a luxury. And getting to a gym is a pipe dream. But here’s the thing. Gyms aren’t actually required for a great workout. Neither is baby-free quiet time. And in this article I’d like to show you how to get a great workout with minimal time and no gym access.

It was once thought that the only connection between ones emotions and food was the tendency of some people to eat when they were depressed or under stress. But, recent research has been painting an altogether different picture. We now have the understanding that the foods we eat can actually cause certain mood states.

In this video, Dr. Nicholas Christakis, a pioneer in the field of health and social networks, talks about the extremely powerful (and virtually hidden) influence that our social network exerts on our actions, attitudes, and – ultimately – who we become.

Some folks argue that labeling over-eating as an addiction removes responsibility and free choice. However, studying food addiction will likely bring us to novel forms of obesity treatment, and help us understand why people over-eat despite all kinds of penalties.

Sure, there are some physiological differences between “naturally” lean people and “naturally” heavier people. But it’s not all just genetics or metabolism. Naturally leaner people think and act differently too. Believe it or not, former scrawny guys can actually help heavier folks lose fat.

In the certification program we’re careful to remind our students that every single client, even the ones who at first seem unmotivated (maybe even downright lazy), can lose fat, build muscle, and improve their health. And in today’s update we’d like to share some strategies for getting the best out of each client you work with – from the Low Compliance, Low Results clients to the High Compliance, High Results clients.

The next Lean Eating Coaching Program opens Wednesday July 6th. As we get ready to accept a few new clients, I thought I would share 8 key lessons from Lean Eating that you can use right now for your own body transformation, whether you’re in the program or not.

Last week, I brought you confessions from our women’s Lean Eating Program coaches. Now it’s the men’s turn to tell us their secrets, and how they use their PN wisdom to stay on track.

We’ve got some pretty amazing people running our Lean Eating and Lean Eating Alumni programs. You’d think that because our coaches are “experts”, they’re perfect. They probably never have a bad hair day, a bad workout, or a bad meal. Guess again.

Do you have “forbidden foods”? If so, is putting these foods “off limits” helping or hurting you?

If you want more simplicity in your nutrition, in your training, and, quite frankly, in your world, there’s one thing you’ve gotta do. You’ve gotta declutter your mind. Here’s how.

Our team of PN experts shares their top tips for leading happy, healthy, awesome and long lives. Take that, mortality!

Many North Americans set themselves up to fail. They live the life of an overweight, disease prone person. Why should they expect anything different? If you’re looking for success, ask yourself: what situations are you putting yourself in?

In Part 1 of this series, we looked at the physiological part of appetite. We learned that many hormones, neurotransmitters, glands and organs regulate appetite. Now we’re going to look at the interactions between biology and environment, and how you can become a better, more aware eater.

What you believe can become real. Don’t believe us? Just check out this study. It shows that your perception of yourself and your environment has a definite, measurable impact on your health. Believing and living a healthy lifestyle is more beneficial than either one alone.

Need expert nutrition advice? Look no further than yourself. You’ve been eating since birth, after all.

If you’re happy and you know it… you probably won’t eat a super-sized bag of chips.

Pizza Hut now? Or six-pack abs later? Get this question right, and you might just win at the game of life too.

Counselling psychotherapist Erin Byron chats with Lean Eating coach Krista Scott-Dixon about how our experiences with food are actually about relationships. Emotion sandwich, anyone?

Are vegetarians too skinny? Is there something to be said for this level of leanness? Are vegetarians just wasting away due to their food choices, on a collision course with anorexia and eventual death? Or is their leanness all part of some other plan?

Frustrated? Feel like “nothing’s working”? Here are 9 hard-learned lessons from real people trying to get lean. YOU could be the biggest factor impeding your progress.

Whether you’re interested in competing as a bodybuilder/figure competitor, or whether you’re just looking to drop body fat as fast as possible, it’s important to understand the difference between training for aesthetics and training for health. In this article, Krista Schaus shares some valuable lessons about managing body image and imbalances while trying to get into the best shape of your life.

Around PN, Lean Eating coach and Director of Education Ryan Andrews has a reputation for being a nice guy. But sometimes he gets mad. What makes this man mad? You.

Pam Boteler is a sprint canoeist and raw vegan advocate. Here, Pam talks about her diet, her champion mindset, and how nutrition fuels her world-class performance.

In Part 1 of this article series, Amanda shared some great “big picture” tips on how you can think about and plan for your fitness photo shoot. Now, in Part 2, Amanda’s going to get down to the details including: attire, hair, make-up, nutrition/exercise peaking, and much more.