One of the most common questions my clients have for me when we start working together is, “When am I going to see the results?” This can be a difficult and emotional subject, as people often begin their fitness journey from a place of personal frustration with their appearance and they want to change how they look. This frustration is compounded with the constant empty promises of fad diets or detoxes that promise, “Lose 10 pounds in one week!”
The truth is, everyone’s journey is different, so everyone will begin seeing results at different times. Usually, people can begin to notice a difference in their strength, endurance, muscle tone and possibly even weight loss within the first 4-8 weeks, but these differences may be subtle and not noticeable to yourself or others at first.
It is also important to remember that going to extremes or overdoing it early to just see “results” will not lead to a long-term or meaningful transformation. Cutting a lot of calories quickly or jumping into difficult exercise regimes quickly can lead to injury and it is not sustainable. It is best to begin by meeting with your doctor, so you can be cleared to begin an exercise program and then work with a personal trainer who can help you create manageable goals and create a fitness routine that will fit into your life. You will also need to hone in on nutrition as any weight loss will need to happen at a calorie deficit. A good method for this is to find how many calories you need in a day and then cut 500 calories a day for sustainable weight loss while remaining satisfied.
Seeing significant physical progress may take longer, usually several months or more, depending on your goals. Building muscle mass, for example, can take several months of consistent strength training and a proper nutrition plan.
It's also important to be patient and not get discouraged if you don't see immediate results. Consistency and dedication to your workout routine and nutrition plan are key to achieving physical progress.