It’s that time of year again; those wonderful, warm evenings begin making the occasional appearance, carrying with them that special scent of summer in the air.

Many have already started their gym assaults when the clouds still covered a sky poised to bless us shortly with another sun-flooded season. It is peak season for fitness again, as the nation’s beach-oriented population prepare their bodies for fashion garments and swimwear that will leave little to the imagination.

It is around this time of year that I also get flooded with questions about whether there is still enough time left to get in shape. March is a great time to start, but we are already well into post-Equinox May, so is it still possible? The answer really depends on who is asking. If you are already in reasonably good shape and you have the aptitude for dedicated training, then the answer is a resounding yes.

Even if you do not fit this criteria, you are still in time to get in better shape than you are now, although there is little time to waste. You are going to have to avoid all of the most common mistakes new participants make, so if you can pull it off, you are going to slash your journey time down drastically.

The first factor that often delays the onset of timely goals is the learning curve associated with mastering new exercises. Even the most productive exercises of all are only effective when performed correctly and at the right intensity.

Learning from the right people, whether they are experienced gym users or competent exercise professionals, will enable you to get the most out of the right moves within weeks. So the first step is learning from the best, and setting up with the right selection of exercises and methods.

Poorly designed programmes will add on months or even years to your journey time, and at worst will leave you injured or drive you to quit. A good programme will deliver the right dose of exercise efficiently, without wasted time or effort, and allow enough time to recover and overcompensate between sessions. You will need to get in the gym, make a spirited and focused effort and get back out again as soon as possible to allow your body to heal and change. The next stumbling block usually falls from the kitchen cupboards or supermarket shelves best avoided. An effective, healthy eating plan is the best supplement to your training efforts, and it does not have to be all that complicated.

If you want results, you need to step things up gradually and progressively, and continuously drive your body to do more than it could

Advanced knowledge of nutrition science is great, but for quick results, motivation to follow even the simplest of plans is far more valuable. We often know where we are going wrong with our dietary choices, so this simple fact alone proves it is not so much about knowing, but more about doing.

If you can motivate yourself to face the daily sugar-rich temptations with two simple choices in mind, you would be surprised how easily wielded the key to body-transforming success actually is. Five minutes of salivating pleasure or the body of your dreams? It really does come down to that simple choice, and if you opt for the latter, it does not seem like a sacrifice at all. It is just a question of priority: which do you want more?

The next common stumbling block is lack of progressive overload. This phrase is nothing more than a fancy way of describing the simple notion of stepping forward with your training efforts. So many of us fall into the exercise equivalent of jogging on the spot. Doing the same things in the same way every time you train means your body does not need to change, so it stays as it is.

Once you have mastered a given weight, number of repetitions, speed or level, it is time to step things up. Every time you exercise, something happens to your body. If a single workout did nothing, then a hundred such workouts would also do nothing. If you can subscribe to this approach, then you will learn to value each sortie into the gym, and deliver that short and sharp blow you know will make the difference.

A lot of gym users get stuck in a rut running on the treadmill at the same speed for the same amount of time, benching the same weight for the same amount of repetitions, and basically maintaining abilities they already have, sometimes for as long as years. If you want results, you need to step things up gradually and progressively, and continuously drive your body to do more than it could. With a good programe in place, also apply the principle of progressive overload, and you have a recipe for figure and physique success.

And finally, perhaps the most important factor of all is to flex your most powerful muscle of all, the one that works out in the biggest gym of them all: the five-inch space between your ears. Replacing niggling doubts about your genetics or potential, and fear of failure, leaves plenty of room for more positive and productive thoughts that will help you get out of your own way. Even if it lasts only until the end of June, try thinking only about what you can achieve with your exercise and diet and not what you cannot.

Fat is lost and muscle is gained around the changing contours of your body a centimetre at a time, so focus on what is in your power to do, and not what isn’t.

matthew.muscat.inglott@mcast.edu.mt