I would like to clear up some misconceptions for people who are actually looking to “Go from Flabby to Fabulous,” because my last article was not aimed at people looking to do so. It was misnamed, unfortunately.

To state it simply, my last article was aimed at overweight people who have terrible diets and only want to exercise without practicing proper diets. It would be more accurate if that column was entitled, “Go from Flabby to Functional,” because if you work out but still eat a lot you will maintain your beer gut or thunder thighs.

“Fabulous” implies a low body fat. A low body fat doesn’t mean much other than how much you eat at your current activity level. Achieving a low body fat can be done through a caloric deficit using a strict diet of how much you eat.

As you become smaller you may become weaker and your workouts may become more difficult to consistently maintain at a proper intensity.

There are successful stories of people going on caloric deficits and end up with six packs and well-defined muscles. These are most likely bodybuilders who put in the research or have a coach who has put in the research. Then there are horror stories of people going on caloric deficits and end up with a horrible stick figure bodies.

The visual results take months to begin to become slightly noticeable and years to properly realize with properly conceived and executed hard work. Anyone who tells you differently is most likely trying to sell you something or speaking from personal experience (which doesn’t apply to you. Ever).

I think “athletic” is a much more achievable and a much healthier goal. In most cases training for sports can leave you with a very attractive physique, similar to those found on most men’s and women’s fitness magazines. The best way to look athletic is to be athletic. You should look to form your workouts on achievable performance based goals.

I’d recommend a proper weight lifting routine, starting with strength and cardio training (biking or running) on alternating days of the. In addition to just doing the exercise, you should make sure that your exercise becomes progressively more difficult as your muscles adapt to the exercise. Keeping a log book of your routine can help you make sure that your workouts have proper progression. You should be lifting heavier, running farther, or biking faster – in a controlled manner.

In the end, being fabulous is very difficult. Many people go the gym and workout, but they have no concrete performance goals. They want muscles and a six pack or they want to fit into their prom dress ,so they workout for X amount of hours or do Y exercise for Z reps hoping to magically turn into Brad Pitt or Scarlett Johansson. While having the goal to look fabulous isn’t evil by itself, you should think twice about what you do in the gym and why. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a workout to continue and so should you.

John Valdespino can be reached at [email protected]