Hey team, Happy Wednesday! If you are looking to either (1) trim up or (2) lose fat, here are a few hacks you can implement TODAY that will start making a dramatic impact: (1) I preach on this non-stop, but calculate your ideal protein number and stick to it! Eating a diet high in protein has been shown to aid in both fat loss AND developing lean muscle mass and is the easiest place to start. If you don't know how much protein you should be eating, be sure to checkout the nutrition assessment on the Functional Fitness Secrets 101 course. (2) DON'T increase the intensity of your workouts, but rather the amount of overall activity you do in an entire day. So many people turn to lengthening their workouts when they are on a fat loss journey. And though this (obviously) can aid in fat loss, it is probably leaving them mentally and physically drained for just about anything else in their life. Instead, choose to increase your overall daily activity (i.e. take more steps, go for an extra 20-30 minute walk, take the stairs at work, park at the back of the parking lot, etc). Truthfully, this practice will provide you with much faster results than trying to go on some psycho exercise plan that will likely lead to burn out or injury. (3) Have a fasting window of AT LEAST 12-hours per night. Not only will this aid in digestion and better sleep, but will also help you refrain from eating for 12-hours per day and simply make it easier to get into a caloric deficit. (4) Last (but probably the most important) - if you are not eating in a caloric deficit, you will not lose fat (or weight, for that matter). Period. And in order to know whether or not you are in a caloric deficit, you have to track your food consumption. At least for a little while until you get a grasp of what you should be eating every day to stay in a caloric deficit. I hope this helps - if you guys have any specific questions surrounding this topic, be sure to drop them in the comments!

I am curious to gain insight on how others make decisions on exercise/movement modifications. I’ve been doing Colin’s workouts for about a month now and I want to stay true to the exercises/movements as much as possible. I find some to be more difficult (either due to my fitness level, soreness or injury flare ups). I operate under the principle that if my body hurts (bad pain) stop immediately. Sometimes there is discomfort in a workout and working through that can be challenging, but I push through. Where I’m struggling is when to push myself through an exercise/movement vs make a modification to get the most out of the exercise/movement. Please share thoughts/suggestions?

I'll go first. Let's be honest, sometimes you just don't feel like working out. I've found on those days it's helpful to have a go to list of mobility, push, pull, and leg movements. Then just at least do a warmup of sorts out of that list for the movement specific day. 9/10 times I end up wanting to do more. Here recently I've committed to at least 10 no jump burpees w a mountain climber to each arm during the pushup (so 3 pushups before standing=1) a day if nothing else. What do you do? Do you have a minimum? Would love to hear. Thanks!

Not talking music here…although I love a good workout song! I’ve been incorporating band work in my warm ups and workouts recently and I’m in the market for a new one. The one I’ve used is a hand me down from my college athletics days. What bands do you all use or like best? I’m looking for something that I can use for warm up exercises before a workout and PT work as I’m recovering from ACL surgery. Would love some recommendations as I explore my options! Thanks!!

Hi everyone! I've found motivation from others here and I haven't been very engaged in the community. I complete the School of Fitness Lesson 1 a bit ago and then hit a rut. Changing that thanks to motivation from this group and Colin. Thank you for the energy and support! Just a little appreciation post for this community and wishing you all a wonderful rest of the week!