Ever done a fitness photo shoot?

Bit of a niche blog today.

Have you ever done a fitness photo shoot? 

If you have read on.

If you haven't but you like a 8 week plan then also read on as there’s some cross over.

So you’ve done it.

So why do you feel worse?

You did everything right.

Weeks of prep. 

Hitting your macros. 

Saying no to the wine when you were out with your mates. 

Getting up for cardio. 

Counting every calorie. 

Doing every single thing you were told to do.

And then the shoot happened.

Hair done. Tan on. Photographer. Lights. The pride. The adrenaline. 

The "oh my god you look incredible."

And the photos came back stunning.

So why, six months later, are you looking at them and feeling like a failure?

That's what I want to talk about today.

Because what nobody tells you before a fitness shoot.

Is the shoot is the peak. 

That's it. That's the whole point of it.

Everything, the restriction, the water manipulation, the carb cycling, the relentless tracking, it's all designed to get your body to one single place, on one single day.

It was never designed to last.

So when the shoot is over and the structure disappears, your body does exactly what it's supposed to do. 

It recovers. It changes. 

It goes back to being a normal, nourished, human body.

And that's when the real damage starts.

Because now you've got a photo. 

A high-definition, professionally lit image of your body at its most depleted. 

And that becomes your reference point. 

That becomes what you're trying to get back to. 

Every single day.

Even though you know you know how hard that was. How miserable bits of it were. How you don't actually want to live like that.

You don't want to go back to the restriction. 

But you want to look the same as you did then.

And because you can't have both, the shame kicks in.

Maybe I haven't got enough willpower. 

Maybe I'm not determined enough anymore. 

Maybe something is wrong with me.

Nothing is wrong with you.

I had a client who did twelve weeks of prep, got incredible photos, and received all the external validation going. "Your willpower is unreal." "I could never do that." "You're so dedicated."

And then she didn't know what to do.

She carried on tracking because it felt safe. But the results weren't coming like before. The guilt crept in. Eventually she pressed the f*** it button. The floodgates opened.

And then she came to me.

We worked together for six months.

We worked on her food rules. We got her back to actually listening to her body again, because when you've spent months not listening to your body and hunger cues, that trust completely breaks down. 

We worked on her body image. 

What her body could do. What her life looked like when food wasn't the main character in it.

She doesn't track anymore. She doesn't think about food the way she used to. She loves her training again because when training isn't tied to what your body looks like, it becomes enjoyable again..

She will never do a photo shoot again (or eat an Aldi protein yoghurt).

And she's completely fine with that.

That's what's on the other side of this.

Not another programme. Not more structure. Not more discipline. 

Just a completely different relationship with food and your body. 

One that actually fits your life. Forever.

If you've nodded along to any of this, if you've been going through it quietly and convincing yourself it's your fault and that you are the only one that thinks like that then come and chat to me.

Trust me you really aren’t the only one…….

Book a FREE  30 min consultation call here.

No pressure, no pitch. 

Just an honest conversation about where you are and what's possible.

And if you're thinking about doing a shoot, please come and chat to me first. I'm not here to talk you out of it. I just want to make sure you know what you're walking into on the other side.

Have a listen to this weeks episode 90 of Chatting with Cara here as I delve deeper into this.