- January 8, 2025
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YMCA personal trainer Tom Cahalan said he doesn't place the importance on the New Year that others might.
"It definitely has impact where people think, 'Okay, let me look at my life and see how I'm doing, and where should I go from here," he said. "A lot of times it has to do with weight. Sometimes it has to do with doctors' recommendations. Sometimes, if they're single, they try and get themselves in better shape so they can find their mate, and they jump in.
"And sometimes they jump in too much."
The Observer spoke with Cahalan and other fitness professionals on the subject of how to pursue fitness goals and achieve positive results.
Cahalan said when people overstep, some get injured or experience pain, some become disinterested, and some find it difficult to balance their workouts with daily life.
"I think the reasons for the failures might be they go at it too aggressively without a really good plan, and sometimes they need to just take it easy at the beginning and work their way in," he said.
However, he also wants people to look at the long term.
"When you say, okay, I want to lose 25 pounds, that's a good theory," he said. "But give me the little inches to get to the end of that ruler. What am I going to do in the short term?"
Gillian da Silva, the owner of the fitness community Rise Fitness, expressed a similar sentiment.
"Rather than saying, my goal in the New Year is to lose 20 pounds, which is an outcome, the goal that they should set would be, my goal is to walk 10,000 steps a day, whereas that's an action," she said.
The three professionals the Observer spoke to did not favor the idea of centering exercise goals on weight loss.
Cahalan said fitness is 60 percent diet and 40 percent exercise, with "maybe" a percentage devoted to lifestyle change, such as not staying up too late.
"People think they can exercise themselves out of good eating habits or out of bad eating habits," he said, noting that because of his level of involvement in fitness, he is nonetheless able to do so himself to an extent.
Da Silva called weight loss "probably at the very bottom of the list" of exercise's benefits, highlighting nutrition and daily movement.
Mike Davis, the owner of Hybrid Strength Club, who is starting a certification program for fitness trainers, said too often people focus only on burning more calories than they take in, causing muscle atrophy and a failure to reach goals.
Davis favors an inclusion-based diet rather than efforts to restrict calories. He says when paired with fitness training; it eliminates room for and reduces cravings for poor food choices through the protein consumed.
"If you want to increase your metabolism, which you do, if you want to keep a healthy body fat percentage, we want to do things that allow us to keep more muscle, and even better, activate muscle that we do have that's not currently working," he said.
Instead of focusing on short-term goals like losing weight, da Silva encourages people to look for a "deeper reason" to exercise, saying she doesn't believe in the concept of "motivation."
“If you're not capable of picking up a suitcase and putting it in an overhead bin on an airplane or walking through a train station, then travel is going to be challenging as we age,” she said.
Instructors emphasized the importance of finding an environment to suit a person's needs.
Da Silva and Davis said people should hire a professional.
Davis said it should be someone that prioritizes the spine, is well-versed in breathing techniques and biomechanics, and who can teach people about their body.
"Having fun, exploring movements, playing during training, not being so serious about it, but exploring what your body can and can't do, and gently, microprogressively pushing those boundaries with someone that understands how to do those things, people can sustain it that way," Davis said.
Cahalan said finding the right fitness opportunities is key, whether it comes down to people, instructors, the type of class and environment, or the location.
"I'm just kind of a normal Joe," Cahalan said. "I don't look like I'm Mr. Fitness guy, and I think that's important for people to feel."
He said with his programs, he hopes to prevent the mindset of excess and said, "Instead, if you make it fun, they go out of here going, 'Boy, I'm glad I came, and I better not miss that next time."
“I would say we don't necessarily have to even find a level of enjoyment," da Silva said. "It's great if we do. But even if someone never, ever reaches that, if they can do it just because they know that it's right for their body and for their long-term health, then I think that's good enough.”
