Nigel Fearon Fitness

Do what you can, with what you have!

Things won't always go to plan...that's life!

Example - I'd planned to go for a 10k run this morning and was up & at it with all the kit on ( ) as:

1. I'm running a leg (6.8 miles) of the Belfast Marathon in a few weeks times and have done very little runnng for it

2. I've also just started a 9 week fat loss phase for our upcoming family holidays in June

So I was essentially killing 2 birds with 1 stone by getting some early morning energy expenditure in + time on the feet in preparation for the tace 🏃‍♂️

However, my son didn't sleep great (as usual) and my wife was exhausted, so she needed to go back to sleep for a bit.

So, I made use of my exercise bike in the kitchen (after giving the kids their breakfast of course) and hopped on it for 45 mins, well it actually took about an hour after having to jump on & off at least 10 times to see to the kids.

Moral of the story - if things don’t go to plan, see what alternatives are available to you.

If you've got goals and they're important enough to you, you'll find a way!

READ THIS 👇 If you’re exhausted but scared to take a break…

Not every stall in progress means you need to push harder 😪

Yes, structured refeeds, diet breaks and deloads have their place
But sometimes it’s simpler than that

If you’re feeling constantly beat up:
• Low energy
• Irritable
• Poor sleep
• Dreading sessions you normally enjoy

That’s a sign of fatigue! 😮‍💨

Listen to your body:
• Take the weekend off
• Take a few days out of the gym
• Heck, even take a full week if you need it

You won’t lose your progress!

And you definitely shouldn’t feel guilty for recovering!

Take myself for example:
• I pushed HARD for 6 weeks from the start of the year
• I was training intensely
• I was dialled in with my daily routines, habits and nutrition

All the above resulted in a total weight loss of 11 lbs ⚖️📉 whilst strength & fitness increased 🏋‍♂️📈

With Lanzarote 3 weeks away, I could’ve forced it - chased more condition, ignored the fatigue, ignored the low energy, the irritability and the poor sleep

Instead, I took 4 full days off the gym.
Then trained 2 x very light sessions (deload) and I had around 10 days at well above maintenance calories - still eating well, just not restricting

No obsessive tracking!

I then enjoyed a weekend weekend off and a day/night away without caring about calories

Yes, the scale jumped a few pounds.
But within days of being back into my routine...it's dropped 🙌 and I’m now lighter before than I was at the end of my 6 week Shred

That’s what happens when you play the long game...

Sometimes it’s simply about listening to your body, being smart, and not redlining 24/7

Consistency over months > perfection for weeks

Your body will thank you for it 💪💕

Last session of a 6 week training block in the books ✅️📚

Each week I ran:
• 3 x Full-Body Strength sessions 🏋‍♂️
• 2 x Conditioning sessions 🏃‍♂️

The 3 x strength sessions were:
• Full Body: Squat & Vertical Push/Pull
• Full Body: Hinge & Horizontal Push/Pull
• Full Body: Unilateral & Upper Accessory

Conditioning wise:
• One session was Hyrox based - mixed modal work, engine building, threshold efforts 🏃‍♂️
• The other at the end of the week was running intervals on the treadmill - structured work to push aerobic capacity and mental grit 🧠

Each session had a clear movement focus; spreading volume across the week, hitting every major movement pattern multiple times & keeping frequency high without frying one area too badly in a single session.

By hitting everything a few times per week I was able to:
• Increase strength 🏋‍♂️
• Maintain muscle 💪
• Improve work capacity 📈

Frequency drives skill, strength and muscle retention which is especially important in a calorie deficit.

I won’t sugarcoat it...these sessions were long and taxing! 😮‍💨
Most ran between 90 mins to 2 hours 😲

3 x intense lifting sessions + 2 x conditioning sessions weekly is not for the faint hearted 💔

In hindsight I probably could’ve deloaded at the end of week 5 - at this stage CNS fatigue was real
#🍟'd
But I pushed on and stayed the course 🦾

By the end of week 6, both energy and motivation were dipping 📉

My body was crying out for a break, and so I listened 🙌

The past 10 days I've been on a diet break/deload and have only trained 3 times (very light sessions) during that time.
It's been very much needed...calories up, stress down.

Now that the reset is done, I’ve got 11 days to dig deep before a week in the sun 🌞

This next phase will be aggressive:
• Steep calorie deficit
• Cardio added in
• Daily steps increased significantly🚶‍♂️

My step count was actually quite low during the 6-week block and there was no additional cardio outside of the two conditioning sessions per week.

Time to tighten it up and see what condition I can bring in, without strength being the main priority this time.

Let’s go! 🚀

Before you react… pause.

Not everything deserves your energy.

Not every comment needs a comeback.

Not every situation needs an audience.

- Take a deep breath before you speak.
- Ask yourself: What will I actually gain from this outburst?
- Take people at their word instead of assuming the worst.
- Find inner calm: trivial things don’t deserve centre stage in your life.
- It’s a big world out there.
- Let go of the small-town mentality.
- Don’t be a telltale - especially as an adult.
- Handle things with maturity.
- Have the confidence to speak to someone directly and settle differences face-to-face.
- Don’t go behind someone’s back to create noise.
- Protect your reputation by protecting your composure.

You need to understand something:
- It will get tough!
- There will be days motivation is nowhere to be found 👀
- Days you’re tired. Busy. Sore. Fed up!

* That’s when it matters most!

- Stay the course.
- Stick to the plan.
- Remind yourself why you started.

And if motivation is low? Do what I did - stick on a motivational montage video, reset your head, and get moving anyway!

Because discipline and consistency are what get results…not feelings. Not hype. Not waiting until you “feel like it.”

Show up. Especially when it’s hard! 💪

We’re four weeks into the new year.
Be honest - are you doing what you said you would?

A goal without action is just a dream...
and most people are still sleeping in theirs 💤

- Late nights scrolling 📱
- S**t sleep by choice 💩
- Hitting snooze 😴
- Letting bad weather decide your effort 🌧

If something matters, you make time! ⏳️
If it doesn’t, you make excuses!

✂️
Cut the bu****it!
Cut the excuses!

If you’ve fallen off the wagon - good news...it’s only January.
You’ve still got over 11 months left 🗓

You said this was going to be your year....the best year yet.
Don’t let yourself down!

Think about future you - and do what they would do today.

Make it count!

As you get older, your priorities around health and fitness shift.

It’s less about abs and aesthetics,
and more about energy, strength & longevity.

Especially when you have kids!

Staying fit and healthy isn’t just for you anymore.

It’s so you can play with them, keep up with them, and be present.

It’s about being strong enough to lift them now,
and healthy enough to still be around as they grow up.

Training becomes less about looking good…
and more about living well for the people that matter most.