Stop Chasing Small. Start Chasing Strong.
I've had a lot of conversations recently with people about goals — what they actually want to achieve, and why. And almost every time, the answer comes back to fat loss. Getting smaller. Getting lean.
It got me thinking about a question I want to put to you, the same way I've put it to clients:
Have you ever got into shape you were happy with?
If your answer's yes, here's the follow-up — where are you now compared to your best? If you're miles off, that tells you something important. You're not actually building towards anything. You're on a hamster wheel — get in shape, let it slide, start again from zero a few months down the line.
If your answer's no, that's fine too. But then the question becomes: why not, and what's actually in the way?
Either way, I think most people are chasing the wrong thing.
Why "chasing small" backfires
When fat loss becomes the constant target — not a phase, but the whole point — other things start to suffer. Your mood dips because your energy's low. Your strength suffers. You're constantly thinking about food: what you can eat, whether you've read the label, whether something's "allowed." And if you eat something you've decided is off-plan, you end up punishing yourself for it later that day, or a few days after. That's not a healthy relationship with food. That's just stress with extra steps.
Fat loss is a tool, not the finish line
Here's the shift I'd love more people to make: fat loss should be a tool to build good habits and better structure in your day, not the be-all and end-all. It's a platform — something you build on, not something you achieve once and then abandon.
Let me give you a practical example, using myself.
Say I know my calories need to sit around 2,300 to get into the shape I want. I don't dramatically change what I eat to get there. I just make sure the meals I already have are a bit tighter — less snacking, slightly better choices — and I stick with that until I'm happy with where I am.
Then, when it's time to bring calories back up, I do the same thing in reverse. I don't switch up the meals. I just eat more of them. If I'm having half a bag of rice, I'll have a full bag. If I need a bit more on top of that, I'll add a snack — a yoghurt, some fruit.
The point is, you don't need to overhaul your whole day just because you're eating more or eating less. Keep it simple, and it's far easier to sustain.
What happens after you reach the goal?
This is the part most people skip. Once you get into shape you're happy with, that's not the end of the process — it's the platform. You've built strength. You've built habits and a routine that works. From there, you build on top of it. You don't tear it all down and start again the next time life gets busy.
So if you're currently chasing fat loss, ask yourself: what happens once you get there? If the honest answer is "I'll probably let it slide again," it might be worth aiming at something different.
Stop chasing small. Start chasing strong — and clean up the habits you've already got, rather than starting from scratch every time.
If any of this struck a chord, I run a free week of training — no contract, no catch, just a chance to see what building real, lasting habits actually looks like. https://members.phoenixfitnessliverpool.co.uk/c/r/1WOjj7/rdZQISJA/