What is peak fitness?

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What does peak fitness look like to you?

For many, having a 6 pack is usually associated with peak fitness… but is that really the case?

Let’s look at bodybuilding for a second. Some of the most in-shape people on the planet walk those stages…

In terms of physical appearance.

In reality, they’re at their weakest when they are on stage in an effort to look their best.

Depriving themselves of water and food in the hours before stepping on stage so that they can look their most vascular. But, as Roy Keane might say, “that’s their job!”.

‘Fitness’ really doesn’t have anything to do with how they look.

So maybe peak fitness is more about being an elite athlete?

Yet, this past week, Kansas City Chief’s QB Patrick Mahommes (you know I was going to drop a football reference with a Superbowl coming up) was “body-shamed” for his physical appearance in the image above.

He does not exactly look like a peak athlete, despite doing his job in leading a team to the Superbowl again (and no further or next week’s newsletter will be a very sad affair!).

Yet, before that picture, the average viewer of American Football would point to him when describing what an ideal quarterback would be. Nothing has changed except what people have seen under the pads. People would assume that because he is a high-profile field player, he might have the muscle definition of like a Cristiano Ronaldo, perhaps?

So maybe it is about having bigger muscles?

But the biggest guy is not necessarily the STRONGEST guy, as a good old-fashioned arm wrestling contest will tell you.

So what is peak fitness?

In my opinion, peak fitness is working towards YOUR individual goals and letting how you look follow afterwards.

The bodybuilder is not interested in how strong they are because their strength is not tested on stage.

Having 6 pack abs is not going to make you a better player in any field sport.

Having bigger muscles doesn’t make you stronger in more specific strength tests against other people.

And this should be great news for you because how do you define when you’ve hit a certain look?

But having fitness goals can be defined!

And by becoming more consistent in your goals, everything else will fall into place a little more.

You’re more likely to make better food choices when you are training consistently, as well as sleep better and drink more water.

As you become more consistent, goals will form. That could be to lift heavier, run longer or faster etc.

For a lot of us, looking “better” physically will be a byproduct of the training. And it’s so much more measurable and attainable to be chasing your personal fitness goals rather than aesthetic goals, which are impossible to define.