There are so many components that go into a solid fitness routine and healthy lifestyle that sometimes it can be challenging to make sense of it all. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford a personal trainer to help them connect the dots, but the advice a trainer has to offer new clients can be priceless.

Quick fixes don’t yield long-term results

There’s an age-old saying that goes “if you give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day, but if you teach a man to fish, he’ll never go hungry.” Essentially that’s the golden rule of thumb Ben Williamson, certified trainer, encourages his clients to live by; that quick fixes won’t yield the long-term results you aspire to.

If you lose weight fast, you will gain it fast. If you lose weight over time, slowly with proper nutrition and training, you will have a harder time gaining the weight back. Slow and steady certainly always wins the race. Quick fixes lead to rapid weight loss and require strict and demanding lifestyle changes that will 99.99% of the time result in complete failure.

Fear is normal

Eric Rakofsky, CEO and founder of PBE Fitness and coach for personal training platform, that new clients often feel a little nervous when they start their training, and it’s completely understandable. To ease their minds, Rakofsky reminds clients that they have a choice: to let that fear hold them back, or use it to make them better.

There’s a fine line between fear and success, and often times it’s hard to walk that line,” Rakofsky explained. “I tell them that it will take courage and patience to overcome whatever fears they have of the process, but that I can also help give them the proper tools to overcome them.

Don’t be ashamed to modify a movement

A common misconception people make about fitness is that modified movements, also referred to as “scaling options,” are a regression, or a sign of weakness, Courtney Roselle, certified strength and conditioning specialist, personal trainer and founder of personal fitness brand

Roselle said she makes sure to tell clarify to her clients that, in fact, modifications are a sign of progression that shows you’re working towards a movement you will get better at overtime.

Small victories can lead to big progress

In addition to stressing the importance of enjoyment, he also makes sure clients are encouraged to both acknowledge and appreciate what he referred to as “imperfect progress.”