The Vital Pyramid of Health and Fitness

The Vital Pyramid is a concept of self defense and combatives originally conceived by John “Lofty” Wiseman, a former member of the British Special Forces.

I also feel that it can be a good model to follow for your health and fitness.

The four components of the Vital Pyramid include Mindset, Tactics, Skills and Tools.

Let’s have a look at each of these components.

Mindset

Mindset forms the base of the pyramid because without the proper mindset, you will fail to reach your goals.

In my view, the main reason why most people fail to reach their fitness goals is because they diet and exercise for the wrong reasons.

The primary reason is to lose weight.

If that is the main reason, you will likely fail.

The reason is that the process of losing weight ebbs and flows.  It can be very frustrating to hit your weight loss goals, and then hit a plateau for weeks, or even months at a time.

What I would suggest to anyone reading this is come up with a different goal.

Instead of focusing on your body alone, focus on your performance in a separate activity.

If you have never trained much, simply focusing on getting stronger or jogging further and faster may not be enough, because you may not enjoy those activities.

I’ll get back that topic in the next section.

Instead, consider focusing on your performance in an activity unrelated to your fitness training.

For example, if you are a golfer, you will likely benefit from getting stronger by being able to hit the ball further.

Perhaps you play tennis.  Getting stronger and more fit should give you more power with your strokes, and more endurance during your matches.

Or, maybe you just want to have the ability to keep up with your grandkids.  Getting stronger and more fit will definitely help with that.

Back in the day, I trained regularly at a kung fu school.  Every few months we would test for a new belt.  As I advanced in rank, the tests became more physically demanding.

As a result, I started training more away from the kung fu school in an effort to make those tests go a little more smoothly.

During those years I had no scale at home, so weight loss was not the issue.  I was simply focused on improving my overall muscle endurance, as that is what was tested most in those belt tests.

With this in mind, figure out a way to get your mind focused away from just losing weight, or getting in shape.

Get your mind focused on performance in a particular activity, and this will help you stick with your training program, as well as your diet.

Tactics

Pressing in my garage

The next level up on the Vital Pyramid deals with tactics.

Tactics are what you will employ to help you reach your health and fitness goals.

These include strength training, cardiovascular exercise, other forms of exercise such as yoga and pilates, and of course, diet and nutrition.

First, let me address what I alluded to in the section above.

Your primary form of exercise must be something that you will actually do!

If you hate lifting weights, or doing cardio, you will probably not stick to a fitness program where one of those is your primary form of exercise.

I personally prefer strength training, and so that is my primary form of exercise.

However, I round out my program with cardio exercise for even better heart health, and I do some martial arts and stretching for mobility.

With that said, if your only exercise is walking, that is simply not going to be enough to help you get more heart healthy and stronger.

Therefore, you will need to add a little bit of something to your program if all you do is walk.

Now, another big issue with all of these tactics is that most people approach them wrong, particularly diet.

The weight loss industry exploits the fact that most people want a quick fix to their issue.

As a result, there are numerous diet fads, diet pills and a whole host of other products offered to the public as the next big thing in weight loss.

The fitness industry also jumps on board with workouts designed to boost your metabolism, build muscle, etc., all in under 30 minutes, so you don’t have to spend hours in the gym.

Unfortunately, it’s just not that easy, which is why having the proper mindset is the foundation of our Vital Pyramid.

Your fitness program will ultimately need to involve three main tactics… some form of strength training, cardio exercise, and proper diet.

Your program will depend upon the fitness goals you are trying to achieve.

Skills

To employ the tactics you settle on, you will need to develop skills.

For instance, if you decide you want to get big and strong, you will need to train with barbells, and with the compound lifts such as the squat, deadlift, bench press and overhead press.

It takes skill to perform these lifts well, particularly the squat and overhead press.

It also takes skill to properly program your strength training.  You can’t just randomly start lifting weights and hope to meet your goals.

You need some knowledge in this regard, which will help you develop the skill of programming.

Your diet will require some skill.

First, you need to understand how much you should eat to achieve a goal, and how to properly divide up your macros… protein, fat and carbohydrates.

You can learn how to cook your own meals and in the proper proportions or hire a service to do that for you.

If you desire to improve your overall mobility and yoga is an exercise of choice for you, it takes time to develop the skills of getting into and holding many of the poses.

You also need to learn how to breathe properly to get the most out of this type of training.

Tools

At the top of our pyramid, and therefore, the least important piece of our Vital Pyramid are tools.

Tools are primarily the equipment we use to get into the physical condition that we want.

The fitness world is full of all kinds of tools, and many people are most attracted to the latest shiny objects.

The reality is that you don’t need many tools at all, but it really depends on your goals.

If again your goal is to get big and strong, then you will need access to a set of barbells and a squat rack.  That is really all you need.

Additionally, if you want to improve your cardiovascular fitness, you only need to jog, and that requires virtually no equipment.

You can literally run buck naked if you want, although it is not recommended!

Of course, to eat well, you should cook your own food, and so you will need some equipment for that.

You can get into spending a ton of money on some of the fancy gadgets out there, such as Peloton bikes, fitness watches, clothing and other exercise equipment.

Again though, none of that stuff is really needed if you have the mindset to do what it takes, the right tactics for what you are trying to accomplish, and the skills needed to execute those tactics.

Final Thoughts

You now have an overall approach to achieving your health and fitness goals.

It’s up to you to put the details of your own personal approach together.

If you are unsure where to start, get together with a trainer or coach to work out the details.

You can also check out my own program offerings here… Programs.

Now, get to work!