Let’s get physical
I HAAAAAAATE WORKING OUT!!! 🏋️♂️ Working out is the devil. 👹
Growing up, I was the nerd, the boy scout, and the gay kid that didn’t like sports. I also hated sweating. I mean, I am from Texas as well, so maybe that played a part in that. 😅 But if I could remain inside all day, I would. 🌌
It may then come as a surprise that I currently go to the gym 4 times a week and I’ve been doing that for over a year!! Not only that, but I’ve lost 30 pounds and I just had a friend comment on the size of my bicep.
Wait, so what huh…..?
I know!!! I mean, listen, I’m just as baffled as you!!!! HOW DID I DO THIS? At some level, I’ve cracked the code on forcing myself to do something important but not enjoyable.
The takeaways I have from this:
My why is very clear. Being clear about the reason why I’m doing something hard was vital to making such an impactful life change. And guess what my why is?
VANITY.
Yep. Sinful, evil vanity. (Or so I was taught.) But it works! And I’m better for it.
The key here is that I’m coming from a place of self-love. I love myself. I love my life. I love who I am. I love how I look. Simultaneously, I want to make hard changes. And having a defined body is one of those things that can only happen through hard work over long periods of time. So, come on vanity! Keep helping me out!
I got in the habit. This is vital. At first, it was a big time struggle for me to drag ass outta my bed, into my gym clothing, and head out the door. Not only was it unfamiliar, but I was losing precious time in my already busy day to do this.
Today, though, it’s just a part of my routine. It’s something I do. On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, I get up and throw on my gym clothes first thing.
Importantly, I do not always go on the same routine. I miss days. I have interruptions so I must change my days up. I sometimes go in the evening instead of the morning (but I still go). Flexibility has been important.
I hired help. This was not something fun, natural, or easy for me so I hired a trainer that would know what I was doing so I could hold myself accountable. When you have to show up for someone else, it makes it that much harder to not accomplish it because you’ll have to discuss what got in the way. That helped motivate me.
Additionally, I was able to chat with him about my mental blocks. For me, part of what got in my way was my very strong and firm belief that when you have time off, you should fully enjoy that time off, with no strings attached. Do not let anything get in the way of relaxing, is what I would tell myself. And working out didn’t fit into that equation. Therefore, vacation = no more working out.
I had some great conversations with my trainer about this and, well, I got my mind right. Case study: when I was in Las Vegas for a week, I went to the gym FOUR TIMES. Y’all!!! This is huge for me!!!
And then, another big one, he did some of the hard parts for me, such as workout creation and diet planning. I am not an expert in what it takes to do those things, but he is. So those barriers are now gone. And he adds in variety for me on the regular.
I put money on it. See the above point. Hiring help was not only about the conversation and the accountability, but also about the stakes I gave myself. My hard earned money is finite. If I choose to put it in one place, that means it can’t go elsewhere. And that added key motivation as well. If I’m going to spend the money, I’m going to use the service.
I can speak firsthand about client after client after client. When they put their money where their mouth is (i.e. they hired me as their coach), change was right behind. Certainly, I have the tools to help, but they also have the pressure of showing up or losing out because this is time and money invested. In return, I’m invested in their ROI. If they’re happy, I’m happy.
I was okay with failing along the way. I would say this is probably the biggest one for me. As much as I like achieving, seeing results, and striving for perfection, it was freeing to allow myself to fail, for once. I even planned on failing along the way.
But that’s not even the pivotal point here—the magic is underneath that. By planning for failure to occur, I was able to release the emotion. That is where I had true objective freedom. If I can truly just follow the data (not the drama), then I can logically take actions to course correct without punishing myself or attaching an unimportant feeling to it. Bad feelings have a way of taking you off course, so if you’re able to approach a tough situation logically and unemotionally, you’ll discover how much easier it is to make change.
The big picture
Look again at the five bolded takeaways above. These apply to any tough or uncomfortable situation, not just working out. These tenets are the same I use with my clients on the regular. I know from experience that they work. If you’d like to explore this further, I invite you to setup a free session with me so you can experience similar changes.
You can’t do it alone. You’re not supposed to either. Let’s make changes together.
