Failing to get up and go to the gym are momentary
failures. The following short story and tips should help you get to the gym.
Find out more.
There's a
noise emanating in the near distance followed by a momentary flicker of light -
like a camera flash triggered off inside your head. A sudden involuntary snort
of pillow scented air plows its way down into your lungs.
Your back
tightens and your hand moves automatically to the nightstand. Before the alarm
clock can become anymore obnoxious, you snuff it out with a swat of your palm.
"Gym?" you say to yourself, "There ain't no way I'm going to the
gym today."
Maybe it was
six or less hours ago when you finally laid your body down in bed. The thought
of getting up and heading out to the gym danced whimsically inside your mind as
the night stole away your consciousness.
You roll
over, finding yourself troubled by the disappearance of motivation and the last
fragment of a wonderful dream. Pulling the cover over your shoulder, you once
again promise yourself tomorrow will be the day when you will, "for sure,
I promise", go to the gym.
Tomorrow
Never Comes
We all know
that tomorrow never comes because in reality, it's always today. Most wonder why
motivation to do something can be so vibrantly strong moments before we go to
bed. I have a friend who quits smoking every night, embolden enough to throw
their cigarettes into the toilet. Still the following morning, as soon as they
can, they buy another pack.
Critics of
people caught up in this dilemma point a gnarled accusatory finger and chastise
them for not having enough will power. They snicker and shake their heads at
those who can't seem to understand that if you want something bad enough, nothing
will stand in your way of getting it.
But I'm not
you and you're not me, so by all means if you pulled the sheet over your
shoulder this morning, or any morning, ignore them.
Can I write
articles in 1,500 word chunks? Sure, for me it's quite easy. Can I churn out
five to ten articles a month and submit them to websites or magazines? If I
knuckled down... I could. But what will they actually mean to you when you read
them?
There are
countless preexisting articles with hundreds more on the horizon. Step-by-step
instructions on how, when, and why to exercise and eat properly. Yet the
numbers are quite clear and large when it comes to the description of being
"out of shape" or "overweight".
If the
aforementioned people represent bucket one, there exists two additional buckets
of people. We'll start with bucket three; the professional fitness athletes.
Their paths are very clear and free of most obstacles people in bucket one and
two face.
Failed
Experiments
What drives
these folks is the sheer desire to have and maintain the best possible body.
They are the motivational force for people in bucket two and perhaps some of
those in bucket number one.
If you're
reading this article, I suspect you are either in bucket two or three. Those
looking for "the edge", a valuable slice of information that will
allow further unraveling of the body sculpting mystery.
Not to get
off the beaten path, but to emphasize a point that I haven't clearly
uncovered... The other day I responded to a tweet. The tweet was a search for a
nutritionist who could help an aspiring athlete to plan a pre-competition diet.
I responded
by stating "Dieting down for your comp is an 'experiment' if it's your
first comp. Basic rules apply, but a lot has to do with timing."
I'm still not
entirely sure the tweeter understood what I was trying to get out. Twitter is
fun and informative, but you really can't get into the details when you have a
mere 140 characters at your disposal.
The key word
was "experiment". And this word should be a treasured weapon used in
most everything we do. Why do I say this? Imagine how dull our world would be
if people failed or were afraid to experiment. After all, fitness articles are
reiterations of successful and failed experiments - aren't they?
From
Failures To Success Results
One of my
favorite sayings is: "The Pied Piper used a flute, but I choose sexy,
pouting calves over five inch heels." If you're calves are sexy and
pouting then that would mean your exercise plan for calf workouts is
successful.
To further
emphasize my point, you're success resulted from several failed experiments in
types of exercises used, the amount of sets and reps employed, days per week
calves are worked, and amount of weight used.
Does it
really matter that you want it bad. In fact, so bad you can taste it? But
failures in getting it push you further away from the goal.
The true
winner is the one who gets up when they fall down. But some people have fallen
so many times that their corner man has thrown in the white towel and begged
them not to get back up. But we must get up!
Falling down
or failing to get up and go to the gym in the morning are momentary failures
that can be discounted quickly. At least those as they relate to getting fit
must be.
The lesson
learned is what we must rise up with, held firmly in our hand. Experiments are
things we do purposefully, and sometimes by accident, in order to learn
something - right?
Rise
Up is Must
Let's rewind
back to a friend who every night before going to bed flushes their cigarettes
down the toilet. Nothing more than a waste of money because we know that each
morning this person ends up buying a new pack.
They run and
fall, run and fall... their corner man (or in this case, their bank account) is
forever tossing towel after towel into the ring pleading for them just to stay
down.
What can be,
if anything the valuable piece of information they must rise up with held
firmly in their hand? Quit today, not tomorrow. Cold turkey may not be the
answer, perhaps use nicotine gum or wean yourself slowly off the habit.
As of this
article, my friend no longer throws cigarettes down the toilet before going to
bed. They have confessed to me they sleep better at night since they are less
stressed out over knowing tomorrow morning they will end up failing on their
promise not to smoke.
The amount of
cigarettes they smoke has been halved, they have begun to exercise and are
beginning to understand just how much damage smoking is doing to their physical
fitness.
I suspect
that in some time they will give up cigarettes all together once the final
decision has been made that their body is just too important to sabotage with
tar and nicotine.
We're a work
in progress. We are a living document that needs to be amended constantly. Not
until the last breath we take can we finally set down our pen and offer up our
finished masterpiece.
Accomplishments
that could be your
In our
business, professional athletes can be defined as genetically gifted, but
that's not entirely fair to say nor true. I'd much rather bask in the glow of
being known as a great learner.
Trust me when
I say that my corner man has thrown in more than just towels on many occasions.
On the way down some slippery slopes my stomach has taken up refuge and on the
summits of the highest hills my heart swelled so large tears have spilled from
my eyes.
The corner of
my lips shook hands with my ears. All my greatest accomplishments have been
achieved by taking the time to understand the lesson I needed to learn.
Just as you
can (this very second) touch the computer screen in front of you, you can reach
out and put your arms around significant fitness accomplishments.
Let me share
with you ways to better understand what you may very well learn the next time
you fail to get up in the morning and go to the gym.
Common sense
applies. Sometimes it's the simplest solutions that yield positive results;
i.e. did you go to bed early enough or perhaps you're simply not an early
morning person. Digging deeper in to more complex reasons, we can look at
motivating factors, thinking along the lines of having to get up and go to
work.
We may not be
motivated to do so, but we do none the less since the motivation there is a
simple thing called a paycheck needed for paying bills. What was playing on the
radio that woke you in the morning? Was it the offensive bleeping, a
commercial, or some static filled song?
On the other
hand, imagine, if you can, that you're partner for this morning's workout is
Brad Pitt. Your feet will more than likely hit the floor before your head has a
chance to move up from off the pillow!
Success
Methods
There's a lot
to discuss and many lessons I can personally relate for you, but I will save
that for a future article. I will leave you with some of my success methods to
prevent pulling the covers over my shoulder after the alarm has gone off:
- · I have no more or less than seven to eight hours of sleep.
- · Going to be hydrated.
- · Reviewing, the night before, what body parts and exercises I will be doing the following day.
- · Spend several minutes (after the lights go off) visualizing what I am going to do in the gym.
- · Ensuring my "goal" of presenting the best possible me in my next show is achieved.
I'd like to
end this article by emphasizing the need to have a plan. A well laid out plan
makes it so much easier to spot the lesson learned when we fail at something we
set out to do. Every win is the culmination of many failures!
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