How Bad Do You Want It?

There are some who think this whole health/fitness journey has been easy for me. There are some that think because I'm single and don't have kids that's the reason I "have time", when in reality I still have a family and friends that are important to me; but I make the time and make it a priority for myself. There are some that say it's because I'm able to have a personal trainer and they aren't able to invest in one. Again, I've made this a priority for me, and regardless if I have a trainer or not I still had to get off my ass and do the work to get the results.

Quite often I hear, or even have had conversations with people, where they are constantly talking about what they want to do in regards to their health/fitness; and then once they are given the tools and opportunities to accomplish their goals they don't take advantage of them. But, the issue that I have isn't that they don't take advantage of these opportunities, because we all have choices and this is their choice; but it's when they don't and then bitch about not getting results or complain about how bad their health is. I hear everything from how much weight they want to lose to wanting to be a better athlete, and then the other many things in between such as even just eating healthier. And here's the deal, when it comes to accomplishing your personal goal(s), regardless if it's health/fitness related or not, the question isn't if you want it, but how bad do you want it?

I've accomplished so much these past 5 plus years, but I'm always looking for ways to challenge myself and to just do more to better myself. A lot has happened these past few weeks since I've last posted, including I've started training twice a week at a local boxing gym, The Engine Room, in addition to my current personal training program at Fitness Together. I started this in order to train for a 90 day goal I've set for myself, and that's to participate in an actual sparring event. By doing this, I'm getting outside my comfort zone, facing fears, and in the process I'm growing as a person and improving my health. Between Michael, Terri, and all the coaches at Fitness Together and The Engine Room, I have access to the things and people I need to accomplish this goal. But, they can't do it for me, so if I don't utilize the tools and opportunities, if I don't get my ass in there and do the work, then in 90 days when I get in that ring to spar I'm going to get my ass whooped by some girl. Well, if I want it bad enough, then I'm not going to skip workouts, I'm not going to half ass my training when I'm in there, and more importantly I'm not going to allow excuses to get in the way of me accomplishing my goals.

I don't know what your own personal goals are, but I would encourage you to reflect on what those are and what it will take to get there. And when you have those opportunities to get in there and do the work, I suggest you take them instead of making up excuses to avoid it. I look forward to mentoring others, because it means a lot to be able to help others. But there's nothing more frustrating from a trainer/leader aspect than to have someone constantly talking about what they want to accomplish yet they are not willing to do what it takes to get there, especially when they actually come to you for help. I believe the reason I've been so successful with my weight loss and in my own personal health/fitness journey is due to three keys factors.

1. I take advantage of the trainers and their advice. This means when a trainer suggests something in regards to my cardio, workouts, or nutrition I take their advice and see what happens. Sometimes I question things, but I also have to remember they are the experts and they are giving me the advice they feel will help me be successful. If it doesn't work, we do something else.
2. I take advantage of my time in the gym. This means I don't skip or reschedule workouts just because I don't feel like going in. It also means I show up early, not just on time, but early to warm-up so when it's time to start training I can get right into the workout. We have 45 minutes, so when I train from 5:15 AM - 6:00 AM, I get there at 5:00 AM because I don't want to spend the first 10 minutes of my session warming up and then that leaves only 35 minutes to get my workout in. I would rather get there early, warm-up, so I can utilize my full 45 minutes with the trainer.
3. I didn't allow things/people to be excuses for me. I didn't allow things to cause me to miss gym time, especially my scheduled sessions, for any reason. And I didn't allow things/people to influence me into eating/drinking things that would sabotage my nutrition which in turns effects my results.

Now, I'm by all means not perfect, and yes I have days I feel less motivated and sometimes it's hard to get in there. And there are things that come up I would rather do than be in the gym. And I'm not saying my friends/family or having a life outside the gym isn't important, because it's definitely important to have that balance. But, the thing is I don't allow those days to become excuses to not do the work. So if you're wanting to lose weight, if you're wanting to train for a certain sport, if you're wanting to become stronger, if you're wanting to eat healthier, or whatever your personal goal is, then it comes down to one simple thing, how bad do you want it?