New Years Failures

4 Reasons you Fail

1)  You use Motivation

Motivation is fleeting. It's an emotion. Sure you might want to hit the gym after after seeing Rocky. You might think you could start your own Meth Lab after watching Breaking Bad, but step back a minute and think about this.


 Where's that motivation going to be a week from now at 5 am when it's cold, wet, dark and you've got 5 hours of sleep and need to drive to the gym before work?

Where's that motivation going to be after you've had a long day haven't eaten in eight hours, and you're surrounded by a pizza party at your house.?



Well guess what, The Rocky Theme isn't going to start playing all the sudden to pump you up. You're not motivated right now, that was last week, right now you're stressed, tired, and maybe even depressed. And motivation will almost always lose to RATIONALIZATION.

2)  You Fail

Yeah, I know this sounds dumb but keep reading.

When you're teaching yourself a new behavior, you want  positive experiences.

You'll be more MOTIVATED from succeeding than failing multiple battles. When training dogs, you always want to end on a positive note and not stress out your dogs and have them discouraged.



Same with people. If you're losing 1-2 lbs a week you'll feel motivated.

If you're not losing weight, not gaining strength or muscle, if you're injuring yourself on top of the work you're putting in you'll most likely give up.

Like the old saying goes "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."

So, plan. Learn from an experienced personal trainer, a well reviewed fitness book, or whatever source, but make sure you're doing things correctly or you'll fail and give up.

3)  Too much, too soon

Fad diets and fasting diets where you starve yourself for 2 weeks then give back in to old habits or worse.



You only have so much willpower, and you will drain it out quickly if you go too hard and be back to your old self.

Using that much willpower to starve yourself will destroy you in other areas of your life where you won't have the willpower to sustain yourself as well, like not telling your boss off, staying out of opium dens, etc.



Workout too much too soon and burn yourself out or injure yourself. All this will do is discourage you further.

Just the idea of putting too much pressure on yourself and getting overwhelmed can defeat you. It happens all the time. That whole "Go Big, or Go Home" crap ruins so many people from succeeding.

Do things properly and have patience.

4) You rely off others

Blind leading the blind.

There's a quote from some guy named Jesus "They are blind guides, if a blind man leads a blind man, both will both fall in a pit"



I see this all the time. 2 people join the gym together to motivate and train each other.

First of all they give each other bad advice because neither knows what they're doing, at best they're taking the long route to get there.

And almost every time one quits, and the other eventually does too.

"Well, she quit so I can't feel too bad about quitting"

You want to get better, follow one who's already there.

4 Ways to succeed

1)  Create mini habits

It's not about motivation, inspiration, because that just creates procrastination...that's pretty good, I should copyright that.

Seriously though, it's about habits.

Making your bed is a habit, constantly checking your phone is a habit. Good or bad that's what habits are, just things you do.

Same with this. Just do it small. Really small if it's really intimidating

If you just work out for 10 minutes or a few pushups, that's more than before.

You might feel it wasn't enough and be MOTIVATED to do more.

But do something. the more you fear it or have waited to do it the more you know you need to do it and the more you should think of a mini-habit.

Hour work out could be half hour, 5 days a week workout could be 3 days, diet could be just cutting out soda, not eating chips, etc.

Start small then step it up, soon or later you'll have overcome your fear and not be afraid anymore.



Unless you're the type that like to do it big, but if you are make sure to-

2)  Be around people that are already doing it

Talk to people at the gym, people want to give advice and help, they love it.

It's not like those stupid commercials where FIT PEOPLE are keeping secrets on how to get in shape. Fit people are not the Illuminati, they want to talk and give advice.



In fact, it's often harder to get them to shut up, but that's another issue all together.

The main takeaway is you'll have constant support, with people who are into the same goals and share your desired outlook. You'll feel like that corny CHEERS show where everyone knows your name.

But never forget, you can only rely off yourself. Let others inspire and help, but it's ultimately up to you.

3) Be Prepared to Fail

It's a new habit, you're most likely going to have points where you give into temptations, where you get frustrated with a week or 2 of no progress, just feel lazy and don't work out. It happens.

Don't let that stop you COMPLETELY. You only fail when you just give up. So you messed up, it makes you even better. Anybody can just keep doing something when it's easy, those that push past the hard parts are the ones that succeed.

Think of any biopic you've ever watched, was it just success after success? No! That's boring. Your struggle is it's own story, so think of your disappointments at the exciting parts of the story when you tell it later on in life.

4) Visualize Success

I don't mean just be a dreamer, but do dream. Why do you really want a six pack? Why do you really want to fit into those jeans again? Why do you really want to be stronger?

Just to be healthy, just to feel good about yourself? Boring!

Maybe you want to shock everyone when you go back home to visit for Christmas. Maybe you want to be able to keep up with your kids. Maybe you want revenge on your ex that stalks you on Facebook. 

Whatever it is, just dig deep and find out why you really want this and then visualize having it. How great would it be?

FINAL THOUGHTS

Hopefully this helped some. Some may sound regurgitated, but if you hit you right way maybe something you've heard a hundred times finally makes sense. I know from tons of experience about setting new habits and going from weak and out of shape into being fit. 

Because when it comes down to it, it's not about RESOLUTIONS, it's about REVOLUTIONS. 

So if you've been reading this blog at all you know what you have to do.

Hell, you've always known at least that you need to eat better and exercise more.


But why do you not do it?

It's not for lack of information, but lack of motivation.


At the risk of coming off like some kind of self help guru I'm going to tell you a lot of things that involve self improvement and self worth so bare with me. Because it's necessary.


Change isn't easy. You've basically established who you are and always will be at the age of 7. There was even a documentary about this where a filmmaker recorded many several children at 7 and returns every 7 years to see how they've developed. All of them retaining the same traits they had as children.


So if anyone wants to have a complete reprograming of oneself, then there is a lot more necessary then just a few tips on how to hold a dumbbell. You're going to have focus, visualize, and sacrifice a lot of things to make this improvement. But if you truly desire this change, then it will happen. But first hang on let me get off my high horse.


So for most of you going to the gym is tough. You have to drag yourself there.

I've got plenty of clients that used to be that way. Guess, what though after you force yourself to do something long enough it becomes a habit.

Meaning you've formed a good habit. Sub-consciously you're driven to have a routine of something actually positive.

Going to the gym and eating right should be like brushing your teeth. Granted you brush your teeth a lot.

I know people who could barely drag themselves to the gym when they first started, now go crazy if they can't get to the gym.

You're not in control, your subconsious is.

99% of what you do is habit. Think about it. Check your facebook, eat the same foods, go to sleep the same time, do the same things.

Change it up!

You need to make goals, and don't make some wimpy small goals. Think big.

Small is boring and uninspiring.

Make an end goal. What you ulitmately want. To win a figure competition, or look like a celebrity.
12 Month goal. A big milestone. Be down to 13% body fat.
3 Month goal.  Smaller goal but adds up big. Lose 5% Body Fat.
Weekly goal. Weekly check up on how you're doing. Measure yourself to see how you're doing.
Daily goal. Habitual things. Work out, count calories, drink lot's of water, go to sleep on time.

Make deadlines too. REALISTIC ONES. So you don't break yourself.

It's good to have a great end goal, but don't focus on it too much or you'll get discouraged. See the forrest for the trees. Keep meeting those deadlines and feel great about it.

Remind yourself of all the small accomplishments you've achieved to keep fueling you.

What are some things you've done in your past you wouldn't think you could've done, but you did. Exactly, you can do this as well.

Also what's important about this goal, and why is it important?

You want to date more, tired of getting turned down. Must not be that tired because you haven't done anything yet. Actions speak louder than words.


Is that pizza and beer worth your current body?


Or is an hour of working out that time consuming?


Health reasons? Want to keep up with your friends or even your kids? Want to go to the pool without wearing a shirt?

When you add an emotion to your drive you will physicalize that part of your dream.

Also, only dwell on what you want. Not on what you want to avoid.

Don't think about how you might fail, how you could waste time, how you don't want to eat bad.

Focus on how you'll eat healthy food that you actually enjoy, how you're going to make a huge transformation.

Negative people and thoughts. When you first start this life change, there will be people who won't like this. They won't tell you this outright, but they'll not be supportive and put their own guilt and doubts unto you. I've had clients who have made vast improvements in their life but hear negative comments by people all the time. "You're getting too skinny". "You're getting too obsessive, you need to just eat what you want every now and then".

If someone is working so hard to make an improvement in their life, why would you want to make that path even harder? These are the people you need to avoid. Sorry to say, some of them will be family and friends of yours.

Even if you don't think you can, believe you can anyway. We've all heard if you tell you're self a lie enough times you believe it, well it's true.


When writing and reciting your affirmations always make sure they're present tense. If they're future tense, as in something you will be doing, then you always will eventually be doing it but never doing it. Keep saying it until you believe you've done it. When you're already there in mindset, then there's no reason to ever doubt yourself.

I AM IN GREAT SHAPE.
I WORKOUT AN HOUR A DAY PROPERLY.
I HAVE MADE  A LOT OF PROGRESS IN A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME.
I PORTION MY FOOD CORRECTLY.

Always reflect on your past accomplishments for even more motivation.

Make sure to compare yourself to others if want a life of misery.

Visualize in your mind you doing what you're setting out to do. Visualize you succeeding in your goals. Visualize the life you want to live.

Don't visualize mistakes you could make, or you failing. No point in that. That's doubting.

The question is: Will you write your a goals list, will you visualize yourself succeeding, will you recite your affirmations or even less write them out.

The answer for most of you will be no. For those that do heed this advice, a smaller percentage will actually follow through and stay consistent with this. But if only 2% of the people that read this have their lives change, then this post had made a larger impact than a Rocky Montage.


Let me know if you've taken any steps toward this, I'm interested in hearing about it.

Steven Farmer
www.atxfitbootcamp.com

This Weeks Tip:  TAKE ACTION NOW AND DO THIS!!!