By Dominick H.
Toned arms, rippling abs, tanned skin. Yes, a quick trip to the beaches of Miami got us thinking. What does it really take to be "fit?" Life offers us so many distractions, that sometimes it seems impossible to get it done and incorporate a workout routine on top of it all. If you're like us, then you’re finally starting to realize that sitting on the couch every night and binge watching season after season of TV’s super-amazing shows are not making you more fit. Those memes we love on social media are not getting your chest and arms jacked up, nor are they giving you those toned abs and butt you’ve been dying for. Truth be told, they are just giving you more reasons to be lazy: feel me? And let’s not even begin to mention the long days many of us work. 10, 12 and 14-hour days are the bane of our existence, but many of us have to do it (and for those of us that don’t struggle with long work days, you especially have no excuse). That body won’t be physically fit and beautiful forever. Life definitely starts to take hold and change us. School, work, kids, demands of society, lifestyle, it all ages us and weakens us over time: not right away, but over time. So it’s important to incorporate some form of physical fitness into our lives to get a jump start on life, longevity, and empowered living. But how do we do that?
Well, it starts with living a more awakened lifestyle tuned to fitness: both internal and external. It starts by asking yourself some tough questions: How do I peel myself off the couch? How do I peel myself away from “hangin' with the bros” every night? How do I peel myself away from “brunch with the girls” every single weekend? How do I peel myself away from watching the game? Or keeping up with the cool kids of TV land? How do I turn on that spark of internal power and inspiration so that I am geared up to work out, get in a good sweat, and feel ready to take on the world? The short answer: it starts with you – your attention, your intention, your awareness, your first step. So, step it up.
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| Fitness comes in threes: Commitment, Goal-Setting, and Lifestyle. |
1. Make a Commitment (aka Get Off Your Ass)
Commitment is what most relationships are built on: business or personal. Your dedication and loyalty to the cause will always produce results. Not committed in your relationship? It weakens it. Not committed to your job? It weakens your performance. Not committed to your creative outlet? It never gets developed further. Not committed to working out or exercising a specific amount of times per week? Don’t expect great results. You’ve got to get up and get into a routine. Commit to working out as if it were a close relationship, exercising and moving that butt 1 - 5 times a week. Some of the workout junkies exercise every day: and some times multiple times in a day. That’s not realistic for everyone, but committing to what you love is. Yoga? Great. Cycling? Great. Boot camp? Great. Trainer in your house? Great. Excuses every day and night why you can’t and why you won’t? Not great. No time in the day? Not good enough. Make time. Remember, it’s a relationship. It must be nourished. Your relationship with working out shouldn’t be forced; it must be an organic connection. But the first step is commitment to the cause. So get off the couch.
2. Set Those Goals (See it. Taste It. Get it.)
You know those people that say "Goals are BS?" Not exactly true when it comes to fitness. Oftentimes, we want to work out or be more active but there is no energy behind our intentions. Many of us unfortunately want the results without doing the work. Many of us want to look like "The Rock", but none of us wants to get up at 4am to work out and put that work in. Many of us want the supermodel hot body, but none of us want to do the kickboxing classes or the cycling classes, or even develop a consistently proactive workout routine (running, yoga, rowing, etc) that will keep us fit and trim. In actuality, we have a tendency to be a results-based society. We see it in healthcare. We see it in our career choices. And we especially see it in getting results for health and wellness lifestyles. But in order to get those results, we need strong, consistent behaviors that will carry us to those results. There, unfortunately, isn't a magic pic that will give us a nice butt and tight abs: and there definitely isn't one to help us lose weight. So we must start with setting goals that are attainable and then creating bigger goals over time. If you're overweight? Try losing a few pounds first before you aim for supermodel status. Find your body to be a little too fluffy and soft? Try getting to the gym, or to yoga, or swimming a few laps a few times a week and toning your body first before you aim for a spartan-like body. We have to take this all one step at a time. Create a goal, then hit it. Create a bigger goal, then hit that one. Create an even bigger goal, and then hit that one. And then keep that process going until you reach the place you've always dreamed of reaching with your body. Brick by brick, the building is built.
3. Embrace the Lifestyle (Not Just the Outfit)
Eventually, we accept the fact that everyone looks great in their workout gear: sports bras, tight pants that make the booty look like a million bucks. Naturally, we all want to look good first before we go stretch out our tensions, strengthen those muscles, and sweat out those toxins. I mean, why not look the part right? The only problem with just looking the part is that we may still feel those unhealthy, lazy-like feelings. We should use our workout gear to not only look good but also to motivate us. Before this age of the super-sexy workout gear coming to life, all we really wanted was some loose fitting clothes to sweat in so that we look good later on. Now we use clothes to make us look good before, during and after our workout routines: we gotta keep up the beauty standard created by these clothes. Point being, if your booty starts to sag, do you think yoga pants are going to save you? Um. No. Your super ripped abs start to become puffy and fluffy? Do you think your uber-tight workout shirt is going to save you? Sorry buddy. We've got to use these flattering workout clothes to help enhance our performance. We have to use these outfits to promote our well-being. Otherwise, it's just clothes. And if we are just wearing clothes to look good, but we don't feel good internally and externally, what's the point? We have to feel it; we have to live it. The food, the workout pattern, the dedication, the sexy clothes, it all goes hand in hand with what we are trying to accomplish here. It's never just one part. It's everything. It's an entire lifestyle.
You know those people that say "Goals are BS?" Not exactly true when it comes to fitness. Oftentimes, we want to work out or be more active but there is no energy behind our intentions. Many of us unfortunately want the results without doing the work. Many of us want to look like "The Rock", but none of us wants to get up at 4am to work out and put that work in. Many of us want the supermodel hot body, but none of us want to do the kickboxing classes or the cycling classes, or even develop a consistently proactive workout routine (running, yoga, rowing, etc) that will keep us fit and trim. In actuality, we have a tendency to be a results-based society. We see it in healthcare. We see it in our career choices. And we especially see it in getting results for health and wellness lifestyles. But in order to get those results, we need strong, consistent behaviors that will carry us to those results. There, unfortunately, isn't a magic pic that will give us a nice butt and tight abs: and there definitely isn't one to help us lose weight. So we must start with setting goals that are attainable and then creating bigger goals over time. If you're overweight? Try losing a few pounds first before you aim for supermodel status. Find your body to be a little too fluffy and soft? Try getting to the gym, or to yoga, or swimming a few laps a few times a week and toning your body first before you aim for a spartan-like body. We have to take this all one step at a time. Create a goal, then hit it. Create a bigger goal, then hit that one. Create an even bigger goal, and then hit that one. And then keep that process going until you reach the place you've always dreamed of reaching with your body. Brick by brick, the building is built.
3. Embrace the Lifestyle (Not Just the Outfit)
Eventually, we accept the fact that everyone looks great in their workout gear: sports bras, tight pants that make the booty look like a million bucks. Naturally, we all want to look good first before we go stretch out our tensions, strengthen those muscles, and sweat out those toxins. I mean, why not look the part right? The only problem with just looking the part is that we may still feel those unhealthy, lazy-like feelings. We should use our workout gear to not only look good but also to motivate us. Before this age of the super-sexy workout gear coming to life, all we really wanted was some loose fitting clothes to sweat in so that we look good later on. Now we use clothes to make us look good before, during and after our workout routines: we gotta keep up the beauty standard created by these clothes. Point being, if your booty starts to sag, do you think yoga pants are going to save you? Um. No. Your super ripped abs start to become puffy and fluffy? Do you think your uber-tight workout shirt is going to save you? Sorry buddy. We've got to use these flattering workout clothes to help enhance our performance. We have to use these outfits to promote our well-being. Otherwise, it's just clothes. And if we are just wearing clothes to look good, but we don't feel good internally and externally, what's the point? We have to feel it; we have to live it. The food, the workout pattern, the dedication, the sexy clothes, it all goes hand in hand with what we are trying to accomplish here. It's never just one part. It's everything. It's an entire lifestyle.
