The key to success is in your ability to overcome the inevitable struggle.
Attaining true success in the fitness game requires considerable effort. If it were easy to have a great physique, everyone would. But this is not the case and not by a long shot. Why? Because the road to the mountaintop is arduous.
Over 200 investors turned down Howard Schultz in his search for funding for Starbucks. What if he had quit after one rejection like most people would have? There would be no Starbucks, and he would have given in to the rejection.
But Schultz did not quit. He had a goal and a vision, and he realized that the key to success involved struggle. The same thing applies to your fitness and health journey, as there are going to be ups and downs along the way.
Pain Is The Mother Of Change
On your quest to build a stronger, leaner, and more muscular physique, you will experience pain. And much more than the pain of a hard set of squats or deadlifts.
For example, what happens when you suffer an unexpected injury? And what happens when you are not progressing as fast as you would like to?
You must endure the rainy days because the payoff will be huge. The key to success is in overcoming the struggles you face on your way up to the mountaintop.
Real change occurs when you hit rock bottom, and being at rock bottom often involves a high degree of pain. You might go to the doctor and find out you are overweight, have high cholesterol, and diabetes. Or you might look in the mirror and see a physique that is out of shape, and you are embarrassed by how you look.
These scenarios are without a doubt painful. But without feeling the pain of these scenarios, you would lack the urge to change and improve your situation.
Even The Greats Suffer
Most basketball analysts and fans (including me!) say Michael Jordan is the greatest player ever. But even MJ had to struggle.
In the 1980s, the Pistons eliminated Jordan and the Bulls from the playoffs for three straight years. Jordan was becoming the best player on the planet. But the Pistons had a strategy to limit his game. They beat him up and made him work hard even for a layup.
They isolated him and fouled him hard when he drove into the paint. They called this strategy the “Jordan Rules.”
At the time, Jordan did not have the belief in his teammates to help him. But trying to win by himself was resulting in devastating losses each year. After three years of painful losses, Jordan, Pippen, and the Bulls changed their approach. Phil Jackson told Jordan that, as great as he was, the Bulls needed to play more as a team to beat the Pistons.
In other words, he wanted Jordan to believe in his teammates. They used this approach, and it allowed them to rout the Pistons and start their championship dynasty.
Conclusion
Success requires struggle, but if you stay the course, you will have your day.
I’ll holla at you next time.
The People’s Trainer,
Fitman
