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Today one of the trainers at my gym jumped on the scales and was stoked to see he’d chucked on a kilo and a half… to which his cheeky client exclaimed “Yeah but you’ve got your shoes on!”
He claimed his shoes weigh next to nothing I reasoned that I’m sure my shoes weigh 2 kilos to which the other ladies in the gym eagerly agreed their’s must too.
It’s all a matter of perspective.
He wants to put on weight. I’m happy where I am, however I still have a slight issue with that admittedly deceptive lil number on the scale reading more than it has in the past. Just because I look as lean as I’ve ever looked doesn’t mean even though I live this stuff – on some level that number still plays with my mind a bit…. anyway, todays show isn’t about an obsession with the scale (I covered that in #028) today lets chat: Perspective.
Specifically how to choose your perspective to support sticking to the exercise plan that will get you results.
I regularly have to remind myself to take on someone else’s perspective at work. I’ll often catch myself before I launch into an all out assault on why whatever excuse is not valid… I know my perspective is centred around a belief that health is everything and not to be taken for granted and it only gets sooo much harder when you skip your planned exercise however perspective is just opinion not fact.
Someone else’s perspective may be that family or work or comfort is everything and not to be taken for granted.
There’s no right or wrong however you can choose the perspective that will make it easier for you to take the exercise actions you know you need to take. Here’s how:
I have 3 steps and they all centre around FIRST shining the light of your focus beyond your own world.
It’s super easy to see only your own stuff right? However moving beyond your own world gives you the chance to:
One: Feel Gratitude.
Yep, I’m back on the gratitude band wagon. You can resent that you need to exercise and you’ll struggle to get yourself to do it every single time OR you can feel grateful that you have the opportunity.
When you consider the people who don’t have the opportunity to exercise in a safe, clean, supportive environment perhaps while listening to great music or an awesome podcast or maybe interacting with friendly fellow exercisers – when that is a big problem for you to put up with, well to be blunt – it’s really not so much of a big problem.
Like really not at all.
Two: Feel Inspired.
I guarantee no matter how time poor, exhausted or overwhelmed you feel… despite that annoying injury you might have or the boomerang sniffle… Irrespective of that NON-facts that you’re too old, have poor genetics, are not a natural exerciser… And even if you can’t afford a gym membership and your tiny apartment or the great outdoors in winter is your only option…
Beyond all that?
There’s someone out in a more challenging situation making their exercise happen. It’s natural and human to feel daunted by the obstacles that jump in your way – however perspective gives you hope when you can see the obstacles someone else is currently successfully pushing through. If they can do it – you can too.
Three: Feel It’s Attainable.
1/2 an hour of daily exercise can feel like a massive commitment and 3.5 hours per week might seem like a sizeable amount of time each week to magic up. However if you view your daily exercise commitment from the perspective of just a mere 1/48 of your day… surely the activity that keeps you healthy, happy, efficient and confident is worth that time investment?
How many other activities squander half an hour a day and do they give you the benefits that exercise performed consistently does?
Equally getting to your ideal healthy and body may seem like a scary big goal with a tonne of work, a heap of steps and a good few fears to overcome on the way. That’s sort of how creating my online community – The Body Gain Lifestyle – could feel to me right now too!
However when I break it down into 1/2 an hour at 4am and 1/2 an hour in the evening with a couple more solid chunks of focused work each week and when I focus on my vision for the end result when I launch this baby in January then from that perspective it feels attainable.
I’ll let you know more about The Body Gain Lifestyle in the coming weeks however my main focus is: to make the mindset component of Body Gain simple, implementable and sustainable.
Because today is the training show lets finish with a work-out.
A work-out I started thinking of on the weekend at that large commercial gym I love to train at for a change of scenery once a week… and Yes of course it’s for the change and the 45 degree leg press that we don’t have at our smaller studio certainly not for the ‘eye candy’ on show…
So, I thought this was just a joke that regularly made those Gym Etiquette posts or Gym Fail you tube videos… however No, the man with his tee-short tucked into his lycra shorts and an assortment of 8 sets of dumbbells actually does exist and he was hanging with all his dumbbells Curling in the Squat Rack. At peak time on a Saturday when the squat rack is hot property.
It’s all matter of perspective and I guess he figured the rack was a nice little enclosed space to corral his dumbbells however here’s a work-out I consider more worthy of the squat rack!
A1) Barbell Lunge 8-12 reps each leg.
A2) Pistol Squat 6-9 reps each leg. (unless you are an absolute machine you need something to hold on to and a sturdy squat rack works well).
=> perform this superset 3 times.
If there’s no one waiting for the rack and you want to up the anti on this work-out add A3 for time:
optional-noone-waiting A3) Kettle-bell Swing (30-45 seconds).
B1) Barbell Dead-lift 8-12 reps.
B2) Sumo in out jump Squat 12-16 reps.
=> perform this superset 3 times.
optional-noone-waiting B3) Medicine-ball Dip (30-45 seconds).
C1) Barbell Wide Grip Bent-over Row 8-12 reps.
C2) Walk-out 6-9 reps each leg.
=> perform this superset 3 times.
optional-noone-waiting C3) Snatch to Eccentric Shoulder Press (30-45 seconds each arm).
To get actionable today: Which is the step that will most help you choose a perspective that makes it easier for you to tackle that barbell work-out?
To recap, the 3 steps are…
One: Feel Gratitude.
Two: Feel Inspired.
Three: Feel It’s Attainable.
I’d love to hear how you go. You can let me know via the comments below.
That’s it for me today, big thanks to you for spending this time with me and I hope you can join me tomorrow for the Friday FAQ show where I cover, Courage Doesn’t Always Roar.
If you liked this you’ll also like: 24 Weight Loss Motivation Quotes.
If you’re yet to share the Healthification love – just click here to zip over to iTunes and leave an honest rating and review. It’d help me out big time. With gratitude, Kate.