Posts tagged new year's resolutions
30 Days of Motivation: Don’t Fool Yourself
Quote of the Day: “failure is not always about what you are doing, but more about what you are not doing.”
Scripture of the Day:”Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like.” James 1:22
I wish I could record people’s conversations with me so you could get a real grasp on this concept. I have SO many people that list all the things they are doing right – but they are not getting results. The listen to what I’m saying, but they pick and choose what they want to apply. Then they just tell me the good stuff, and they withhold the stuff they aren’t willing to surrender yet.
Don’t let your good intensions cloud reality. If you aren’t getting results, it doesn’t matter how clean you eat, how much you lift and how often you run. If you aren’t losing the weight, or getting the results you want, you are clearly DOING plenty right – but you are doing something wrong.
Oftentimes it means you are eating too big of portions, too many calories, or getting the wrong substrates (fat, protein, carbs). My goal for you today is to encourage you to look at the balance between what you are doing – and what you are still not doing. Whether you are still drinking and still having your glass of wine at night, or still having your daily dose of chocolate. OR, maybe it’s your weekly cheat meal or date night that is sabotaging your progress. Whatever it is, please do not full yourself into thinking you can do enough right to erase your wrongs.
You can’t compete with what you eat – and getting results doesn’t just require hard work in the gym, but it requires a certain level of sacrifice in the kitchen and in your daily lifestyle. 
What is the first thing that comes to mind right now that you haven’t surrendered. That is probably the one thing standing in your way of success.
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: Don’t Erase Your Hard Work
Quote of the Day: I will not erase all the hard work I did in the gym this week with what I eat in the kitchen this weekend.
Scripture of the Day: “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. Matthew 7:13-14
What this verse is saying is “Don’t do what everyone else does.” Everyone else does whatever they want on the weekend. Everyone else feels like the deserve the break. “We work hard during the week, let’s live it up on the weekend” some say – but how dumb is that?
Whether we are talking about how we eat, how we spend money or how we act, we should be protective over what we have worked hard on all week long – whether we worked hard to make money, for a good reputation, for spiritual growth, or to make progress toward our weight loss goals. Does it mean you completely live one day like none of that matters? Do we have an “OFF” day, as if no rules apply and the calories, actions, money or whatever don’t count? NO! What happens on the weekends doesn’t stay on the weekends! We carry that junk with us into the new week. Of course we can have small treats and fun, but we should be so dedicated to our goals, and to our standards, that we don’t go so overboard we erase 6 days of hard work on one day.
Sadly, this happens to so many people who in pursuit of a new weight or fitter body. Most people fail, not because they aren’t working hard enough in the gym, but because they aren’t working hard enough in the kitchen (especially on the weekends). They blow 5-6 days of sweat and tears on snacks and cheat meals. Even people who are eating healthy, still can eat too much.
Start becoming protective over your hard work in the gym. It comes with a cost – they are called calories. We burn them in the gym, and we need to protect that investment and prevent replacing them with irresponsible eating.
If you are trying to lose weight, commit to counting every single calorie you eat this weekend, even if you’ve never counted calories before. Before it goes in your mouth, look it up and add it up. Once you know the real cost of food, you will begin to budget your eating better and see the results you want! Have a great weekend everyone! More motivation tomorrow!!
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: Strength Starts In Your Mind
Quote of the Day: “Strength starts in the mind. Rule your mind or it will rule you.”
Scripture of the Day: “Therefore I always exercise and discipline myself [mortifying my body, deadening my carnal affections, bodily appetites, and worldly desires, endeavoring in all respects] to have a clear (unshaken, blameless) conscience, void of offense toward God and toward men.” Acts 24:16
I love what Horace said, “Rule your mind or it will rule you“. Our mind is our own worst enemy. When I think of my mind, I feel like I have an enemy at camp – a part of me that is not on my side. My mind seems to go against everything I know is good for me. It convinces me that I’m too weak, I’m too stupid and a multitude of other negative thoughts. I fail in my mind way before I ever fail in real life. HOWEVER, that only happens IF I let my mind run loose.
Self control in your eating, your training, your language, and your actions all starts with self control in your thoughts. The evidence of a controlled mind is you kill the thought as soon as it appears and you act on them less and less. But this takes practice (exercise). Sadly, most of us are tempted to camp there in that thought, feed it and let it grow. Whether it’s food, problems, anger, doubt or negativity, we have a choice as SOON as that thought comes up to either feed it or kill it.
There are SO many scriptures about controlling your mind, as God knows how powerful our mind really is. In Acts, Paul is quoted saying he has to “exercise and discipline” his mind. Another version says Paul strived to have a “conscience without offense”. If you know Paul, these words have a LOT more punch than they first appear. Paul (before he met Jesus) was a murderer. He did a lot of bad things. So you can only imagine what thoughts came to his mind after he realized his wrongs and decided to dedicate his life to the ministry. Guilt, doubt, frustration and regret are likely thoughts that wanted to rule his mind. I know they would if I were in his shoes. Of course this is my own speculation, but anyone who has messed up really bad in the past probably has these thoughts that want to creep back up and sabotage progress.
If I were him, I’d think I was the LAST person to be effective for the church. If he lived in our day, we’d call him a terrorist, yet he was called to minister to the very same people who he once murdered and hated. I also imagine he thought he wasn’t capable or worthy. He probably had to battle thoughts of the past daily, and all the regret that came with it. He said “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.” (Phil 3:13) The key point here is we can learn a lot from him, because if anyone had to battle his mind, it was Paul – and we are no different really.
We’ve all messed up. We can beat ourselves up for the things we’ve done, or we can kill those thoughts and feed thoughts of truth and hope. Whether we have thoughts and memories of poor choices, past failures or weight gain, we must learn to rule them or they will rule us. Even if it’s thoughts of regret for what we did yesterday (cheating on a diet, skipping a workout, etc) or if it’s thoughts of past failure from years of neglect or abuse, we must do what Paul did – forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.
Today, commit to exercising your mind as much as you exercise your body.
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: Finish What You Started
Quote of the Day: Commitment is finishing what you started even when you don’t feel like doing it anymore.”
Scripture of the Day: “Now finish what you began, so that your eagerness to do so may be matched by your eagerness to complete it.” 2 Corinthians 8:11
When we start something new, a diet, a workout, a way of life, a new relationship, etc. – they all have an excitement about them when you first start. The problem is that exciting newness will fade.
How necessary is a commitment on your first day of marriage, or first week, first month, first year? But how much more necessary is that commitment in year 5, 10, 15 and 20?
We wouldn’t need to make a commitment if it were easy. We make commitments because we know they will be hard. We know we will lose the excitement and motivation that got us started. That’s why we make a commitment to our spouse. We make that commitment to give them security that we will stay even when we don’t feel like it. That is the same type of commitment required for fitness – and that commitment should give us the security that we will get the results if we stick with it. We don’t have to feel like working out or feel like eating clean to get results. As long as we stay committed you will finish what you started.
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: Taste This!
Quote of the Day: If you think Chocolate tastes good, wait until you taste success!
Scripture of the Day: “Taste and see that the LORD is good” Psalms 34:8
Someone recently was telling Steve how “lucky” he was for having such amazing dedication and self discipline, as if he had extra self-control super powers and dieting was easier for him than others. I have to laugh at this, knowing just how much he struggles with his diet. Why do people think it’s easier for the “fit people” to avoid sweets or not overeat? Then I realized, maybe it is a little easier for those who have already tasted success, because they realize success tastes better than the food they may have to give up.They know without a shadow of a doubt that it is all worth it.
It is hard to give up something for nothing, or for something they’ve never experienced before. It’s hard to invest in something when you have not yet enjoyed the even greater return. However, when you know how it feels to be fit, trim, feel good, feel more comfortable in your skin, feel stronger, feel healthier, etc., maybe it is a tad easier to stick with your diet. Then, trading regular coke for diet coke, or pizza for grilled chicken, seems easy.
I believe that is why scripture says “taste and see” (Psalms 34:8). God knows if we will just give Him a try, and taste His goodness, nothing will compare to it. I believe the same is true for fitness and taking care of our bodies. We are so fooled into thinking that certain foods, or living a certain lifestyle, is worth the extra pounds. However, if you’d just “taste and see”, I believe you’d realize nothing compares to living in a healthy body. Suddenly, sluggishness, heaviness, tight pants, high blood pressure, insecurities that follow weight gain, and all the repercussions of a lack of self-control make that lifestyle no longer worth it. But first, you must “taste and see” so you can make that comparison for yourself – because until you experience it yourself, you cannot fully understand and comprehend the reward.
Stick to your goals this year, long enough to truly taste and see how it feels to reach your goal – and I mean your dreamy goal, not your first goal. No! I’m talking about pressing on past what is good to what is great! Don’t stop short of your very best. THEN, you can say you’ve tasted success – and THEN, you’ll know just how good it really is and maybe then passing up the sweets or sticking to your plan will also be a little easier for you too!
A NOTE FOR DIETERS: Don’t get me wrong! Being fit doesn’t mean you never have chocolate again. However, when you are in the dieting phase and trying to lose weight, it may mean you are giving up some things (or not eating as much as you’d like of those things). The diet phase is more strict, but maintenance phase is much easier, and will allow room for occasional treats and freedom. The key is balance and accountability. Once a treat becomes a habit, the weight will creep right back on. Stick to your plan. I do promise it will be worth it. No one feels a set of tight tone abs and thinks “boy I wish I had eaten more pizza”.
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: Make Yourself Proud
Quote of the Day: “Do today what will make you proud tomorrow.”
Scripture of the Day: God says, “I have set before you life and death, the blessings and the curses; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live”. Deuteronomy 30:19
We don’t think of it this way, but the choices we make today determine our chances of blessings and curses we get later on. God gave us the choice. We can invest in life, or we can invest in death. The choice is ours.
Sure, bad things happen to good people, and vice versa, but we can expect a better healthier future if we make better healthier choices now. In the same way, we can expect a life of sickness, ailments, troubles if we invest in a lazier unhealthy lifestyle.
I see so many sick people who are suffering now simply because of how they treated (or neglected) their body years ago. I’m sure they didn’t think about how their choices would result in back pain, diabetes, obesity, etc. You can learn from those people. Don’t make that same mistake.
This year, decide to make better choices now – as an investment in a life you will be satisfied with (and PROUD OF) later.
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: What Are You Really Giving Up
Quote of the Day: “Don’t worry about what you are giving up now. Worry about what you risk giving up if you quit pressing on.”
Scripture of the Day: “I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” Philippians 3:14
When we start a diet, the first thing we think about is everything we are going to have to give up to reach our goal. We think about the food we won’t be able to eat, the parties we won’t want to go to (because we don’t want to be tempted) or the time we are going to have to invest in working out. What if we could change our whole way of thinking so this isn’t the first thought?
What if we changed our mindset and we were more concerned about what we are giving up if we eat the junkfood, skip our workout or don’t stick with our program. I mean, what is more valuable? The taste of our favorite cheat meal for 30 minutes or feeling comfortable and proud of our body for 24 hours a day?
This year, let’s focus on the prize more than the cost – because, honestly, the cost is so little compared to what we have to gain!!
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: It’s Time to Get Back Up
Quote of the Day: “There is no question we will fall. The question is how we will get up.”
Scripture of the Day: Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” John 5:8
We All Fall Down
We’ve all done it. We skip a workout. We get out of a routine. We get lazy. We get on a pity party. We cheat on our diet – or completely go off of it all together! We stuff ourselves so full that we walk away from the table completely disgusted with ourselves, only to do it again a few hours or days later.
Are we mentally retarded? Nope! We are human. We like food and we hate discipline. But sooner or later, there comes the time to say goodbye to poor eating and to start fresh and erase your “sins”.
Are You Going to Just Sit There?
Ironically, we can go weeks, and even months, spending more time regretting the damage than we do on repairing it. Quit beating yourself up. You did it. It’s over. That’s so 3 seconds ago! It’s time to move on!
Jesus told that man to “get up”. Another words, quit laying there complaining and hoping someone will help you. Jesus also said “take up your bed” which, I believe, meant “clean up your mess, it’s time to move on”. Lastly Jesus says “walk”. At that time, the man was still paralyzed. I think the message here is there is work required. We have to make an effort if we want to be “healed”, and we have to have faith.
If you want something, you have to at least try to do it. If we want to get in shape, we can’t wait for someone, some pill or some magical motivational feeling to make us fit. No, we have to get up an “walk”. We have to have faith that if we make the first step, it will be worth it – that your work will pay off. You will never know what you can do, if you never even try.
Get on Solid Ground
Quit fretting about how fat you feel. Quit rehashing your mistakes. Instead, focus on your plan and focus on “cleaning up your mess”. We all trip up. The actual fall (or the embarrassment of falling) and the getting up part is the hardest part. Once you get up, standing is easy – as long as you are on solid ground. Get your footing and plant yourself in a healthy environment.
Quitting regretting and start living!
Exercise of the Day: Turkish Get Up
Try this Turkish Get Up Workout on LiveExercise
Try our BCx Boot Camp workouts on LiveExercise Free! It’s only $7.99/month for 2,000+ workouts!
Turkish Get Up Triplet
Grab a dumbbell or kettlebell in one hand and do the following exercises on 1 Arm Only
10 Turkish Get Ups
10 Snatches
10 1-Arm Thruster (Squat & Press)
(Repeat on the other Arm)
REPEAT 3 TIMES
Pinterest Image:
Widget is loading comments…
Share this:
30 Days of Motivation: Beware of Short Cuts
Day 4: 30 Days of Motivation
Quote of the Day: “VICTORY doesn’t come in diet pills, shortcuts, tricks, gimmicks, fad diets, surgery or drugs. Victory Starts With opposition, and requires good old-fashioned hard work, dedication and perseverance. ”
Scripture of the Day: “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” James 1:12
Bring Your Gym Bag, Your Muscles AND Your Brain
When I show someone an exercise, I believe it’s important to tell that person what we are working, why that exercise is working that muscle group, and how they can make the most of that particular exercise to get the results they want. Not only will they understand the importance of that exercise, and know how to do it correctly, they will be more motivated to do it when they understand what it will do for them.
Sure, I could easily just point to a machine and have them go through the motions. Shoot, if I did that, they’d HAVE to keep coming back to me for help. Maybe other people consider that good job security. Some trainers have the mentality of, “don’t teach them anything, or they might go off and do it themselves”. But, if I just told people what to do, although it may change their body, it won’t change their mind.
Here’s my philosophy. People need a mind make-over. People need more than guidance, they need education. They need to make better decisions when no one is around to tell them what to do. The more a trainer empowers people with knowledge, the more lives they can change. The more success stories, the better their reputation will be – that THEY were the one that helped so many people reach their goals.
Sadly, some people just don’t want to learn. Often times people resort to short cuts or programs that tell you what to do because they don’t want to think for themselves. While joining a program that directs you is a good thing, beware of spending hours being told what to do without learning anything. Don’t be afraid to think, to try to understand, to invest time and energy in learning.
We are supposed to LEARN from our hard work. Dedication and discipline is supposed to challenge us, grow us and teach us how to persevere and overcome obstacles. Don’t look for short cuts, look for the right path – no matter how long or hard it looks. The right path is where you will learn the most, and you’ll learn how to stay on track once you get there!
Don’t look for shortcuts, sometimes the hardest routes teach us the most!
Motivational Quotes to Motivate You
- The reason a lot of people do not recognize opportunity is because it usually goes around wearing overalls looking like hard work. Thomas A. Edison
- Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work. Peter Drucker
- Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did. Newt Gingrich
- Enjoy your sweat because hard work doesn’t guarantee success, but without it you don’t have a chance. Alex Rodriguez
- Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don’t turn up at all. Sam Ewing
- Talent in cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work. Stephen King
- Young people are threatened… by the evil use of advertising techniques that stimulate the natural inclination to avoid hard work by promising the immediate satisfaction of every desire. Pope John Paul II
- For every two minutes of glamour, there are eight hours of hard work. Jessica Savitch
- All the problems of the world could be settled easily if men were only willing to think. The trouble is that men very often resort to all sorts of devices in order not to think, because thinking is such hard work. Thomas J. Watson
- You can’t get there by bus, only by hard work and risk and by not quite knowing what you’re doing. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover will be yourself. Alan Alda
- Temporary success can be achieved in spite of lack of other fundamental qualities, but no advancements can be maintained without hard work. William Feather
- No great achiever – even those who made it seem easy – ever succeeded without hard work. Jonathan Sacks
- Opportunity looks a lot like hard work. Ashton Kutcher
- A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work. Colin Powell
Share this:
The Secret to a Strong Finish
Day 4 of 30 Days of Motivation: The Beginning, The Foundation.
Quote of the Day: “Start Strong, End Stronger”
Scripture of the Day: “other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” Mark 4:8
So far this new year, my topics have all centered around the beginning – examining yourself, setting goals, getting your head right and making a plan. There is no finish without a beginning. While that may seem obvious to most of us, I believe we forget just how important the beginning of success really is.
Our impatience gets us in trouble. Let me give you an example. If an impatient farmer doesn’t do what is necessary to prepare the field, it really doesn’t matter how hard he works on planting the seed, watering the seed and taking care of the crop, he’s not going to have a good harvest.
In many ways, we do the same thing when we attack our New Year’s goals. We skip all the important preparation that helps us get the best result possible. We skip necessary steps like basic diet education or doing our homework on gyms, workouts, etc. We start our workout program unprepared, with the wrong shoes and with no tools. We may give our workouts 100% but we haven’t even gone to the grocery store or started our foot preparation.
While the preparatory phase is not an exciting phase, it’s a necessary phase to getting fit. You MUST invest in learning how to get the results you need. If you are relying on short cuts, gimmicks, quick fix fads, diet pills, etc to get you results, like a crop that springs up fast but dies because it has shallow roots, your fitness will soon die out too.
Commit to spending time on preparing for success and you will have a much greater chance of success.
CLICK HERE to visit my Get Pfit page, for preparing your foundation to fitness.
Digging Deeper
4 Types of Soils: “A farmer went out to plant some seed. As he scattered it across his field, some of the seed fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seed sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn’t have deep roots, it died. Other seed fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants so they produced no grain. Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” Mark 4:3-8
What It Means
In this verse Jesus is talking about different hearts, and it applies to so many areas of our life. I broke down the 4 different soils to help you understand just how important our foundation truly is.
1. The footpath: You hear the truth, but others trample you with “their way”.
2. Rocky Soil: You start excited, but the depth of your knowledge is shallow, and you burn out fast.
3. Thorny Soil: You are in an environment where you are easily distracted, allowing other people and philosophies to choke you the life and excitement out of you.
4. Fertile Soil: You are prepared for growth. You have a soft and open heart, ready to hear, learn and grow.
Have you done what you need to do to prepare your “soil”? In order to really be ready for change, you have to be easy to penetrate – meaning, you need to be ready to hear the truth and apply it. Ready to dig deep and dig out any rocks, protect yourself from any “vultures” and take the time to prepare your heart and life for change. A hard stubborn person doesn’t want to admit they need change. They don’t want to accept the truth and what needs to change. They aren’t willing to accept wrongs and they want to convince you of everything right they are doing. This is a recipe for disaster. Take the time now to prepare for a bountiful harvest! Start strong, end stronger!!!
