I have just kicked of the Pre-Holiday Weight Loss Challenge, and so far it is going great! A lot of people have joined up and everyone is excited about focusing on some positive improvements over the next 30 days.
One of the things that struck me as I was heading out for my very first workout of the Challenge was how powerful it was to think in terms of how many actual workouts I have time for over the next 30 days, rather than just think “I have 30 days”.
The reason why that was such a critical distinction was because I realized how people tend to think in linear terms, i.e. – “I’ll have time for that later, because there is plenty of time left”.
You have to admit, when you are looking at a 30-day period, even though it isn’t a HUGE amount of time, you do still tend to think that there is more time ahead of you than there is behind you, so you don’t have to worry too much because you’ve still got “plenty of time”.
Well, that mentality might work if you were talking about a book report or a term paper, but when it comes to physical fitness, you can’t change the laws of physics. It takes “x” amount of time to lose bodyfat, and it takes “x” amount of time to put on muscle mass.
Unless you are destroying your body with steroids or you are risking your life with liposuction, you have no choice but to put in the time and do the work that is required in order to attain your goal.
By the way, even if you did think that it was okay to use steroids or to get liposuction, one little known fact about those “solutions” is that you don’t get any of the other benefits of physical fitness that you would have gotten if you had done the exercises and eaten properly. You know, things like living longer!
It’s funny because when my wife signed up for the Challenge, on her sign up form she typed “I want the magic pill”. Well, being married to someone who has been in the health and fitness profession for years, she is well aware of the fact that THERE IS NO MAGIC PILL.
She was just making a joke, but for the purposes of YOUR health, dear reader, be sure that you understand the truth about the magic pill. I will sit here and wait patiently while you read it as many times as is necessary.
….
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All done? Good! Moving forward…
So, if there is no magic pill, and you can’t change the laws of physics, and you are involved in a short-term weight loss program – say, 30 days – then what does that leave you with?
30 WORKOUTS!
That’s it, that’s all. No number of excuses will magically change the clock for you. No Quantum Physicist will swoop to your rescue and teach you how to reconfigure your body at a molecular level (although that may be possible, but not this side of a serious course of study in metaphysics), and no one is going to bring you the “magic pill”.
You have to do the work. Plain and simple.
I also want to point out that although we are talking about physical fitness right now, this same concept applies to anything that you do in your life. If you want to get results, you have to do the work.
What that “work” is depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Law of Attraction junkies (such as myself) will tell you that your “work” is sometimes as simple as focusing on what you want, although it can also be much more involved than that – such as when you are trying get in shape.
Regardless of your goal, the Law of Attraction can – and will – play a powerful role in your goal attainment process simply because of the nature of those principles.
However, unless you can shape shift (sorry, I’m in the middle of watching re-runs of the X-files), or unless you can bust open your metaphysical toy box and spring forth a doozy, then guess what?
You have to do the work.
Here’s the best part, though. When you work hard and attain your goals, you will value what you have accomplished a lot more than if it had just been handed to you.
You know, like, in the form of a magic pill! 🙂