Fit for Life: The Price of Greatness
Saturday March 9, 2024
PHOTO: File
I have a routine where I work out with one of my trainers twice a week.
We go to the gym on Sunday morning and hike Diamond Hill on Friday morning.
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I am 55 years old, weigh over 200 pounds and currently have knee pain. He’s a healthy 22-year-old who weighs 155 pounds and is lightning fast.
I’m going to tell you this to see the contrast between physical appearance, abilities and age.
I can surpass him and he crushes me in every other category.
Since we have consistently done this, he has gotten stronger and I have better endurance trying to keep up with me in different training environments.
These are the differences; however, our conversations are only about how we can both improve and accomplish more. We talk about growth, mindset, and what it takes to succeed.
Last week we started discussing what it takes to be the best ever. We’ve mentioned names like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Muhammed Ali, Sugar Ray Robinson and Tom Brady, just to name a few.
We explained that becoming the best at something requires not only innate talent, but also significant sacrifices in life.
Maintaining the level of greatness achieved by the elements mentioned above takes more time and effort than most are willing to invest. TB has watched countless hours of game film and studied the game inside and out.
Kobe would be at the gym shooting well after sunset and would be there before anyone else the next day. Ali sacrificed not only hours spent in the gym, but also his health later in life.
This is the formula to be evoked in the same way as the greatest of all time.
Be talented and outperform EVERYONE AT ANY TIME!!
The bad news is that being the best is reserved for a few, and it’s likely that none of us will ever reach that pinnacle in life, no matter how hard we try or how big the dream.
The good news is that you can still become great by being consistently good.
Let me explain.
Ironically, this week I was reading an article by Frank, a great coach in my Todd Durkin Mastermind group. Every time I meet with Frank, I come away with tons of valuable tools to implement in my business.
He’s a great guy with a lot of experience in the fitness world.
His post was about a series of bike races he competed in last week in San Diego.
He did 5 races and got on the podium in all of them. He hasn’t won them all and he’s not the greatest cyclist of all time, but what I learned from his wise words in his message is that it’s more important to to be “always good rather than occasionally excellent.”
This resonated with me because a lot of people believe that if I can’t be good at something, I’ll just quit and stop doing it. But it’s a bad attitude.
My advice is to try to always be good at everything you do and not worry about being perfect or the best.
How do you do this, you ask?
As Frank said in his article, it takes 3 things: strategy, effort and consistency.
Since I’m in the fitness business, let’s consider these three elements to determine what it takes to be physically fit. Now, I’m not talking about reaching Arnold’s level as the greatest bodybuilder of all time; I’m talking about being in great shape.
The first is strategy. This is where planning comes in. You need to set a big goal and figure out what it will take to get there.
• Will you hire a coach?
• Will you try to do it alone?
• Do you have a meal plan?
• How many days a week do you plan to train?
Everything we want to accomplish requires an action plan and a roadmap.
Then comes the effort. Whether it’s getting in great shape or running a big business, everything takes effort because nothing worthwhile in life comes easy for any of us. Let go of the mentality that we are entitled to an easy life because that is not the case. Anyone who achieves success in any field of life has to put in effort and a lot of effort.
The last and most crucial factor is consistency. This means you have to work hard on reps day after day, even when you don’t feel like it.
To be fit, you need to work out regularly 3-5 times a week and eat well all the time, not just when it’s convenient for you.
To run a large business, you must constantly improve and market your product.
You have to show up and invest in your team.
You need to stay mindful of your metrics and systematically use data to make your decisions.
So the next time you feel discouraged because you’re not the best or the best at something, remember the sacrifices the greats had to endure to achieve it.
Instead, create a strategy and make the effort to always be good at whatever you want to do.
Vince Lombardi, one of the greatest professional football coaches of all time (along with Bill), has a great quote:
We strive for perfection but we will never achieve it because no one is perfect, but we will achieve greatness along the way.
Go out and be BIG!!
Coach Matt
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