Be Resilient

“Tough times don’t last. Tough people do.” – Unknown


Why should you be resilient? We live in a tough world. Full of competition, setbacks and failure. When you try and want to give up, that is when you know you must hang on a little harder. Starting a training program is tough, reaching a goal is tough, losing weight is tough. You must be tougher. When the scale isn't moving and you are having an off day and french fries and a Dr Pepper have never sounded better, then that is when you need to take a step back...Remember why you started this journey. Remember how far you have come. Remember all that you have already achieved. Rededicate yourself to your goal or give yourself a break if you need it. "I have worked out everyday this week and I don't feel like it"- its okay to feel that way! Just don't lose sight of what you want! Too often the next line is "so I might as well order take-out and camp out on the couch, I'm over this whole being healthy thing" (or some variation of such). You must persevere through the good days and more importantly through the bad days to reach your goal! Do not surrender to the negative self-talk in your head. Positively affirm yourself instead! "I have done so much this week that I am going to take today as a break but I will be back and refreshed tomorrow"- that is the kind of positive self-talk you need to remind yourself of, do not let the negative self-defeating words start sneaking into your workouts. 


“Being defeated is often a temporary condition. Giving up is what makes it permanent.” – Marilyn vos Savant


Instant gratification does not work in fitness. Ask any person that has ever done a crash diet or taken a weight loss pill. When you so dramatically change your life you can often be setting up for failure. Do not let your past experiences of failing to meet your goal or gaining weight back defeat you for your future. You can lose the weight. You can be the fit, healthy and active person that you want to be. You will make the daily changes and sacrifices in your life to make that work and you will not give up on your new plan. The key is following your SMART goals and making a realistic plan for you. If you are currently eating 3,000 calories a day then why would you cut down to 1,200 for your weight lose plan? You will lose weight if you cut down by smaller increments and you will not feel as deprived. Some people can eat a normal diet of 2,000 and still lose weight! That is a crazy concept to crash dieters that live on a yo-yo of eating out and consuming thousands of calories a day to restricting down to 1,200 bland calories and working out many hours a day. Those people crash because the change is too drastic and although they may lose weight at first, they will gain it back and then some. One pound is equal to 3,500 calories. So if you expend 500 calories more a day then you will lose one pound in one week. 500 calories means skipping dessert for a night or working out for an hour. If you make both changes then you will lose 2 pounds a week! The point is, you can make these small changes. Do not give up because it is too hard, make changes to make it more do-able. Be patient in the changes that are happening to your body and your mind. Do not expect instant results. If you can approach this realistically you will be proud of the 2 pounds you are losing a week. Most importantly, when its not going your way don't let it defeat you. It wouldn't be success if there weren't a risk of failure. BE RESILIENT!


"If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.” -Unknown