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| The Single Most Important Factor in Fitness | |
by Shawn LeBrun
Certified Personal Trainer
Just the other day, someone asked me what I thought the single most
important factor was in determining how fit you become.
They wanted to know if it involved abundant amounts of cardio and
weight training or if it had to do more with healthy eating and
proper nutrition.
I think my answer may have puzzled him a bit because I said it was
neither of those.
After I thought about the question for a few minutes, I told him
that there was a more important factor that preceded any of those he
mentioned.
I told him it was your attitude, first and foremost, that determined
your fitness levels and what type of conditioning you achieve.
You see, proper nutrition, cardio exercise, and weight training are
all important factors, but it's your attitude that determines how
hard you focus on each of those areas.
Generally speaking, your attitude is simply how you view things in
life and how you perceive something to be.
More specifically, you either have a positive view, or slant on
things, or you walk around most of the time with a negative view.
This attitude shines through in all that you do, including fitness
and working out.
If you generally have a good, positive attitude towards fitness,
then you're going to approach working out with more intensity and
more meaning.
You realize that in order to achieve and maintain a certain level of
conditioning, you have to "pay the price" and put in some hard work.
But working out does not seem to be a "chore" with a positive
attitude.
You look forward to it and feel positive knowing that the steps you
take in and out of the gym are going to bring you closer to the body
that you want.
On the other hand, if you approach fitness and working out with more
of a "negative attitude" you're either going to:
1. Do nothing at all as far as working out and eating healthy
because it all seems like so much hard work to get in great shape.
Since working out seems like a chore, you find it much easier just
to sit back and complain about your current situation and do nothing
to fix it.
With a negative view, you label "working out" as too much hard work
so you don't take the necessary steps to get the body you want.
That's why it's important to view working out in a positive light
and not a negative one.
Focus more on what you want rather than what you don't want.
Or, with a negative attitude:
2. You're going to do the bare minimum when it comes to working out
and watching what you eat. With a negative mindset, you're maybe
going to go to the gym once in a while and once there, not give it
your 100% all.
When it comes time to maintain a healthy eating regimen, you're not
going to be quite as strict as you should be and you're going to
give in to "instant pleasure". The long term rewards seem so
distant and far away.
So the first step in reaching your fitness potential is being more
aware of your mindset and attitude when it comes to working out and
getting fit.
Like motivational speaker Zig Ziglar says, "Do a check-up from the
neck up."
If you approach your fitness with a positive attitude, you ARE going
to take the necessary steps to get in shape, even when it would be
so much easier to stay in and watch TV.
You realize that persistence will pay off and that all of these
workouts and times skipping the pizza WILL get you where you want to
be.
Conversely, approach your workouts and nutrition with a negative
mindset and you're setting yourself up for failure.
View working out and healthy eating with a negative viewpoint and
you're not going to give your best when doing them.
As I'm sure you're aware, you only get in return what you give. In
other words, you harvest what you plant.
Be more positive in all areas of your fitness approach and you'll
get the body you want much faster.
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