It Ain't All Flowers

I began 2018 with several goals in mind, but two personal ones were to read at least 12 books and start writing a blog for the gym. This is my attempt to combine the two. Each month I am committing to writing a blog post about the book I read and how it relates to what we do at H Dub. Book number one is “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*@k “ by Mark Morrison.

The title of this book is ironic. It actually does not teach you how to care less about things, but rather how to care about the right things. There were plenty of awesome points made over the course of its 210 pages, but I want to discuss just one: struggle.

In the second chapter, Morrison discusses happiness. He brings up a question that most of us have probably been asked in one way or another, “What do you want out of life?” Think about this, but narrow your answers down to your own personal fitness goals. You may give answers like “I want to have a six pack”, “I want to run a 5 minute mile” or “I want to squat 400 lbs.” The problem is that lots of people want some or all of these things. We all want to look better naked, we all want to perform better, we all want to be faster and/or stronger. The real question is “What are you willing to struggle for?” If your goal is to have a six pack, are you willing to come to the gym 5+ days a week and stay strict to a nutrition plan despite the sacrifices you have to make. If the answer is no, then maybe it isn’t something you truly want.

We have to shift our mind to focus less on the victory and more on the process. We need to learn to love the pain and not the reward. I will use one of my above goals as an example. I want to read more to become more intelligent and to help my athletes and business grow. At first, I wanted this because many people I admire say they read often. So I thought, ok if I read more, I will be like them. Piece of cake. But, it is not that easy for someone whose last book they read was in high school. I have to set aside time in my busy day. I have to pick up that book instead of the tv remote when I get home from working a 12 hour day. But, learning to enjoy the process of reading has helped immensely.

Sit down and think long and hard about your 2018 fitness goals and your willingness to achieve them. Once you have these goals set, bring them to Lacee or myself and we will help set you up for success. This is what we love to do! Know it’s not going to be easy and you have to learn to love the process, even if it’s hard. Once you understand this, the chances of succeeding are HIGH. I will leave you with a lyric from one of my favorite musicians, Sturgill Simpson, “It ain’t all flowers, sometimes you gotta feel the thorns”.