Develop Relationships to
Guarantee Fitness Success
Valentine’s Day has just come and gone.... Which reminds me of
the resolution that so many people set out with only 6 weeks ago, to lose
weight and finally get fit.
With great enthusiasm and determination you aggressively set off to achieve
this new goal. You did everything right, joined a new gym, started a new
diet, and really felt like things were going to happen.
Now, as it becomes familiar to write 2006 on your checks, you find that
you are right back where you started. Struggling to find time to workout,
paying less and less attention to what you eat and adding to that list
of things that just “don’t work” for you when it comes
to losing weight. Fortunately this year, I have a slightly different approach
just in time to save that New Year’s Resolution.
Typically in February we stop thinking so much about our resolutions
and start focusing on relationships. Wouldn’t it be great if we
could find a way to improve both fitness levels and relationships at the
same time?
Interestingly enough, it’s actually fairly rare for one to improve
without the other and yet success, in these areas, remains elusive to
many people.
Let’s take a look at a few ways that you can improve your physical
fitness by building successful relationships.
1. Develop a relationship with yourself.
This can make a bigger improvement in the overall well being of an individual
than just about anything else. We all get so caught up in the external
factors of life (family, friends, business, money, things), that we neglect
to develop the one relationship that is always present.
In creating a physical fitness goal like “losing 20 pounds”
or “dropping 2 dress sizes” you tend to focus on the outcome
of your activity rather than the real reasons that these goals may be
important to you.
These outcomes don’t happen over night so you get frustrated and
tired with the workouts and diets that “aren’t working”
and often you just quit. I suggest that you change your focus from spending
time working on those physical goals, to Investing that time developing
a healthy relationship with yourself.
Exercise is a great time for personal reflection and focus completely
on you. Take the time to have a real conversation with yourself. Perhaps
there is something that you have always wanted to learn. Use the time
to listen to audio books, listen to your favorite music, whatever is important
to you.
Schedule your physical training time and make it a priority. You are
building a stronger, healthier body as well as a stronger, healthier relationship
with a very important person.
2. Train with a Partner
Some of us find it challenging to commit to investing time purely for
our own benefit, but will move mountains to help someone that we truly
care about. Others may just find it more fun to work as a team toward
fitness and life goals. In any case, committing to work together with
a partner, that shares similar goals, will help keep you both focused
and consistently scheduled.
Choose a partner that you truly care about and that shares similar goals.
You will be spending time together on a regular basis, so find activities
that you both enjoy and that allow for the level of personal interaction
that you are most comfortable with.
As you make progress together, you will find that you are developing
new common bonds and strengthening your relationship. I have realized
great success in training both with close friends, family members and
my lovely wife. Whomever you choose to train with, make it fun and commit
to his/her success as well as your own.
3. Make it Work at Work
Spending a great deal of time at work doesn’t have to stop you
from making progress toward your fitness goals. In fact, integrating a
little more activity into your workday can give you more energy, make
you more productive and improve the quality of the relationships that
you manage in the workplace.
Get up and take a walk with your next meeting. Getting out of the office
can change the demeanor of some very serious meetings and often create
much more productive outcomes. Weather permitting, go outside and enjoy
some fresh air while conducting you business, both the extra activity
and the more casual setting will do you good.
If there is a restroom or copier on the other side of the building, take
time to walk the extra distance, take the stairs if possible, you will
find yourself more productive when you get back to your desk and you may
even meet some new people as you venture across the office.
Take mini-breaks to exercise right in your office or cubicle. Each hour,
or whenever the mood strikes you, get up and do a quick set of a resistance
training exercise. Try squats, lunges, desk pushups, or briefcase lifts.
Just pick one or two exercises and perform one set of five to eight repetitions
each hour. By the end of the day you will have done as much exercise as
a full training session.
With a slight change in focus we can all improve the fitness level of
both the physical body and relationships easily and permanently.
Travis Speegle, author of “STOP WORKING OUT! – A Simple
Effective Guide to Improving Your Body and Life in Just Minutes a Day”,
has been effectively coaching individuals and companies alike to realize
their own unique success since 1989. For more information visit http://www.stopworkingout.com
& http://www.stocktonft.com
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