Fitness for Life: Why It's Not Just a 90-Day Fix
I want to talk to you about something that's been on my mind lately. It's about fitness, but not the kind you might be thinking of. Not the kind that promises you'll get ripped in 90 days, or that you can drop 20 pounds in a month. No, I'm talking about real, lifelong fitness. The kind that changes not just your body, but your mind, your habits, and your life.
I've been in the fitness industry for over a decade, and I've seen all the trends come and go. The fad diets, the miracle workouts, the "get fit quick" schemes. And I've seen the damage they can do. They create unrealistic expectations, they promote unhealthy habits, and they set people up for failure. That's not what fitness is about. Not real fitness.
Fitness as a Lifelong Journey
Real fitness is a lifelong journey. It's about making consistent, sustainable changes to your lifestyle. It's about learning to love and respect your body, to nourish it and care for it, not punish it or deprive it. It's about finding balance, finding joy in movement, and finding the strength to keep going, even when it's hard.
One of the biggest misconceptions I've encountered in my career is the idea of the "90-day fix". People believe that they can achieve their fitness goals in a short period and then maintain them without effort. They think that getting the results they want won't require a new education on how to shop for groceries or how to train properly. But that's not how it works.
Achieving a fitness goal is temporary, but to sustain it, you must maintain the lifestyle and habits that got you there. It's not about fixing your body in 90 days and then moving on. It's about making a lifelong commitment to your health and wellbeing.
The Power of Community and Support
One thing I love about fitness trends like CrossFit is the sense of community they foster. You stick to something you love, where you have friends and community and support. Doing it solo, in any endeavor, can be a test of pure grit, and there is no reason for that when you can find support, even in solo endeavors by being on a team.
Adapting to Change
Fitness is about periodization and phasing through periods of focus. You can have it all, you just can’t have it all at once. Most people stall and get frustrated because they do the same thing over and over again. You have to change it up, and specifically every 3-6 weeks is where I find the sweet spot.
The Importance of Small, Achievable Goals
Setting small, achievable goals is something that keeps you motivated and task-oriented. Set goals, plan, train, accomplish, reevaluate, do it again. It's a cycle, a process, and it's one that leads to lifelong fitness.
Building Mental Resilience
There are going to come setbacks and tough times, you have to be able to overcome. You are going to fail and fall. You will cry, and you might even lose a sense of who you are. You must overcome and keep becoming tougher. You are what you take in, and who you hang around. Follow the right accounts. Follow the jockos, the David Goggins, the wim hoffs, the Aubrey Marcus’s, and all the new age leaders who might inspire you. Then you learn you too can become better once you hear stories you can connect to and of their hardships.
The Power of Habit
These are the things you will do every single day and what will consist of your HABITS. Want health to be easy? Make it a habit. Drink water, eat protein, laugh, read, walk, get sunlight, eat your veggies, take your vitamins, and give your loved ones hugs every day. It’s simple really, we overcomplicate it.
The Long-Term Benefits of Fitness
I’m more calm, I’m nicer, and I have more energy. I’m more capable in my life to perform, to help with chores, to provide, and I never have to worry about getting sick. Or when I do, I’m very resilient and able to get better quickly.
I have clients who are phasing through my system, multiple times, with setting new goals, and keeping weight off, and now love to lift where they never did before, have their family participating, and they are now incorporating fitness into their travels and activities they choose to do!
The Outcome is not the Ultimate Goal
Know that the goal and the outcome is not the ultimate goal, it is the process itself. Learn to love the act, the act of living and the benefits that come. And remember how you feel when you don’t do it.
Fitness is not a 90-day fix. It's a lifelong commitment. And it's one of the most rewarding commitments you can make. So, let's get started on this journey together. Let's make fitness a part of our lives, not just for 90 days, but for life.