I've recently seen a disturbing trend in conversations with people that want nothing more than a fast track their results. Despite knowing they didn't get to a body they were unhappy with in just three weeks, they desperately want to get the body they will love in that same time frame.
If I just workout my arms and my abs more, I know I'll get toned there ...
If I just use this 14-day detox cleanse, I know I'll lose my belly flab ...
If I just workout three times every day, I know I'll fit into my bikini in June ...
Humans want instant gratification 24/7/365, thanks to technology giving us exactly that. I believe we've become hard-wired to anticipate it with everything we consume now, including body recomposition. Sadly, instant gratification is the very last thing we should expect if we want to see improvements in our health.
It seemed very fitting for me to pull a quote from Master Yoda after we just observed May 4th.
"Patience, you must have my young Padawan."
If you don't know what a Padawan is, it's an apprentice Jedi. If you don't know what a Jedi is, then we just can't be connected on LinkedIn.
The Master Jedi himself was right about this one, for sure. There are many things in our lives that don't require patience anymore. Everything from cracking open a beer to getting your nails done and everything in between, we are showered with instant gratification that requires little to no work from us.
No wonder humans love the concepts of detox teas and freezing fat with a laser beam! You're telling me I can do absolutely nothing and get what I want right away? Sign me up.
I can safely say that if any of that bullshit actually worked, I wouldn't have built a successful client base as a personal trainer over the last 15 years.
I can also say that if I didn't have patience myself, I wouldn't have survived all of the mountains I've had to climb as a small business owner over the last 7 years.
Without patience, anything you want that requires consistent work over time just won't happen. You may have setbacks along the way that trickle doubt into your mind. You may get frustrated and want to chase that new shiny thing that promises fast results. You may just give up altogether because you'll think to yourself, why even bother?
If you really want to change your body, mind, and spirit for the better, you'll need to be patient. Folks don't hit their rock bottom bodies in just six weeks. And they certainly don't peak into a body they love in that amount of time, either.
It's time to unlearn everything you have learned from the gimmicks of fitness industry marketing. Practice patience. Develop grit. Be consistent with both to realize your goals!
It takes way longer to climb the mountain of success than it does to jump into the pit of despair. I just made up that quote, so practice patience and wait to steal it until I figure out if I can copyright it. 😉
