Are You Willing To Do This?

It’s unusual to start an article off with a question but hey, it’s my blog and I’ll ask if I want to. Are you willing to do this? What is this I’m referring to? Well, if I told you now I’d give away the secret and you might stop reading. So let me string you along a little more with a story.

It Was The Summer of 69 1998

Sorry, couldn’t resist the headline.

Anyway, back in April of 1998, I was in Ambon, one of the many islands in the spread-out country of Indonesia. Back during World War 2, the Japanese used Ambon as a place to launch attacks from, including a few flyovers of Australia to scare the crap out of us.  

It worked because Australia sent soldiers to Ambon to try to knock the Japanese off their perch. But a lot of the soldiers sent to Ambon were captured right off the boat and put in prisoner of war camps. There they all worked as slaves, and some were tortured and killed.

I was part of a tour group, along with the survivors of the Ambon prisoner of war camp that when back to honor those who didn’t make it home as part of the ANZAC Day celebrations on the 25^th April 1998. The group was at the grave site of those who didn’t make it.

A lot of these graves had unnamed headstones because the bodies were unidentifiable.

It was an awesome service and I felt privileged to be standing side by side to people who fought for my country of origin. But when the Last Post was played and I looked into the survivors’ eyes, I realized something my 28-year-old butt never realized before.

Not only did I see pain and heartbreak, but I also saw what it meant to put your life on the line for your country. Those soldiers standing next to me were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

Are You Willing To Sacrifice?

Being a personal trainer, I’ve trained hundreds of clients who have had lofty goals, forked over their hard-earned cash and time to move, look, and feel better.

But when it came to fueling their bodies better and engaging in recovery methods to enhance their results, not all were willing to make this ‘sacrifice’.

Not all were willing to reduce their sugar, alcohol or junk carb intake. Or do easy aerobic activities to enhance their recovery or go to bed earlier and better rested, to avoid making bad food decisions. This is neither good nor bad but just my experience in dealing with people who thought you could out train anything, including a bad diet.

Now, I could’ve done a better job guiding my clients when they’re away from me. But I’m not their mother and I cannot force them to do anything besides follow my exercise program. They are adults capable of making their own decisions.

It’s all good to have health and fitness goals but you must work hard to make this happen. Not everyone is willing to make this sacrifice, Again, this is not good or bad, it just is.

Before This Goes Any Further

Comparing the ultimate sacrifice to the sacrifice of reducing the eating of some of your favorite foods is strong. But hopefully I made an impression. Whatever you want whether it be six-pack abs or be a great musician, comedian, actor etc. sacrifices need to be made.

Time, money, effort, delayed gratification or reducing sugar and alcohol, sacrifices need to happen to make it happen.

It’s great to have goals and ambitions but this must be met by your willingness to sacrifice. If you’re not willing to sacrifice, that’s okay too.  You need to be honest with yourself and be willing to tone down your goals.

For example, I would love to have 10% body fat and six-pack abs and someday this might happen. But now, I’m not willing to sacrifice certain foods and liquids to cut my calories to lower my BF. Nor am I willing to endure the tough training, moods, and lower energy needed to meet this goal.

So, I tone down my goals to the amount of sacrifice I’m willing to make.

Wrapping Up

It’s great to have goals but are you willing to make sacrifices to reach them? If yes, that’s great. Go get after it. If not, that’s okay too. Just tone down your goals to the level of sacrifice you’re willing to make. Being honest with yourself will save you from heartbreak and disappointment.

Because the responsibility is on you alone. If you’re willing to sacrifice time and money to kick-start your health, I’m offering 50% off on my six-week jumpstart program. Reply here by using the word ‘Jumpstart’ in the message line.