With only a few weeks to go until I step on stage this year, I
have been spending more and more time acknowledging and examining the mental
state of where I am and where I need to be. It seems that the
physical aspect of training and nutrition is more concrete and determined than
the mental state. Mentally I find it a challenge because unlike training
there is no set plan as to how to think, what to feel, and when. The mind
is powerful and that is where the most discipline must be given. One
cannot measure the state of one's mind. You can't log it or track it
like a training log and check back to see your progress or how much more to add
this week. Thoughts are fluid, ever changing, and sometimes seemingly
beyond our control.
The truth is we can control our mind and our thoughts, but it
takes great work and some disciplined soul searching. For me, it has been
more of deciding what it is I want and committing, or re-committing to doing
it. Each morning I get up and know what must be done that day to move
myself one step closer to achieving my goals. I know the meals I will
eat. I know the workout I will put myself through. Can I do it?
Absolutely! There is never a question. But it is gut check
time. Each morning I ask myself - Do I want this? Yes. Will I do
this today? Yes. Why? Because I want to go from where I am
now to where I want to be tomorrow. There is no other way around it.
In the quest to be better than I have ever been, I must go through the
work and put in 110% effort every step of the way. If I quit for the
moment, or the day, or a meal, or skip a workout...I can't get that back. That
is then done and I have to move forward from there. But I won't skip out
on any of it because that means shortchanging myself in the end results.
Is this hard? Yes. But it is meant to be.
Accept that. Will it challenge and push you harder and further than
ever before? Absolutely. But you want to do this, not because you
have to, but because you have made the promise to yourself to set a goal,
achieve a goal, and you will hold yourself accountable. Yes, you are
capable of achieving whatever goal you set for yourself. The only thing
that could hold you back is you. It is your mind, your fears, and your
own self-doubts that can stop you. Set your mind right. Control the
mental journey and you will not only reach your goals, but exceed them and
accomplish what you once thought impossible.
By: Guest Writer and long time follower of the Fitness Motivation for Ordinary People FB page
Frank Gigante, Natural Pro