3 Keys to Success I've Learned the Hard Way

Ten years ago, things were easy for me…

I had just gotten married, bought a new home, and opened a new business – all in a 2 month period!

Everything was great…

The economy was kicking so I just hung a sign outside my door and got business.

I was 27 – so I didn’t have to do all that much to stay in shape. When I noticed I had put on a few pounds I could hop on the treadmill for 20 minutes and be 3 pounds lighter the next day.

And being 27 I was sure things were going to be this easy for the rest of my life.

But that’s not the way life works….and a few years later I learned that lesson the hard way.

Five years later, over the course of one short year, my dad died, my daughter was born, and I
separated from my wife.

I didn’t do well with the stress.

I gained 100 pounds. I burned through all my savings. I spent the majority of my days glued
to my couch watching TV and drinking beer.

Every ounce of energy I had went into the few hours a week I got to see my daughter. And every
dollar I had went to making sure I’d get to see her more.

By the time I finally pulled my head out of my ass I had lost nearly everything. And to make
matters worse, I was a fitness and weight loss expert who was 100 pounds overweight.

But what could I do about it? Bitching and moaning wasn’t going to help…and I think anyone
close to me was sick of hearing that already anyway :-)

So I picked my butt up off the ground and got to work. My first order of business was to
drop all the weight I had gained. But something funny happened…

Even though I was doing all the things that had always worked for me…

My weight wouldn’t budge.

So I got even stricter….

I cut my calories even lower. And I would do great for 4 or 5 days, sticking perfectly to the plan….

But on the 6^th day I’d slip up. Nothing crazy…maybe a meal out or a few beers. Nothing too
major. But when I’d wake up the next morning I’d weight myself and I’d be a pound or two heavier!

So I increased my cardio. But with my increase in cardio came an uncontrollable increase in
appetite! And as hard as I tried after a month I was up in weight AGAIN! I was unbelievably frustrated.

I had no choice - I had to relearn my craft. I used to believe it was as easy as “Eat less and exercise
more.” Little did I know how far from the truth this was…

So I went back to the drawing board and did what I always did best – hit the books. I poured over
medical journals, diet books, and other scholarly reports with a new found enthusiasm I hadn’t had in years.

And while it’s been a struggle, Im slowly heading back towards my “pre-divorce weight.”

So what does this all mean for you?

My struggle has helped me develop a system to help “normal” people drop weight and inches.

I’m not sayin’ it’s easy…but it WORKS!

It fits into a normal adult lifestyle. You won’t have to cook all your meals on Sunday. You won’t
need to exercise 12, 15, or even more hours per week. And you won’t need to swear off alcohol,
coffee, or any other of your favorite things in life.

But you will have to put in some hard work.

And before we even touch those rules we need to get your mind right. Because the first thing I learned during my “dark years” was that your mindset controls everything. So if your mind isn’t right nothing will ever help you!

So, without further ado here are my three keys to success I've learned the hard way:

1. Don’t strive for perfection – just strive to be BETTER!

If you’re like me, your desire to be perfect can be your biggest enemy. It sets you up for a “Do it or Screw it” mentality that is self-defeating in the long run.

But you don’t have to be perfect to lose weight and achieve success; you just have to be a little bit better than you were yesterday. Or last week. Or last month.

If you did one bootcamp last week try to get two in this week. If you only ran half way around the building last time we made you do it try to make it 2/3 of the way around this time. Small, steady improvements over time add up to huge changes.

2. Take action…any action!

What you do isn’t nearly as important as the fact that you simply DO SOMETHING! Any change will help.

And even more than the physical benefits, the simple fact that you’re taking action will help your outlook and mood so that making more positive steps towards your goals will become easier.

So if you’re struggling with what to do don’t worry – just do something!

Ditch the breakfast cereal and replace it 2 or 3 eggs tomorrow morning. Drop the high carb chips and replace them with almonds or a cheese stick. Wake up 10 minutes early and do a few sets of burpees, push-ups, and crunches before your morning shower.

3. Don’t worry about what you “used to do”

Nothing is more self-defeating than comparing the current you to an idealized 20 year old version of yourself.

So PLEASE don’t beat yourself up about how 5 years ago you could run a marathon….

Or how before you had kids you used to workout every day and weighed 120 pounds….

Or how before you got divorced you only had 8% body-fat (oh wait…that’s me ;-)))

Because it truly doesn’t matter.

All that matters is that you are moving forward.

Be proud of your past for sure. Let it motivate you…Embrace you! Twenty years ago, today & tomorrow.