Hello, gorgeous!
I hope this blog post finds you well and that both your fitness and spiritual walks are going swimmingly!
Last month, I shared a few of my top tips on how to ignite your fitness fire, and this week I’m back with two more! But first, let me recap what’s been established thus far:
To ignite your fitness fire:
- Establish Clear Goals
- Don’t Just Think – Take Action
- Don’t Be Driven By Vanity
While it’s okaaaaay to stop this fire-starting lesson with the three aforementioned imperatives, why not go a bit further? After all, another excellent way to ensure your fitness flames are fanned is to…
Never Stop Learning
Let’s face it. Most people in gyms today don’t branch out and try new things very often. Using myself as an example, it took several months of hearing about and observing CrossFit before I ever tried out a class.
Despite friends urging me to break out of my comfort zone and give CrossFit a go, I was hesitant, and had even made up my mind that it wasn’t for me solely because it, well, looked tough! I’d been doing my own “globo gym” thing for seven years, and even though I was beginning to feel burned out from the same ol’ same ol’, I was too lazy (and honestly, a little scared, too!) to learn a new training style.
I’m so grateful that I decided to be brave and introduce myself to the wide world of heavy barbells, kettlebells, and lots and lots of burpees!
Not only did I meet my husband Ben through CrossFit, but I’ve since learned so much about true health and fitness that I hadn’t the foggiest idea about before – and I was a personal trainer! I now move better and more safely, lift heavier, run farther and faster, and eat healthier all because I decided to educate myself on what at first seemed alien and yes, a wee bit insane.
One of the things that separates on-fire people from fizzled-out people is the former’s passion for learning over lounging, for continually educating themselves, even about things that may at first seem odd, unnerving, unimpressive, or downright nuts.
Part of igniting and maintaining our fitness fire is to proactively fight complacency. And one of the best ways to do that is to commit to constant learning. We should regularly be on the hunt for ways to optimize and improve our fitness skills while increasing our knowledge.
Fortunately, we live in a time (aptly called The Information Age) when knowledge is quite literally at our fingertips. From books and magazines to podcasts and YouTube tutorials (heck, even Instagram and Snapchat boast fabulous in-the-know fitness pros!), there are loads of resources just waiting for us to access them.
On-fire people know that our fitness education is an ongoing process. The second we stop learning is the second the flames begin to weaken and motivation starts to wane.
Never Arrive
“Winning is fun… Sure. But winning is not the point. Wanting to win is the point. Not giving up is the point. Never letting up is the point. Never being satisfied with what you’ve done is the point.” – Pat Summitt
While that quote is from a women’s college basketball coach, I think it applies to just about everyone.
Winning, for us, represents accomplishing whatever goal we’re presently pursuing. For some, it may be losing thirty pounds. For others, it could be running a half marathon or simply making it to the gym three times a week.
Whatever the goal of an on-fire individual, meeting it is not his or her destination. It’s merely one win, the end of one journey and the beginning of another.
Just as on-fire people aren’t driven by vanity, neither are they satisfied by external merits, outside validation, nor the satisfying number on the scale. They use the momentum of the last triumph to launch themselves even higher. They let previously achieved goals motivate them to keep going, keep learning, keep improving.
“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” – Hebrews 12:11, NIV
On-fire people are more interested in climbing than lingering too long to enjoy the view. This doesn’t mean they don’t take time to celebrate their victories, take breaks, and recharge their batteries. It just means they refuse to grow complacent or dwell safely inside their comfort zones.
They know the magic happens when they’re chasing something new, something uncomfortable, and just a little bit scary.
I hope you’ve found this information helpful! What are you going to change this week to fan your fitness fire? Email me at contact@dianaandersontyler.com or tweet me at @dandersontyler and let me know! I’d love to hear from you!
