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Narrow-mindedness
narrow-minded – lacking tolerance or flexibility or breadth of view; “a brilliant but narrow-minded judge”; “narrow opinions”
So in a comment a little bit ago, I was called narrow-minded.
It kind of made me laugh because that isn’t something I’d ever considered myself to be.
I mean yes…am I arguing in support of MY viewpoint on this site….OF COURSE!
Anyone writing anything is basically supporting THEIR VIEWPOINT.
But while I may support one very specific viewpoint in terms of what I believe to be the BEST diet and exercise programs on this site, I would argue that I’m not narrow-minded.
First and foremost I tell people to constantly learn, experiment and evolve their diet and workout program. As I’ve said before, one size doesn’t fit all!
You have to find out what works for YOU and you only do that through research or learning, self-experimentation and constantly being open to evolving your beliefs and programs.
I have clients that don’t hold near the same diet beliefs that I do. And I have clients that LOVE running. I don’t try to change their diet views and I don’t tell them to stop running.
I will question their diet beliefs just like I hope people question mine. The only way we can make sure we are constantly learning and getting better is by questioning. I never just want to accept something as truth….I want to know WHY it is truth.
So I question them. If they are going to be eating a certain diet, I want them to know WHY they are eating that way.
And I help guide them to become more educated. I don’t say they are wrong or that they should follow my diet. I help them find their own way.
Because as I said before, it doesn’t matter what works for me. It matters what works for you.
And that client that loves to run…Do I force them to become a powerlifter?
HECK NO!
Am I completely dumbfounded as to why they love running? OF COURSE! 😛
BUT I don’t tell them to stop doing what they love. Instead I show them exercises and/or lifts to help them become fitter, stronger runners.
You have to do what you love. If you don’t love your workouts, you probably won’t stick to them for very long.
If you love running, do it. If you love lifting, do it.
But that doesn’t mean you can just ignore the rest of your fitness. You need strength training to make you a better runner. And you need cardio to help make you a better lifter. You need to give your body some variety in training and plenty of recovery or you won’t see the results you want in the activity that you love!
So maybe I am narrow-minded. I believe I’ve found something that works for me and I want to share it…hence the birth of Man Bicep. I respectfully disagree that I am not, but it is really up to you to decide.
All I can say is I hope that you find the diet and exercise program that works for you and if you need any coaching along the way, I’m always here…Even if you are a vegetarian runner and my arch nemesis….
Perfection
We all “know” that no one is perfect – that we will never be perfect.
Yet we all try to achieve perfection in our diet and exercise programs.
If we “know” that perfection is unattainable, WHY ARE WE PRESSURING OURSELVES TO ATTAIN IT!?!
DON’T DO IT!!
Slip ups, mistakes are going to happen, but they don’t mean that we’ve failed or that we should just give up trying because we weren’t able to be “perfect.”
I’ve tried to attain perfection according to other diet and exercise programs and I’ve always fallen short. It wasn’t for lack of trying, but I just couldn’t follow their rules every day, all day. There were just times when I was too worn out/stressed/busy/on vacation to be able to stick to all of the rules.
So what happened when I slipped up?
I gave up.
But I realized I would never achieve my goals if I gave up every time I made a “mistake” – every time I cheated on my diet or missed a workout.
I couldn’t let one cheat or one missed workout lead to a week of bingeing or a week off from working out.
I had to change the expectations I had for myself.
I could seek perfection, but my definition of perfection had to include room for cheats and missed workouts. I couldn’t expect myself to be perfect 100% of the time.
BUT I could expect myself to achieve perfection 80% of the time with room for cheats or missed workouts 20% of the time.
I didn’t necessarily want to encourage cheats or missed workouts, but I had to expect that from time to time they may happen and that I could still reach my goals if I was “perfect” 80% of the time.
I stopped looking at reaching my health and fitness goals as an all or nothing thing, but a journey that I had to enjoy.
Plus I found that expecting perfection only 80% of the time lessened the pressure I felt and actually helped me stick to my program more consistently than I ever had before.
If I went on vacation, I didn’t force myself to stick to my diet if there was a dessert I really wanted to indulge in. I didn’t force myself to workout if we were all enjoying lounging by the pool.
But I found that because I wasn’t “forcing myself” to do certain things, I almost had more desire to do them even while on vacation than I ever had before.
And because I allowed myself to enjoy the times I did choose to cheat, it was easy to go straight back to my diet and exercise program when I got back from vacation.
I found a way to strict a balance between perfection and enjoyment of life. You can achieve your goals without sacrificing everything that you enjoy to do so.
You just have to accept that there will be setbacks along the way. And you can’t let them get you down. There will be mistakes and cheats and missed workouts that might upset you at that moment, but they won’t matter if you just accept them and move on.
Perfection isn’t important. Getting right back on track when you cheat or miss a workout is what matters.
It is what makes you stronger and will help you accomplish your goals.
So don’t force yourself to be perfect 100% of the time. Seek perfection 80% of the time and you will find much more success and enjoyment.
Fitness Magazines
So I used to read a ton of fitness magazines, but probably now haven’t bought one in over a year.
They do, however, come in useful when you need some packing material!
Why haven’t I bought one in over a year?
BECAUSE EACH AND EVERY ONE BASICALLY STATES THE SAME THING!
And in general I don’t agree with the diet and exercise programs prescribed in them.
They all try to seem like they have some “secret” to effortless weight loss and a toned, fit body.
But they don’t.
Maybe this will be a secret in next month’s issue! “Clean the lint out and drop 3 lbs in 5 minutes!”
They don’t have any secrets because THERE ARE NONE!
If an article’s title has one of the following words or phrases (effortless, quick, 15lbs in 1 week, blast belly fat), drop the magazine and run.
There are no secrets, people!
Let’s face it…If you want real results, you are going to have to work really hard.
There is no secret to TRUE quick weight loss, especially healthy, maintainable weight loss.
So how about you stop buying fitness magazines and go eat some whole natural foods instead of all the processed crap the magazines advertise!
Man Bicep 