When asked about the best way to achieve better fitness results, most people would respond with some form of exercise and healthy eating.
But the truth is, getting in the best shape of your life starts with a few simple steps before you ever set foot on the gym floor. Setting the right goals and managing your expectations can significantly impact not only your results, but how much you enjoy the journey.
To get started, ask yourself this question: On a scale of one to ten, how uncomfortable are you today?
Now think about the first thing that popped into your head. Maybe it was being physically uncomfortable. Or emotional discomfort. Perhaps you’re uncomfortable in your career or as a parent.
When you think about that discomfort, how hard are you willing to work to move away from it?
For example, if you want better fitness results, are you ready to commit to improving the healthy habits that will get you there?
If you’re uncomfortable in your career and dream of becoming an entrepreneur, perhaps you think, ‘If I could just work for myself, I’d have the freedom and flexibility to do whatever I want.’
And that’s where expectations come in.
The Best of the Best Expectations.
It’s not uncommon for someone to set a goal for themselves and picture their best day on the journey.
For instance, let’s say your dream is to own a coffee shop. In your mind, you see a cozy layout with an abundance of happy customers. Every single one is on their phone writing a five-star Google review because your lattes and cold brews are the best in town. You imagine yourself happily wandering from table to table, conversing with customers. Each patron is showering you with thanks and compliments for being such a fabulous business owner.
What you probably don’t picture is the worst day of coffee shop ownership. Your two baristas called in sick, the espresso machine is malfunctioning and the toilet just overflowed because let’s be honest: coffee makes people poop.
Guess what? The same goes for your fitness results. You’re not alone if you’ve ever signed up for a gym membership with unrealistic expectations.
Now, don’t misinterpret that. You have the capability to do incredible things and reach whatever goals you set for yourself. However, the scenario in your head might not always match the experience.
Have Your Fitness Results Ever Seemed Physically Impossible?
Imagine your goal is to lose weight, so you’re restarting your fitness routine. Your friend Sally has gotten some pretty epic fitness results from her cycling class, so you agree to give it a go.
In your head, you picture a room full of smiling people and a high-energy vibe. You aren’t sweating, you’re sparkling. You imagine yourself gently dabbing the sweat (er, sparkle) from your forehead while all of your excess fat just melts away after just one class. You can’t wait to go back.
In reality, it’s one of the most uncomfortable things you’ve done in years.
Why do my legs feel like this?
I didn’t know I even had this much sweat in my whole body.
My crotch hurts. Should my crotch hurt?
So, What’s the Difference?
The difference between the experience in your head and the one in real life is actually in the expectation you set ahead of time.
At 10.40.10 Fitness, everything is modifiable and every fitness level is welcome. So there’s no such thing as a workout you can’t do. However, starting something new like improving your fitness results is going to require some mental fortitude.
The non-sugar-coated version is, this might suck a bit.
As cliche as it is, it’s absolutely true that if it were easy, everyone would do it. Your body is a reflection of how you treat it. If you take care of it, it shows. If you don’t take care of it, it shows. Now, don’t misinterpret that either. There is no perfect body type. Most people aren’t aiming for fitness model or body builder. Healthy comes in many different forms.
Ultimately, the difference between those that succeed and those that quit is simply having a realistic idea of what to expect.
If someone ends up quitting, it’s often because they weren’t mentally prepared for the difficulty of the first phase (approximately 90 days). But that’s where it gets interesting: It’s not that the first phase is too hard. It’s that it’s harder than you picture, if you pictured it being wonderful.
Say what?
Think about a time you went to see a movie that all your friends told you was absolutely incredible. Have you ever been disappointed, simply because the expectation was set so high?
It’s kind of like that with those first 90 days of working toward your fitness results. If you go into it with that can’t-stop-smiling, look-at-me-sparkle expectation, it might be a rude awakening.
Be Realistic About Your Fitness Results
On the other hand, if you set a realistic expectation for the various stages of your fitness journey, you might just blow your own damn mind.
Here’s what realistic sounds like:
Yes, this is going to challenge me.
I am going to be uncomfortable at times.
There will be times where I feel like I can’t do something.
In those times, I will ask myself if it's simply that I don’t want to because it’s hard.
Do you see how statements like this will actually set you up for success? Because when the going gets rough, you expect it to get rough. So it won’t derail you.
And there’s another layer to this idea. If you imagine your coffee shop dreams or your fitness routine to be absolutely brutal, the reality might actually be somewhat pleasant.
In other words, if you expected overflowing toilets from coffee shop poops, any day without them would be a dream come true. If you expected to be lying on the floor after an exceptionally difficult leg day, a tough workout that left you feeling tired but strong would be a win.
Ultimately, it’s all about how you frame the various parts of your day in your mind. Being realistic is the name of the game.
When it comes to your level of comfort in regard to your fitness results or any given situation, if you’re too optimistic, you’ll have to brace for the sucker punch. But if you’re realistic, you’ll likely get what you expected.
