Let’s be real for just a minute. All of us wants (and brags) that we can and will make the necessary changes to attain the best body we will ever want. However, we create an expectation to ourselves and everyone else that we will have it all in place and ready for “showtime” in nothing flat. But, as life has it, that is never the case. When we sound off about how we are going to do this metamorphosis from puny to magnificent we are setting ourselves up for a gigantic disappointment and public embarrassment. When the reality of what we we want presents itself and it causes us to discover that it will take the following: 1.) A big belly full of want to. We have to decide inside our minds and hearts that we are willing to pay the price to get the win. 2.) A plan that is carefully crafted (with the help of real professionals and friends) that gives us direction, speed, and accuracy in what we do. 3,) A heavy dose of motivation and discipline that is undertook daily. 4.) A goal or in bodybuilding a show that is placed on the calendar that looms in our minds always. 5.) A coach that holds us accountable and directs our efforts to stage ready when the time is right.
Note that the first casualty we face is the old self that demands results with no effort and in record time. That man is dead. The realization that the journey is daily. There is no getting around this. We want to make progress fast but the reality is that we can only make about 1% improvement at a time. Sometimes we can do it in one day or it might take a week or more. There is no “MAGIC FORMULA.” So, as we begin to attack our goals we must allow for your body to respond to the heavy training in the gym, the cardio, the diet, the supplements in a determined but patient way. You are just going to have to adjust your expectations and change the dates on the calendar to accommodate the required time and effort it will take to “get there.”
I look at the 1% rule as a way of determining when I will be ready to compete again. Since I am totally responsible for the conditioning I arrive on stage with, I have to be constantly making personal observations, measurements, and using photos to determine my stage readiness.
Bottom Line: Be patient and be realistic. Be determined to move the needle of improvement forward but do not go beyond what is real regarding anticipated arrival at our best selves. Be gutsy, don’t miss workouts, ask for help, sleep hard and long, eat as you should. The world awaits a very patiently carved and sculpted body and only you can provide the body you have worked so hard to attain. Get it done! This is your life and nobody can take it from you. Until next time…..Doug Graham
Six Pack and Senior 