Fit for Life: Your Future is in Your Hands

Fit for Life: Your Future is in Your Hands

When you look at the world, especially these days, you see the differences in how people live – those who exist and struggle just to survive, be they in undeveloped countries somewhere, or right here in our own community - and those who get to live their lives in a fuller more enjoyable way.  It’s been this way for hundreds of thousands of years. Some have it easy, or easier, and some have to struggle every day, and we all take our place on that continuum, closer to one side or the other.  Even those who do have that easier go of it usually need to thank someone along the line who struggled so they could reap the benefit.

While it’s true that being privileged will help, it doesn’t mean our lives will be easy – and remember if you don’t have your health, well, you don’t have anything. I believe that in business, as in life, if you want success it takes hard work, a strong will, dedication, drive and discipline. This holds true for anything worth achieving, whether it is your health or monetary wealth, or gaining rank in the military, or a top education. You need to work hard, stay focused, and execute - and not until you master these tasks will you achieve your goals – for yourself.

Define who you are

Are you a follower or leader - a boss or a worker - a commander or a solider? Usually what separates us is the drive and ability to execute. The same holds true with your health and well-being. Those that have drive and dedication to execute their wellness plan are fitter, healthier, more vital, happier, require less medication, take less sick days, and are overall more energetic and more productive than the people that don't. But this is not an easy road to travel. You need to buy quality food, which is expensive, or grow it yourself, which is hard work and takes time, also. Next, you should prepare nearly all your meals, and that takes time and effort. You also have to pay attention to what, when, and how much you eat, avoiding temptation which is a daunting task seeing that junk food is everywhere and heavily marketed to lure us in. If you’ve done all those things, it’s still only half the battle. The next battle will be getting fit, and maintaining physical strength, which takes lots of focus and hard work in the gym or other training regimen.

Yes, as long as man has existed, we have been separated by many factors such as being talkers vs. being doers; smart vs. foolish. There are strong and there are weak. You can be successful or not. Healthy or sickly. While “fate” does give us our start in life, I believe our destiny is decided by the choices we make in our everyday life. And who we surround ourselves with. How you manage your money and invest will determine your wealth. If you hit the drive-thru every morning and eat junk all day, chances are you will be fat and unhealthy.

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Work your plan

As I’ve pursued where I want to be in my own life, along with many hours of fitness and nutrition education, I have also sought out and listened to other people who knew more than me about success in business, and life. Here are a few things I have taken from this:

1) Make a plan and execute. The key word is execute. Giving things a half-hearted try isn't going to do it. These attempts do not bring down the weight on the scale nor does it put food on the table. You need to accomplish. You only get paid for results, so make a careful attainable plan to achieve your goals, and follow through until your tasks are complete.

2) Stop making excuses. It is always easy to blame someone or something else. Don’t use weak excuses not to follow through on something. If you want something bad enough, you will find a way, if not you will make up an excuse. It’s as simple as that.

3) Have good role models. Try to emulate those who are where you want to be, and stop comparing yourself to people less than you. Instead of saying "hey at least I’m making more money than someone in an entry level position, think: “how can I earn what the CEO of my company is making”. If you’re saying to yourself, “at least I’m in better shape than that guy " try thinking – “how can I look like Sly Stallone at 60?”

You must feel the need to improve all the time in life, otherwise you get complacent, don’t try as hard, and forward progress stops. We all have room for improvement at every phase in our lives, and when we make excuses just remember when we see someone who is where we’d like to be, odds are they struggled somewhere along the way to get there.  But they had a plan, executed it, and followed the advice of others who had made it along the way.

Matt Espeut has worked as a personal trainer for almost 20 years with clients ranging in age from 14 to 86. His focus is on overall health, strength, and functional conditioning. Holistic health and nutrition is the cornerstone of all his programs. Matt works in private and small group training available at your home or office location or at gym facilities. Matt offers his services to everyone wanting to be more fit and healthy, overweight young people, youth/collegiate athletes, and seniors. Matt has worked and continues to train at several facilities in the Providence area including Gold's Gym and CORE Studio, and he believes continued education is a must in his field. Email Matt: [email protected], check out his website at http://www.fitnessprofiles.net or on Facebook at Matt Espeut or on Twitter @MattEspeut.