Character in Action

What is it about you that make you who you are? It’s your Values, Principals & your Beliefs….It’s your Character. Personality is how you present yourself to the world; Character is what you actually do in the world. So if you want to become a ‘better person’, then it pays to look into what makes up your Character & to see if your Self Image (hold an internal mirror up to yourself to see what you look like to yourself) is close to Your Self Ideal (how you would ideally like to see yourself & have others see you). How close those two images are, will determine your Self Esteem or happiness within yourself.

If you’re like 98% of the rest of the world, you are likely to want to improve on your Self Image (at least a little). So how do you do that?

1. You must first create a clear goals & objectives of what is it you are trying to achieve

o Easy!

2. You must then develop a plan of what you need to do

o A bit harder, you may need to sit & think about this step properly.

3. You must then follow that plan & actually do the things required

o Now this is the really tricky bit!

Why? Because you have become the person you are based on the things you have done in the past. In order to become a different person, you must start doing different things in the present, and doing different things means getting out of your comfort zone, stopping old habits and starting new ones, right? It is always too easy to take the path of least resistance & do what is fun & easy rather than what is difficult but necessary. You need self discipline, a long time perspective & focus to keep yourself on track.

So what does all this have to do with your Strength and Fitness Training? Have a look at the above process of Self Improvement.

1. Goal Setting

Everyone who ever decided to lose weight or get fit decided on how much weight they wanted to lose, what body shape they wanted to look like, or how fit they want to be (the easy bit).

2. Preparation

Then you look at the ways that you can do it. Do you restrict your food intake, increase your energy output, or a combination of both. Do it alone, do it with a friend or do it with a qualified trainer in a group or private setting (requires a bit more conscious thought).

3. Action

Then you commit to start doing it (the really challenging bit). Sometimes you succeed straight away, sometimes you don’t. But it requires self discipline, self sacrifice, understanding that you need to put the effort in NOW even though you won’t get the benefits until LATER (long time perspective) & mental strength to keep going when it starts feeling difficult.

Weight Loss, Health, Strength & Fitness are all by-products of the disciplines of goal setting, delayed gratification, time perspective, the ability to work through difficult feelings etc. You can use your Strength and Fitness Training as a prototype to becoming a better person.

A person of impeccable Character!