IT’S EASY TO RELAX IN A GYM, WITH TV SCREENS AND RECLINING BIKES ON WHICH TO READ YOUR PAPER BUT, TO GET FIT, YOU NEED TO MAKE AN EFFORT

IF you were to take a step back in time to the gyms of the 196O, you would see an entirely different scene to the one that greets you today.

In the gyms of yesteryear, there were no fancy LCD screens above treadmills, no reclining bikes on which to read your newspaper, no mirrors to pose in and no music to shake your booty to. Instead,
there were iron barbells and dumb-bells, medicine balls, hanging ropes and boxing rings.

It begs the question – have we progressed? And are today’s gyms, with their fancy fitness machines really better than the gyms of old? I think the answer is no.  But this is not the only reason why gym members can’t achieve the results that they crave.

The real reason is that many have lost that old fashioned concept of hard work. As Vince Lombardi (one of the most successful coaches in American football) once said: The only place that success comes before hard work is in the dictionary. You are 100 pc responsible for your own body and unless you accept this, no change will occur.

Brian Tracy, one of the world’s leading experts on success psychology and personal achievement, has identified two new ‘diseases’  rampant in developed countries:

• The ‘something for nothing’ disease  

And

• The ‘quick fix’ disease

I find that these diseases are extremely common among people with fitness goals.  Those suffering from something-for-nothing want weight loss without dieting, fitness without exercise and perfect health while eating and drinking whatever they want.

Those with quick-fit disease want to take a pill, go to sleep, and wake up skinny.  They are suckers for the latest miracle solution and buy fat-burning creams which never yield the results they crave. But with a little perseverance and a better work ethic, they could easily reach their goals.

The very act of seeking a quick fix or wanting something for nothing is weak. But setting a worthy goal for something you want and reaching
it through determination and hard work changes the very fibre of your being and makes you strong – physically, mentally and emotionally.

It bas been said that you don’t get what you want in life, but what you earn. If you want to lose weight, improve your health and transform
your body, then protect yourself from these diseases, set your goals and go for it!

Tip of the week

You are the average of the five people you interact with the most.  So why not choose training partners who are healthier, fitter and stronger than you.  Do this and you will raise your standards to match them-and learn the training and eating habits that have made them successful.