Setting Goals for Success

These last several weeks and months have been incredibly eye-opening for me as an individual, a competitor, and a lover of the sport of powerlifting. Every single experience brings me one step closer to understanding myself, and giving me the capability to use what I learn to help others achieve their goals. Here are a few key ideas to keep in mind when aiming for success.

Figure things out

Pick a goal. Are you competing in bodybuilding, powerlifting, strongman or are you simply working out to be healthier, to lose fat, or to gain muscle? Whatever it is, you need to decide on it. Be reasonable, but don't limit yourself. Aim high! Create a timeline and set small mini-goals to keep you motivated in the long run.

Keep your eyes on the prize

When you have a goal in mind, focus all your efforts on the best possible way of achieving that goal. If your methods to attaining a goal conflict with one another, you will be spinning your wheels. One example of this is eating at a caloric deficit while running a strength-training program. You will get negligibly stronger if at all, or you won't be able to adhere to your plan and  you will drop a negligible amount of weight, if any. Be efficient with your methods to achieve optimum results. Time is the limiting factor, make sure you use yours wisely.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it

Stick to what works. Many of us over-complicate things trying to optimize them, when what we need to do is just stay consistent with training and nutrition methods that have consistently given us the results we want. What works for one person may not work for another, so once you find a program or protocol that works for you, your search is over. That's not to say that you shouldn't...

Keep learning about what you love

Your program may work well for you, but it's always fun to try new things if you have the chance. Learn, grow, challenge yourself, and keep yourself in the loop! Some of the most rewarding aspects in lifting isn't in just moving the iron around, but in the relationships that you can build and the discussions you can  have with those in the field. There are always opportunities to network and connect with people who can really open your eyes to techniques that you haven't yet stumbled across, and at the very least, people who have been successful doing what you love can motivate you to pursue your dreams as well!

But most importantly

Follow through and never give up! There may be bumps on the road, but you have to dust yourself off and get right back on track. Your success is in your hands.

Hard Work Doesn’t Beat Talent

My dad is one of the hardest working people I know. He wakes up hours before sunrise, and works until long after sunset every day. On some Sundays he takes a day off from the shop, only to sit out on the front porch with his tools displayed on the lawn in case any passersby want to purchase his surplus.

Sitting out here with him in sunny Los Angeles, I presented him with a common phrase thrown around in the fitness industry: “hard work beats talent”.

“No.” He says immediately, to my surprise. My curiosity is piqued. He continues, “Bill is one of the hardest working people I know. He works tirelessly on anything he can get his hands on, but he doesn’t get anywhere because he isn’t any good at what he does.”

So in essence, Bill is spinning his wheels, and rather ambitiously at that. And so I think back to the articles upon articles I’ve come across pointing successes in bodybuilding to a genetic predisposition along with the help of a few choice anabolic drugs and think, so what about the average person? Is someone with a 9-to-5 who spends a few hours a week in the gym doomed to spin their wheels for the rest of their lives simply because they may have been handed the genetic short-stick?

The truth is, yes, some people are just terribly unlucky. It’s a sad reality. There will be those who can be fit with minimal effort, and others who will work for years and never come close.

But here’s where I disagree with Dad: if Bill were to be handed the proper tools and instruction, then with enough coaxing, Bill could be incredibly successful.

This is why it becomes increasingly important to do good research, to surround yourself with people who have similar goals and interests, and to seek assistance from those who have the experience and knowledge to help you work smarter, not harder.