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What do Bill O’Reilly, President Obama, and Fitness Have In Common?
By Christina | August 10, 2009
Bill O’Reilly wrote an amazing article in this week’s Parade Magazine called “What President Obama Can Teach America’s Kids?” Regardless of where you stand politically with Bill O’Reilly or President Obama, the life lessons that he found President Obama provides for our nation’s children can easily apply to lessons for all of us about diet and exercise.
The first lesson he cited was forgiveness. One of the biggest hurdles people face is forgiving themselves for temporary transgressions and using a bad eating day or a week of no exercise as an excuse to fall off the bandwagon entirely. Living a healthy life is a journey. Forgiving yourself for missteps in nutrition and exercise is critical in finding long term success in weight loss. Forgive yourself for eating too many brownies the night before and wake up determined to move on and do better the next time.
The second lesson had to do with respect. Only by respecting and loving yourself will you be able to effectuate the change you are looking for in your body. Your body is all you have to carry you through this life. Treat it with the utmost respect that you usually reserve for others. A strong, lean body fueled with nutritious heart healthy foods is the way to live longer and a sign that you love yourself enough to take care of yourself for the long run.
The third lesson is persistence. Never giving up, even when you want to more than anything, is the differential between success and failure in diet and exercise. My running partner is slower than molasses, but she is the most persistent, tenacious person I know. She may be slow, but she is steady and committed for the long haul. When we run, our mantra is ‘Do Not Stop. Do Not Quit. No Matter What.’ Many fast, talented athletes never cross the finish line. Without persistence you will never be a winner.
The fourth lesson is hard work. Eating well and exercising is not fun for the most part. In fact, to stick to a healthy lifestyle longterm requires a tremendous amount of hard work and discipline. Lance Armstrong and Michael Phelps aren’t the supreme athletes that they are only because of genetics. They consistently work harder than their opponents to stay at the top of their game. When it comes to diet and exercise, it is not enough to have a goal to lose weight. Hard work is the action that makes the goal a reality. Otherwise, it is just a pipe dream.
The final lesson and perhaps the best of them all is that anything is possible. Dara Torres has shown the world that you are never too old to be a champion. Anyone can lose weight. Anyone can run a marathon. Anyone can go out of their comfort zone at any age and accomplish a great physical feat if they properly train to make it happen. Excuses are the number one reason for failure when it comes to diet and exercise. When anything is possible, the only thing standing in your way of success is you.
Topics: General, Marathon Training, Personal Training |
