I just finished up with a lot of the athletes that play spring sports. Always a bit of sadness mixed with happiness at this time as I usually form a pretty strong bond between myself and my clients. Happy because I know these athletes will be very pleased at their new found strength, size, etc.
I had a kid in the last batch that wasn't the most athletic kid, but he worked harder than just about all the other athletes, passed all his conditioning tests that the coach puts them through and he ranked at the 4th strongest player out of 75 at his high school. He stopped by to tell me this last Saturday while we were in the process of moving the gym to its new spot.
It got me thinking, this kid took something and made it his own. He controlled his circumstances and results by pure, hard work. Many people, athletes included, want to talk about this and that and how they are going to do this or if they just had better genetics and so on. The secret they don't know (or do know but are unwilling to put in the work), is that you can get nearly anywhere in life with hard work. Who is going to be left standing at the finish line 4 years from now? The person with all the talent in the world that was a flash in the pan or the person that showed up every day and refused to quit? We can and should make our dreams turn into reality by simply being willing to work the hardest to reach them.
I was reading a Houdini book the other night to a group of children. I was amazed to read that Houdini would often practice up to 8 hours per day on his craft, he constructed the biggest library on magic in the world at his home office, he trained, swam, boxed, ran and so on. He had no formal education, he just knew where and what he wanted to do.
I was consulting with an online client the other day and I was recommending to add in some extra conditioning now that we have hit a stand still and his reply was, "The problem is, finding the time." Correction, the problem is him not wanting it bad enough. I get up at 4:20 AM on the days when I have to train the morning crew so that I can get my cardio or conditioning in before they arrive. I have always been willing to outwork the person next to me. Never been blessed with superior genetics or a superior brain. In fact, I was significantly less smart than my three brothers growing up. However, I just keep reading, keep writing, interviewing anyone I can and I have slowly started to emerge where I one day hoped to be.
A great example that I have followed through the years is Branch Warren. I rememeber when he first became a pro bodybuilder and he worked his ass off, but his physique was no where near that of the more blessed competitors. He has now won multiple Arnold Classic titles and it is by nothing more than being the last man standing, living his dream day in and day out.
I know that I have ruffled some feathers in the fitness industry by people accusing me of being a copy cat or playing dirty. I just laugh for a few reasons: 1-dogs don't bark at parked cars, 2-the real reason these people hate on me is because I am doing what I learned from them better than they are and I am outhustling them every single day.
The question you need to ask yourself is: What is it that you want most in life? How hard are you willing to work for it? Are you just kind of into it, like missing out on time with 'it' to watch tv? Or are you gonna go outside, brave the world and put in the work that no one else wants to put in? Its a really simple formula and success can be yours once you realize that most people will simply give up long before they reach their destination.