I was driving home the other day listening to a podcast like I normally do, doing lots of thinking, and occasionally getting cut off by some crazy Sydney driver in a hurry. It was the Tony Robbins interviewing a man named John Wooden, a coach who has an exceptional winning rate with college basketball. One thing John said really resonated with me that day, he said “you should never try to better than someone else, but never cease to try to be the very best that you can be”.
I love that! Never cease to try to be the best you can be, always strive to be the best version of yourself, and don’t compare yourself to others.
Working as a personal trainer I see this happening everywhere, comparing oneself to others or wanting to have the body of the person you see on Instagram or in a magazine. As I see it that is problem in society when it comes to individuals health and well being, everyone is focused on how good the next person looks in a magazine, or on Instagram, or facebook, wherever it is we are bombarded through media channels which convey this shallow focused message on how others look. A number one example of that is these reality TV shows like the kardasians, did I spell that right? Meh who cares. I mean how many girls in the gym are taking synthetic drugs just to look like a black woman with a ghetto booty! More than you think let me tell you! But if that makes you happy then good for you.
So I’m sitting here writing this blog to say, you are who you are, and if you continue to aspire to be like someone else then the likeliness is that you’ll always be searching for happiness. Do yourself a favour, exercise to improve your quality of life and subsequently your health too, a by product of that is less body fat, more muscle tone, feeling good. Eat great tasting food which nourishes your body, because if you’re into counting calories I guarantee you will end up eating junk as an emotional outlet by setting too many restrictions on yourself. We don’t eat calories, we eat food, remember that.
Just as importantly are the messages we send to our kids, whether it be intentionally or unintentionally, it’s real and it plays a huge role in how they turn out. They learn by making sense of the world around them, just like you and I and eventually what they see and what information they receive from what’s going on around them are how they form their beliefs and values. Beliefs and values act as our internal compass. Your child, nephew, niece, grandson, granddaughter will eat what you eat right? And they will do what you do. So if you want your kids growing up with strong and healthy values surrounding food and exercise it’s vital you lead the way! The likeliness is if you eat good healthy food they will choose to do so as teenagers and adults, and just as importantly if you choose to have consistent exercise throughout your life then guess what? Your kids are pretty likely to follow suit, and that is the reality.