I always talk about consistency and lifestyle change. If you follow me you know that I think it is more important to live a lifestyle that is generally healthy than to shoot for arbitrary goals.
What if your level of disgust, at where you're at, is so high that you want to hit it hard. What if you want to push REALLY hard to reach a milestone or hit a goal?
There is nothing wrong with that if that is where YOU are going in life. A big vision requires some big action.
If a jet wants to get off that ground it needs some serious propulsion. For a big plane taking flight is that hard part.
What if you are trying to get your big jet off the ground?
For 4 years I did the CrossFit Open with a goal of getting the Online Qualifier (now called semi-finals). I missed it 3 years in a row but, in 2018 I finished 89th in the world, and I get a shot at qualifying for the CrossFit Games which was my big goal.
I had less than a month to prepare for the next stage.
I needed to push a little harder and give a little more for this period of my life. I needed to ride the line. I needed to work harder than I have ever worked.
It's was a tough few weeks.
I don't always suggest people ride the line like this.
What do I mean by that?
What you give too much effort this can lead to burnout, frustration, injury, sickness and ultimately quitting.
Sadly I see this a lot.
Today I want to share with you some of the action steps that I took during this short period of time. Some of the things that I did to insure health and to increase the speed which I achieve my goals.
If you are trying to take flight with some massive action then you may want to more of a focus on these 4 areas as well. It's what I am doing so you may want to do these things as well.
FOCUS #1: Sleep. Sleeping is the things that you will spend the most time doing in your life. Did you know that the average person sleeps 25-40% of their entire existence on this planet. We sleep so much because this is simply best mode of recovery.
Get your sleep. Take naps of you need to. Go to bed early if you need to. Do what it takes to get your sleep.
FOCUS #2: Nutrition. This one is HUGE. I am did a couple of things to help me out during this time of increased training. (By the way, I was doing 3-4 workouts per day. It's not easy but it is what you need to do to succeed at the highest level!)
I always ate well so I did make any big changes. I am doing two things better than normal: Less junk (specifically alcohol, sugary snacks and wheat (which I am sensitive to)) and more consistent eating of smaller meals.
Eating right is vital to being healthy. Sometimes even the best of us slide. There was no sliding for me then! I'm cleaned up the way that I eat quite a bit.
FOCUS #3: Supplements. I have invested heavily in supplements for this period in time. If you are interested in exactly what I take and how you can get the same simply send me a message and I'll help you out.
My supplements are in three categories:
1. Pre-workout. These supplements get me ready to perform at the highest level possible each time I get in the gym.
2. Post-workout. A broken down body only gets stronger from what it can recover from. A wise coach once told me that and I believe it!
3. General health. I eat well but I still lack certain nutrients and this is especially true at my age. (I'll be 50 soon) I take my personalized vitamins every day. To me the investment is 100% worth it.
FOCUS #4: Mindset. Our bodies are capable of so much more than we give them credit for. Just because I wake up tired and sore doesn't mean that I can't workout. I trust the process and I get back to work even when I don't feel like it.
This last part may be the most important part for me.
Napoleon Hill said: “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
This is truth. End of story.
While I didn't earn one of the 10 spots at the CrossFit Games that I year I did finish 33rd our of over 16,000 people that year which isn't too shabby.