Do It For Somebody Else

You don't usually take anything seriously unless you consider other people. You won't do much for your health, attitude, and finances unless you're doing it for somebody else.

Last week, we started the Body Sculpt Challenge. This is an accountability program that forces you to do more than you're used to doing. Everybody who is participating is exercising nearly everyday now and they're making uncomfortable changes to their diet. They probably wouldn't have done much of this had they tried to do it alone.

I even decided to participate in this Challenge, even though I'm the coach. I didn't believe it was right to ask people to reduce or eliminate certain items from their diet while I get to enjoy life's delicacies. I always wanted to bulk up more, and for YEARS I've tried to bulk up with little results. The only reason I have the few muscles that I do now is because I teach a barbel-based class at the gym. Had it not been for that, I wouldn't have had any muscles to show.

Doing things on my own is a HUGE challenge. I have to ease my way into a new routine, and I mean by taking baby steps. Doing home exercises on my own never worked for me -- that is, until I decided to participate in this Challenge with the other 14 folks. Now, I feel forced to do these exercises AND to follow the diet recommendations that I've given to the participants.

Now, I'm not just doing this for myself. I'm doing it for others. My main purpose is to lead by example, not by words only.

Why is it that we tend to do something when somebody else is watching us? Well, we're just not naturally motivated to walk the extra mile for ourselves. But when someone else is in the picture, we're more motivated to live up to higher standards.

The reason group fitness classes are so popular is because people won't exercise on their own. Few do, and for those few, they only do what they're used to. People who attend my ZUMBA classes could come from a fitness background and still struggle in my classes. Why? Because they're being pushed outside their comfort zone. They're pushed to do things that they aren't used to doing. Yes, they're already fit, but now they're forced to test how fit they really are.

I see people jogging all the time. I've jogged many times before, and it's an exercise that gets easy really quick. It's one of those "meditative exercises" that could be relaxing even while your heart rate is up. It's easy to do it because all you do is go in one direction and you could go at your own pace.

But now, put you in a marathon with hundreds of other people, then the game changes. Now you're up against people who are much fitter than you are. Now you feel the need to "prove yourself." It's not about you anymore. It's about showing off your skills to other people. Drivers aren't the ones looking at you anymore. Now other runners are looking at you.

I rarely ever see people do intense work-outs on their own, not even in the gym with all the gym rats. They do what they know. They do what's comfortable. However, put them in a group of other people with a coach barking at them, then they start to feel like they're really working out.

This is why it's so important to do things for other people, not just for yourself. If it's just you, you'll go easy on yourself. We don't raise our standards too high. We need other people to raise them for us.

My big sister recently went back to school to be a registered nurse. She already had training as a medical assistant, but had trouble finding a job. She found herself stuck doing a job that barely required any of her skills. But she had no other plans on furthering her training. So, being the little nagging brother that I was, I kept pushing her to go for her RN training. Not trying to blow my whistle, but she probably wouldn't have gone back to school had I not pushed her. I tried to increase her standards. She saw the vision and decided to go back to school. Her decision will pay off big time!

If you're struggling to reach a goal in life, then stop doing it for yourself. You know that your standards aren't high enough. Doing things for yourself don't result in much gain. When someone else is involved, all of the sudden you could do things that you never thought you could do. This is why our houses are dirty until we discover we're going to have visitors. All of the sudden, we become super custodians!

I know that my standards aren't high enough. There are things I wouldn't do unless other people are watching. Had it not been for group fitness classes, I would barely be working out. The main reason I got into fitness was because I went to group fitness classes. My first group fitness experience was a step aerobics class. I got hooked after that first experience and I went to the gym almost everyday taking classes. But working out by myself? Sometimes I was successful, but most of the time, I just got slack.

Whether you want to lose weight, build muscles, learn a skill, or build a business, your success would be significantly higher if you're doing it for someone else. Maybe you want to be an example. Maybe you want to be a teacher. Maybe you just don't want to hear someone fussing at you. However way you pursue something with someone else being involved, do it. And when you've finally reached your goal, thank the other person for being there. If that person wonders how he or she was involved, just tell that person, "You were just simply on my mind when I decided to change my life."