Only One Way Works For You

Ignore the guy with sculpted abs and the girl with the best booty. What they’re doing works, just maybe not for you.

I recently listened to a podcast where a former Marine described his mindset when it comes to fitness and food.

“You can’t be a drill instructor all the time,” the Marine said. “Sometimes, you just need to go easy on yourself.”

When his kids are crazy, when his inbox is full, and when he just couldn’t find the time, the 50-year-old former Marine just said, “screw it. I’m not working out today.” And instantly, he said, the stress of missing a workout floated from his mind like that plastic bag in American Beauty.

Same goes for food, he continued. “If someone offers me birthday cake, I’m going to eat it.”

The host interrupted, “How can you make sure that doesn’t become a slippery slope, and before you know it, you haven’t worked out in a month, and you’re fat?”

“That’s where the drill instructor comes in,” The Marine said. “When I know I’ve been babying myself too much, he steps in and makes me get up early, workout, eat right and get back on track.”

Over the years, I’ve had the absolute honor of befriending many Marines. Many of which whom share this same ability. If I had to guess, I’d say it comes from years of rigorous training most of us can’t even imagine. A mental on and off switch they can call upon whenever they wish.

Here’s what I mean.

For the Marine, eating whatever he wanted and missing a week’s worth of workouts was something he could just flip. Like snapping his fingers, starting his car, or refreshing his screen, it happened instantly. He didn’t feel guilty, and more importantly, he didn’t feel like he was missing out when he switched gears. He just put his head down and dug in.

For many of us, however, it’s not that simple. Me, for instance. Give me one missed workout and I feel like a failure. Give me a week away from the gym and I feel like the world is ending. And ONE piece of cake? You must be joking! Try to give me a single piece of anything sweet and I’ll zombie bite your arm off for the rest. That doesn’t make me a bad person, I just know me and that’s just who I am.

So who are you?

Are you the guy who can take an entire week off, and come back just as strong? Or the girl who, for now, needs to surround herself with fit friends and whole foods? Crazy thing is, when it comes to health anyway, both ways work. But only one way works for you.