Health Isn't Found On The Low Road!

Now let's face it, we all want a better body. And I say that because there are very few people I ever speak to that would tell me any different. Even the people I know with the absolute best physiques still want even better. And I don't see that as a bad thing. I think that we should always be striving for growth in all areas of life, whether we're talking body, being, balance, or business, because ultimately it's about expansion and, and being a better version of ourselves, which I know sounds cliché and whatnot these days. But why settle for mediocrity or for less than you truly desire when more is available? Now, the catch we have with wanting more in life, particularly when it comes to health, is there are two main options that we have, and unfortunately most people will choose the worst option. Now, what I mean by that is we can either choose the high road or we can choose the low road. But the catch for most people is they are often so desperate to get a result that the low road seems like the only option. And the reason for that is because they want the result so quickly. It's like, I've spent so long feeling like shit, looking like shit, being unhappy in myself and in my body that I want a result immediately. So they'll choose the low road, which ultimately means starvation diets, it means extreme exercise programs, it means unnecessary surgeries, it means supplements that are maybe taken in place of real food and real health-giving, um, steps. Instead, instead, people will try to rely on supplementation or maybe even the use of drugs and things like that in order to try and stimulate the body to elicit a particular response. Now, the catch, of course, with doing this is, yes, it's going to probably yield some quick results aesthetically. It's like, oh well, I dropped a whole bunch of weight. And that's what I was after. I wanted to lose weight, I got this quick result, great. And from a simple you got results perspective, cool, that's what you were after. The catch is, as we know, for the most or for the majority of people is that they will go down this route, they will get a result, but they will very rarely manage to keep it. Very few people that take that route, the starvation diets and the extreme calorie restriction and all that, it's very rare that people that use that approach manage to maintain their results. They'll, they'll get it for a brief period of time, but it's very rarely sustained, often because of metabolic damage and things that get done, and just the fact that you haven't actually developed a new routine, habit, or even shifted in identity. Now, of course, if we're going to completely change the way we look, that requires us completely changing the way that we show up for ourselves. And the way that we essentially act and operate as an individual. So my identity needs to shift from that of a fat, overweight person to that of a fit, lean, and strong person. But if I don't actually have that identity shift, I might lose the weight, but I continue to feel like and believe I am still that fat person. So then the moment I've gotten to the result and I go back to my original lifestyle that I had prior because, oh, well, the diet's over now, I got the result, What happens is, of course, we drift all the way back and sometimes even further. Now, on the flip of this, of course, we have the option to take the high road. Now, the unfortunate thing is, is it doesn't sound as sexy. And of course, that's because, as I mentioned a moment ago, we want quick results. So the idea of, oh, well, what about stretching this out, taking a bit of a slower approach and getting results, maybe not quite as quickly, but that are more sustainable and will last for longer, if not for life, as long as you continue to maintain some of your habits and so on. In the moment, that doesn't sound as sexy when we're desperate for results, but ultimately what that means, if I'm to take the high road, it means that, oh, actually I'm going to pick foods that nurture my body. So I'm going to switch out all the junk, or at least the large majority of it, and I'm going to replace that with healthy whole foods. Rather than do extreme exercise programs and try to beat my body into submission, I'm going to pick an effective training program stronger, fitter, leaner, and so on. And then I'm also going to make sure that because I'm now going to be training harder and I'm going to be fueling myself properly, I'm going to make sure that my rest and recovery protocols are on point, particularly if I'm older, as in 40 years or above, which of course isn't old. But by the time we get to 40, what we realize is, holy shit, I can't do many of the things I used to be able to do in my 20s and get away with them in the same way that I could. We often still have the physical capabilities, but we don't necessarily have the recovery capabilities and the adaptive abilities. We can still adapt, but it's a little bit slower, not quite so efficient and slick as it used to be. So we have to, unfortunately, in some respects, now prioritize rest and recovery higher than we used to. Where our body could get away with it before, it maybe can't now. Now, I understand that those things don't sound as sexy. Oh, well, you want me to eat healthy, you want me to just train normal, and you want me to rest and recover. Doesn't sound as sexy as grab a six-pack in 6 minutes a day. I get that. But the catch is we want long-term results, but many of us are not actually willing to do what's required to get long-term results. As I say, that desperation makes us do things that don't serve the body, that ultimately take us away from health they might help us approach the aesthetic result that we're after, but by actually moving us away from health at the same time, disrupting physiology, hormonal balance, and so on. Whereas if we take the high road, yes, it might take a little bit longer, but once we get there, it's much easier to maintain. And if we've done it properly and accepted the fact that, oh, if I want to maintain and keep this, that means I have to shift and change as an individual If we can have that mindset shift and that heart set shift throughout the process, by the time we get to the result, there's no way we'll go back because there's, there's this part of us that now says that is no longer me. That is not how I see myself anymore. And therefore I will never allow my body and my health to go back to that state because I didn't like how I felt. I didn't like how I looked. I didn't think people were judging me. And there's no way I'm going to allow myself to live that mediocre experience ever again. Because I've now gone through the effort and essentially the rite of passage to have this new fit, lean, strong body that I want to keep. Now, I don't really need to tell you which option is best for you because I'm sure you know. The catch is, of course, in that moment when we're like, oh, I need a result, sometimes we take the option that we know isn't best for us, even though we know that we should be taking the other one. But if that's the case for yourself and you're sort of still sitting there going, okay, yeah, well, I've got these two options, but I think I'm still going to go down the low road, I would just encourage you to sit with yourself and inquire as to why. Yes, there's the 'I want a quick result,' but why else? Why are you not yet willing to value yourself high enough that you will actually nurture and care for yourself to get, get results, and you would instead prefer to kind of starve yourself and beat yourself, your body, into submission through these more risky and less, um, less self-caring options. Now, I know as a man we don't really like to partake in self-care and all the rest of it because it's quite a feminine act. And I'm the same myself, or have been over the years, where it's a case of, well, no, I want to get a result, so I need to do more. I need to do more things because I'm a man and I don't sit back and chill and relax and nurture myself. And it's a hard transition to make from an identity perspective. But when you realize the results that you get on the back end rather than the constant struggle and the stress and the strain of maintaining it, you realize, well, there's no, no, there's no other option really. Like, there's no point in me doing that because it never leads to the outcome that I want. Because yes, I want to look better, but really we need to look at, well, why do you want to look better? What is the emotional outcome that you're trying to get or experience as a result of looking better? Is it that you want more happiness? Do you want to feel more confident? Do you want more self-esteem? Do you want other people to judge you and think that, oh, well, he's clearly a committed and disciplined guy? Because when people see that you have a healthy, fit, lean body, there is an automatic level of respect. Yeah, of course, from some there's also jealousy and so on, but a good body, a fit, lean, strong body cannot be faked. In the respect the hard work cannot be faked. Yeah, we can do certain things nowadays to speed up the process, such as, um, what's the word I'm looking for, performance-enhancing drugs and things like that, but they don't take away the fact that you have to still do the hard work. Even though you might be on performance enhancers, you still have to do the work. They don't actually prevent you or negate the need for you to do the work. They just allow you to recover harder so that you can train harder again more frequently. That's all it is. So I'm not saying go down that route, by the way. I'm just saying there is no way to, to get rid of the hard work. If we want to have the result and keep it, we have to be willing to engage in the hard work. But the hard work doesn't necessarily have to be a detriment to the body, because if it is, then we've probably taken that low road, and over time it's not going to lead us to the result that we want anyway. So sit with yourself, have a little think on that. Do I want to take the high road and actually get a result that I can keep and ultimately change who I am as an individual at the same time? Or do I want to continue going down this low road, repeating the same mistakes and the same habits that keep me stuck where I am? The choice is yours, people. Of course, I hope you make the right decision. And if you want help with any of this, of course, feel free to reach out to me and I'll be more than happy to share some help some advice, some tips, and so on that can help you stay on track and make sure that you are on the high road and not the low road. And if not, I look forward to chatting with you all in my next video. Take it easy, people.