"If you want something, focus on shifting the baseline first, and the best possible result will unfold automatically. If you want to be really strong, focus on moving, living and thinking as a really strong person. That’s a high-quality existence that leads to strength. It should be the first focus. You cannot get all the way there by obsessing over what you can lift now, versus what you think you should be able to lift.”

Chris Moore – “Get Change”

Well, it’s been 8 months of doing whatever it is that I’m trying to do, and the last few weeks have felt like I’ve been pushing a rock uphill. It took my old heavy ass quite a bit of time to recover from our competition physically and mentally, and I’ve had a hard time building confidence from one workout to the next. Between shaking off soreness, mobility issues, and some underwhelming WOD performances lately, I feel like my progress has stalled a bit. I did however see the scale slip to under 300lbs, which was definitely a big deal for me, but I haven’t been able to gather much steam after that victory. I’ve made a point to be mindful of the bigger picture, and try to be aware of what is REALLY going on, and that’s the point of today’s post…. MOMENTUM WORKS BOTH WAYS.

I’ve been noticing that momentum is really the main driving force in what I’ve been working on lately. Trying to eat better, get in better shape, and be a happier/more positive/mindful person gets easier with each small victory. Every time my willpower holds up and I string together another week of clean(ish) eating, it makes it that much easier to keep it locked down for another week. Every time I’m able to really blow it out in the gym and leave myself on the floor in a puddle of chalk and sweat, I’ve moved the needle forward a bit. It raises my standard, and that makes it easier to consistently demand more from myself. Each action adds weight to those behaviors, and keeps that ball rolling downhill. However, taking shortcuts, making exceptions, and unintentionally laying out some 80%-effort workouts seem to snowball into habits as well, making it easier and easier to repeat. It seems like it wears a pathway in my brain and turns those behaviors into my default setting, and it takes a real conscious effort to get back off that path.

Honestly, I’m still working on it. But I heard a quote the other day on an episode of Barbell Shrugged from guest Julien Pineau of Strongfit that really clicked……

“Burn the questions.” he said. He then went into detail about how important it is to learn how to push yourself, regardless of motivation or justification. Powerful stuff.

For me, the questions have begun showing up along with the nervousness in the few minutes leading up to a heavy lift or an intense WOD…..

“What the hell are you doing, Tyler?”

“How long do you think you can keep doing this?”

“You’ve already lost 50 pounds, why don’t you just keep eating better and quit all this?”

“Don’t you know Zumba is free at the YMCA?”

My inner monologue tends to be a bit cynical. But I think it's important try to focus on Mr. Pineau’s words (which I believe is in reference to a Heidegger quote that I’m too lazy to search for).

Burn the questions…. I like it.

It’s a more elegant way of saying, “Fuck it.”…….It doesn’t matter WHY I do, it only matters THAT I do. Stop rationalizing things, don’t expect some magical answer to pop into your head, just bite down and light your own goddamn fire.

Head down.

Eyes forward.

Take a moment. Get your mind right.

” Just Fucking Do It.”

-Nike

Thanks for reading,

Tyler

Burn The Questions