May 29, 2005

I just spent the weekend at a Kettlebell Seminar with one of the most inspirational and charismatic people I know, kettlebell instructor, Mike Mahler. It was so much fun to spend a weekend with people who are willing to sacrifice their entire Saturday to learn about one of the newest, most innovative styles of training…and it was hard! And it was absolutely fun, because as a fitness freak, I think it is so important to spice up your workouts by incorporating different programs into your routine…my favorite thing about the Kettlebell training is that it challenged my entire body simultaneously, my central nervous system was constantly engaged, and it was fun to play with a kettlebell versus a dumb bell. (However, I think I’m going to paint pink hearts of my kettlebell when I get one.)

Kettlebell training introduces another ‘how’ in training: meaning that it gives people another strategy to tackle their fitness goal...but like Yoga, Pilates, Kickboxing, Martial Arts, Spinning and all the other fitness crazes out there: none of these ‘how strategies’ mean anything if you haven’t figured out the ‘why.’ I firmly believe that if you understand ‘why’ you want to achieve your goal, then the ‘how’ part becomes easy.

Lately people have been asking me when I will compete again…and I always reply with: “While I’m excited to train and get in my best shape again, I still need to find a reason why I want to first.” And the interesting thing is, is that they always ask me, “Why do you need a reason why?” and my reply is, “If I don’t find a hard core reason why, then I won’t train hard, I won’t eat clean, I won’t be disciplined…and I don’t want to train for second place.” I feel that most people in general don’t question, “why” they do something often enough.

When I worked with people as a personal trainer in the past, some of the first questions I ask people are: “Why are you here? What do you want to accomplish? And Why is it important for you to accomplish this?” Most people come in telling me ‘what they want’….but I believe, that if they ask themselves: “why they want it?” then they’ve just created a strong energy that will help them figure out how to get it, where to find it, and what to do when circumstances arise.

Figuring out your purpose…your mission…your reason’s ‘why’ you do something, is an important element in creating a more authentic and meaningful existence. Doing anything in life without a goal or purpose, whether it be working, being in a relationship, working out, writing… is very difficult if you don’t have clear set goals as to why your even partaking in that action in your life….I think it’s important to set goals, dream high and live a life of purpose….because when you define ‘why’ you want to achieve something, then you’ve created the passion it’s going to take to get you there.