Interested V. Committed

There's a difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when circumstances permit. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results--unknown

Allow me to share with you the tale of two clients. Sarah (not her real name) needed to lose 40 pounds and desired a more energetic lifestyle so she could better enjoy her family, especially her young grandchildren. In eight weeks, Sarah found every excuse available to not follow the nutrition plan she was given, cancelled several of her training sessions, and was late to most of the other ones.

On the other hand, Sam (not his real name, either) wanted to get back in shape for a trip to his home in New York to celebrate his 40th birthday. He needed to lose 25-30 pounds and really wanted his chest to be larger than his midsection. In eight weeks, Sam lost 25 pounds, took five inches off his waistline, and got himself into the kind of physical condition that would make any 40-something proud.

Sarah and Sam shared many similarities as they began their programs. Each of them had a legitimate need to lose weight for health reasons. They also had external motivators, such as family, an up-coming birthday party, and a desire for more energy and better looks. In addition, each client was given a proven nutrition plan that has helped over 200 people in our area lose at least 100 pounds in the last two years.

What was the difference? At first glance one might conclude that Sam, being a male, had an advantage over Sarah. Although men do have the ability to lose weight quicker than women—the average male will lose 25-30 pounds in eight weeks with our training and nutrition plan, while the average woman will lose 20-25—this would was not the deciding factor.

The difference between Sarah and Sam is the distinction between almost every success and failure story concerning fitness. It’s the difference between being committed to fitness and just being interested. Sarah seemed very interested in being more fit. She joined the gym, signed-on with a trainer, shared how she wanted to change, and when in the gym she vigorously trained. However, once she left the gym, she never changed her eating habits and found it difficult to make it to her next training session. Sam, on the other hand, took his program to heart, followed his nutrition plan, and turned his desire for better health into a lifestyle. Sam was committed, while Sarah was merely interested in being more fit.

Contrary to a slogan I recently saw from a nutrition supplement company, Fit does not just happen. Fitness is the result of a commitment; a commitment to accept no excuses, to overcome every obstacle, to replace bad habits with good ones, and to settle for nothing less than positive results. Instead of being one of a myriad of the “interested,” pledge today to join the ranks of the “committed.”