Hey everyone. Today I’ve got something new for you…my very first guest. It comes from Parth Shah who runs his very own blog over at ShahTraining.com. Shah’s blog is full of killer workout information and provides you with some fantastic training techniques. I strongly urge you to check it out after you have finished reading his excellent guest post
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We’re going through some tough times. I can understand that. But when has the human race never faced a tough time. Just think about the events in history. The past fifty years will show you how lucky you are. Pick up the paper and see the suffering going on around the world.
I’m lucky to be sitting in a warm room with a computer in front of my eyes. I’m lucky to be able to eat warm, healthy food. I’m lucky to still be able to have a choice about the type of foods I put in my mouth.
Life requires a lot of mental and physical strength to push through it. The only way that I have moved past my bad times – when I was being mocked in middle school for my weight, when my parents disagreed with my career goals, when I just felt depressed due to a series of failures – I pushed through with the support of intense training and sound nutrition.
When you spend time improving yourself, pushing yourself through physical plateaus, you realize the amazing things that you are capable of. I follow the creed of Mahatma Gandhi:
“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
How to Be the Change
What Mahatma Gandhi meant by this quote was to simply live life the way you want to see the world. I want to see the world healthy and fit. And so I live my life in this manner. I want to see people respect each others’ religion, background, political views, and race. And so I live my life in this manner.
Fitness itself provides a huge vehicle for change. One such example is Anne Malhum’s “Back on my Feet” program. Anne ran past a homeless center in Philadelphia every morning. One morning, she decided to motivate these homeless men to start running with her.
This seemingly simple task changed the lives of these men. The running club transformed from just 9 runners in from over 300 members in across 3 shelters. According to Mahlum, “Running is really a metaphor for life. There is always another mile. You just have to take it a step at a time.” She says that the men have not only improved in their health and well being, but also have learned life lessons such as discipline and goal setting.
The program also has a job training program, complete with interview prep and computer classes. There have been numerous success stories of the program.
Applying it to Your Life
I’m not telling you to go out and start a community program, or even volunteer in your community (but you can, if you want). I’m just trying to give you another reason to stick to your program and perhaps try things you’ve never done before.
A global recession or crisis often makes people not want to do anything. But if anything, this is the time to do SOMETHING. Inactivity or ignorance is probably why a crisis occurred. Someone somewhere wasn’t doing their job properly.
Just as in the world, what happens in life is that you become comfortable. You think things are going smoothly, so you hold back back. You settle. You let things go the way they are. You used to train five days week, but now you’re settling for three days a week, with only half the effort. All of a sudden you find yourself unhealthy, maybe even back to where you originally started.
When things go back, it’s time to move forward, not look back and sulk.
About the Author:
Parth Shah is an average joe who’s tired of all the nonsense in mainstream fitness media. His thoughts, ideas, and philosophy can be found on his website, ShahTraining.com. (Feed – http://feeds.feedburner.com/shahtraining/UQuk)