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By David Pollitt,
BPE, CSCS*D, CFC
Published online June, 2006
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When I first meet new
clients one of the big questions I ask is “what their
level of commitment is”. I know from experience that
this is an important question seeing as how this will
determine their progress more than anything else. It’s
funny really because we can choose what our path will
be, and often times we decide this long before actually
making the physical choice.
A great example of this is
one of my clients Moe who owns a number of gas stations,
car washes, apartment complexes, condos, etc. This man
is busy all the time. When I first sat down with him he
didn’t strike me as the kind of guy who would have the
time or energy to focus on his health. It turns out he
is the typical type A personality of a true businessman
and is fiercely competitive. He took the information I
presented him and ran with it (literally). He bought an
exercise bike and started interval training every day
while continuing to play racquetball two days a week.
He came to the gym three days a week and with
adjustments he modified his eating habits in line with
what I was recommending. To top it all off he quit
smoking. The results were fantastic. The fat
practically melted off of him. He started to mention
that his racquetball game vastly improved and his
overall quality of life went through the roof! The fact
of the matter with Moe is that he decided to make it
happen, and then followed through. This is what I call
commitment.
On the flip side of the coin
I have witnessed clients who come in to the gym with a
poor attitude, lack of motivation and no real desire to
change their habits. They come because their family or
doctor sends them for some exercise, but they don’t
really care. I work with them, send them emails, call
them up and offer many kinds of suggestions for their
daily routine. They don’t listen. They walk in the gym
tired and out of energy from a long stressful day where
they didn’t eat properly (or at all), failed to exercise
and piled the stress on with work instead of planning
and organizing. When they finally get to the gym they
half-ass a warm-up, bitch and complain about the stress
level of their job and how tired they are. When the
workout starts they don’t really work hard or if they do
it’s only because I am kicking their ass to make it
happen. After a workout I can’t imagine they go home
for a dinner of lean meat, vegetables and a salad…more
like a cream sauce pasta with a couple glasses of Merlot
at the local restaurant. This is not the path to
fitness or any kind of healthy progress.
Needless to say I don’t work
with these clients very long because they don’t want to
make any changes or follow my advice. Their level of
commitment is very low, and I imagine this shows in most
things they do. I don’t understand, but maybe that’s
because I honor commitment and respect those people that
show this quality day in and day out.
Maybe that's why I love to
watch the military in action. When you see the
dedication to a code, an honor and a purpose that the
military has (such as the trained perfection of the Blue
Angels as you see above), you can't help but love their
commitment level. These folks work hard 24 hours a day,
7 days a week, 365 days a year to be the very best at
what they do. We could all learn a lesson or two from
them!
The next time you are
presented with a life changing type decision you will be
presented with a commitment question that someone will
ask you (actually or figuratively). You can decide to
put your resources behind a positive plan and work
towards a goal, or you can half-ass it and hope that
somehow things will change. Just remember that the
definition of stupidity is doing the same things over
and over, and expecting a different result. You have
the power to change…You can do it…Just commit to
improving and do it!
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