These were the words of the historical Buddha over 2,600 years ago 🤯

The essence is that the suffering you feel can be used as a vehicle for a better life.

“𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑊𝑎𝑦 𝐼𝑠 𝑇ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ!”

This means that you don’t avoid what is difficult….you go toward it! 💯

This is the way I have lived my life, consciously or subconsciously. And it has not been easy, and it is definitely messy! But it has definitely been worth it.

You…Just….Keep…Going, and try and make small improvements along the way.

The other way is avoiding the lessons or challenge that has been presented, not only stopping your growth but, in actuality, slowly moving you backward. And you know it because you’ll get that uncomfortable “stuck” anxiety feeling coming through. 🤮

No, thank you. I’ll take intentional, thoughtful uncomfortableness over avoidance any day.

This shows up in health and fitness ALLL THE TIME. If you look hard enough, you’ll find the pill or fitness routine that will satisfy your ego but derail your progress.

And then, when you have to face your challenges, you are not mentally ready for them.

It is a literal slap in the face. 👊🏽

You now “flinch. ” when the spotlight HAS to stay on your issues, and you HAVE to work on them. And when you flinch, you will most likely default to your conditioned reactions, which are not there to serve you.

I view a holistic health and fitness routine not as a way to entertain myself or “just get out and move” because that mindset is not sustainable. But as a vehicle to being a better person. One that exceeds all my expectations and is beneficial to all beings.

How does this sit for you?

It’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone in your life supported your healthy living goals? 

If your partner, kids, friends, family and colleagues all sat together in your cheering section? There to help with daily tasks while offering encouragement, too?

Ah, yes.

Fantasies are nice, indeed.

But sometimes reality lets us down. People in our lives aren’t always supportive, even if they want to be. 

And while that’s unfortunate, it’s not an excuse to give up or to feel sorry for yourself or to resent them.

Here are some strategies for doing what YOU NEED TO DO FOR YOU, regardless of how others react to it.

1. Remember your goals are YOURS, not anyone else’s. You’re the hero of your own story, but that doesn’t mean everyone else is in a supporting role. They have their own stuff on their minds, and they might not understand your motivation. 
2. Be clear about the support you need. Some people want to help but don’t know how. Others might respond to specific requests. In other words, instead of getting hurt when your partner doesn’t always do what you hope, state your need specifically: To pick up Timmy from soccer practice at 6 p.m. so you can work out with your trainer.
3. In your actions and, if necessary, in words, remind people you love that relationships are two-way streets. So, give them support where they need it, too. 
4. Offer to include them in your new ventures. They’ll probably appreciate being asked – and realize that your new habits aren’t a threat to your relationships. For example, how would your work lunch-buddy feel about taking a walking lunch break a couple of times a week? Ask!
5. Follow the principle of “attraction rather than promotion.” When people see how much happier you are with your new lifestyle, they’ll be more likely to acknowledge it than if you tell them they need to make the same changes.
6. Find new people, like workout buddies or others at the gym in small group sessions. You’ll hold each other accountable because you’re going through the same experience and probably have similar goals and struggles.
7. Keep a journal. Pray. Meditate. 

Ultimately, it’s up to you, even when your emotional needs aren’t being met by people you care about. 

You’re learning so much about yourself, even if you have all the support in the world – and more about yourself if you don’t.

Embrace your journey, my friend.

You got this.

Do you have a good support system? Let me know in the comments.

It’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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In business, education, or healthy living, we all need goals. Two kinds of goals, specifically: short-term and long-term.

And the way they work together is a powerful example of synergy – two things working together seamlessly to achieve a greater good.

Let’s start with a hypothetical desire to illustrate the point. Say you’re feeling the travel itch, but you’re not sure where to go. (This works for dieting, exercise… anything, really.)

So, you look at some travel sites and decide on a European vacation. Price tag? $5,000. You do the math and decide you can save $250 a month. At that rate, it will take you about a year and a half to reach your goal. But to save $250 each month, you’ll need to cut some expenses – Netflix, wine club – and work Saturdays at your family store.

Within that simple process of figuring out what you want (a nice trip abroad) and how to get it (budgeting, saving), you’ve made a long-term goal (save $5,000) and several short-term goals (like saving $250 a month, cutting costs, and earning extra money) to help you reach it.

You were also extra clever because you established a way to check your progress as time goes by, which will let you make adjustments along the way, take advantage of opportunities, and prepare for setbacks.

It can seem daunting to set a long-term goal — “I’ll never save $5,000!” But it feels more manageable to take it a piece at a time — “I can put away $250 each month” – and before you know it, you’re on your way.

And the best part? You’ll get where you really want to go! You can apply this principle to ANY area of your life – especially your health and fitness!

Have you applied this in your life? Let me know with a thumbs up in the comments.

it’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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Most people spend a lifetime clear on what they DON’T want for themselves.

That creates a constant state of yearning for more. But it’s confusing for our brains because we often don’t get clear enough to tell our brain what we actually desire.

This creates a low likelihood of ever getting what we actually want – it’s because we aren’t being completely intentional. A lot of people go years and years LIVING like that. Just doing it for no certain reason. Or for all reasons. Or for any reasons.

But if you want to get somewhere – if you want to create the thing that you want – then you must be intentional.

➡️ 𝑊ℎ𝑦 𝑎𝑚 𝐼 𝑑𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠?

➡️ 𝑊ℎ𝑜’𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟?

➡️ 𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑢𝑙𝑡 𝑑𝑜 𝐼 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡 – 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛?

It’s how you begin to establish a life of meaning. A life that means what you want it to mean. That should include a healthy lifestyle, a proper weight, a good relationship with food, etc. A life of meaning must include other priorities, too.

But priorities are, by definition, not haphazard. And healthy habits don’t just form on their own.

Choose to live the life you envision for yourself. Then … CREATE IT!

Do ya Feel me?! Give me a yes in the comments.

it’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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This was posted on my Facebook profile, and I thought it would be great for all to hear.

it’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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If you’ve ever critiqued anyone’s performance, then you know how important it is to provide balanced, helpful feedback.

You can’t just berate a kid, for instance, about all the ways they messed up.🤬

And you can’t merely praise a subordinate all day without providing challenges for improvement.😵‍💫

So, if you know that, then why can’t you be so lovingly balanced in the way you talk to yourself … ABOUT yourself?

It’s so much easier to pile on, isn’t it?

“I can’t believe I’m so stupid.”

“Why am I always the last one to figure things out?”

“I should have known I could never get back in shape.” Sound familiar?

You are not a victim. Read it again until it sinks in. 💯

Here’s a super-simple tactic to knock it off. Talk to yourself ABOUT yourself the way you would talk to someone else you care about — let’s say, your best friend.

I bet you would NEVER say to your best friend, “You’re so stupid. You should have known you could never get back in shape.” Would you? Nope. You might say something more loving and helpful, like this: “I’ve seen how hard you’ve been working, and you’re doing great. Getting in shape takes time, and I know you can get back on track despite this little setback. Come on! Let’s go for a walk and you’ll feel better in no time.”

Acknowledge the disappointment. Learn from it. Move on. Like everything in life, feedback is all about finding the right balance. You’ve done it before. You can do it now with yourself.

Does this resonate with you?

Give me thumbs 👍🏽 up in the comments.

it’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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Have you heard of “SMART” goals? 🧐

The acronym is used in lots of business settings, but it can be super-helpful in getting our mindset right when setting personal goals, too.

SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. 

Those are all important. But let’s focus now on just the first one: specific. It means well-defined, clear, and unambiguous. And it’s first for a reason.

Simply put, if our goals are not specific, we’re highly unlikely to reach them. 

Consider this vague, non-specific goal: “I want to feel stronger, more flexible and not in pain”

Well, what does that mean? For what? Why do you want it? Can you define it with a specific statement – maybe something like … 

“I want to feel stronger, more flexible, and not in pain so that my back doesn’t hurt after I play tennis. So that when my kids or grandkids want to play, I can get down on the floor with them and participate without fear. So that I can maintain my current level of activity well into my 80’s and 90’s”

Vague isn’t strong enough to motivate you through the tough times, or to help you track your progress. 

But with a specific target that’s supported by your values and real life, you can motivate yourself meaningfully on those tough days. You can measure how you’re doing and make any necessary adjustments to move forward. You can enjoy the process more.

By knowing specifically what you want, and why, you’ll be able to stay focused and resist distractions. And a specific goal is also more likely to be measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

You know: SMART.😎

P.S Do you need help assessing what you need to have a body that can keep up with the life you want to live? Have you tried other programs that miss the mark and are not sustainable? Well, just like your goals, your program needs to be specific to YOU! Use the link below to book a discovery session to go over your wants and needs, what you have done and are doing, and develop a plan to move you forward sustainably.

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I guess I should take it as a compliment that clients and members seem to look at me and think that the program I am teaching my clients and members somehow came easy.😝

I must be a superhero! “I’m Batman!”🦇 🤦🏽

Although that would totally satisfy my inner child, I’m just a dude who loves to be active, who got into some injuries, pain, and stiffness, who tried all that was out there, didn’t get sustained results, and decided to do a deep dive on correcting those pains.

I went through ERRRVVVRRREEEYYYYY thing that I am asking the people I work with to do.

😩 I have felt the pain and soreness in places I didn’t know existed.

😵‍💫 I have sat on the floor, not wanting to do my homework.

😂 I have had the thought (more than once…ok, A LOT) there is no way I can do this.

If you could say there is one thing I do differently than many people (my Batman superpower) is that I get super curious about what could work in a situation and am highly focused on finding my way through.

Ok, I’m anal!

And when I use my superpower, I want to understand why it works and why it might not work. And so when I initially got hurt and tried to find solutions, the main reason I never got sustained results was that the modalities and services I used ran into Dogma. And so, at best it would work to a certain point, aaaaannnnnddddd then it wouldn’t Or worse, It made matters worse.🤬

But my superpower prevailed because if you keep looking WITH AN OPEN MIND knowing there is a way out, YOU WILL find your way out of it. And I did with Osteopathy and holistic therapy and fitness.

I’m just a dude searching for the best practices out there.

P.S. If you relate to my situation, the whole in pain not getting out of it, I would love to help you speed up the process. Use a program that is based on science and is adaptable to YOU. Don’t search for years, like I did, before you can get back to the active full life you love. Use the link to book a complementary(free) discovery call.

https://calendly.com/ekemba_solcorefitness/ica-interview

it’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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it’s not just working out, it’s building a foundation for a better life.

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