Start Small. Go Big.

Between watching this week's episode of The Biggest Loser, and having a great workout with one of my rock star clients, I had a principle of working out (and life, really) re-confirmed to me. Biggest Loser Scenario: The contestants watched a video of their first workouts on the ranch. Most of them were doing hardly any weight, struggling to get their reps in, and using poor form. From the looks on their faces they were hating life, hating exercising, and wanting to get the heck out of there. BUT they didn't. They stuck with it, and most of them...a hundred plus pounds later...couldn't believe that was actually their "old selves" they were watching.

Rock Star Client Scenario: Betina is an AWESOME client of mine. I've been working with her for about 7 months. She's almost 50, and she's SUPER sweet, in so many ways. When I started out with her we started mostly with balancing exercises, low reps, really focusing on form. Slowly each week we'd build. Increasing weight, increasing difficulty, and though she didn't realize it, increasing confidence in her ability to perform. On Wednesday I put her through an extremely challenging workout. When we were done she was SO proud of herself, and I was SO proud of her too. She was doing things she never would have believed possible on day one.

So, the take home lesson?
-Start small. Yes, i'm not going to lie, it WILL most likely be hard at first. Wether you are out of shape, overweight, old, young, weak, or just trying to get back into the mode. The first few weeks are the most dificult.
-Which brings me to the next lesson. IT GETS BETTER. Stick to it. Make those small goals, and increase them with time. You will be surprised at your own strength, and abilities.
-Lastly, don't be afraid to push yourself. Most of us don't realize what we are capable of. Be safe, don't overdo it, but don't underestimate yourself either.

I hate to bring up the marathon again, cause I know you're all sick of hearing about it. BUT if there is one HUGE thing I learned, it's that we are capable of SO much more than we give ourselves credit for. Don't give up on yourself. If there is something that you want, go for it. Get the "I can't" out of your head, because the truth is YOU CAN!!