TO RIDE WHEN NO ONE ELSE WOULD RIDE
“I went back to training. I rode and I rode and I rode. I rode like I have never ridden, punishing my body up and down every hill I could find. I remember one day in particular, May 3, a freezing European spin day – biting cold. I stirred my bike into the Alps with Johann following in the car. By now it was 32 degrees. I did not care. We stood at the roadside and looked at the view and the weather and Johann suggested that we skip it. I said ‘No, let’s do it.’ I rode for seven straight hours alone. To win the tour [Tour De France 1999] I had to be willing to ride when no one else would ride.”
- Lance Armstrong, It’s Not About the Bike
This time I will take my fitness program more seriously. We have all heard of this statement either in January after the Christmas season. We say to ourselves, “Bagong taon, bagong buhay” or maybe in March in anticipation for summer “Time for the beach! It’s time to show those muscles.” But somehow, each year we find a way to rationalize to ourselves why we cannot sustain our personal health and fitness program, “Wala akong oras, daming ginagawa, ang hirap mag-exercise” so on and so forth. Look at this:
Ten Reasons Why People Don’t Exercise:
No.10 They hate to exercise
No. 9 They to try to exercise but keep quitting
No. 8 They cannot afford a gym membership
No. 7 They’re not seeing any changes in their body
No. 6 They don’t know how to exercise
No. 5 They need to take care of their family
No. 4 They cannot seem to continue motivated working out
No. 3 Exercise hurts
No. 2 They cannot make a commitment to stick to an exercise routine
No. 1 They don’t have time
We live in a time wherein a lot of people give up easily. We easily give up on our fitness program. We easily give up on marriage.
In America for example, according to statistics at least 50 percent of all marriages will end in divorce. We easily give up on school. In the Philippines according to the recent report posted by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), there were three male dropouts for every two female dropouts in high school eight years ago. There are now two for every one. There are so many boys dropping out that only 57 out of 100 boys who entered first year end up with a high school diploma compared to 71 girls.
Be steadfast in your priorities. Understand the power of commitment. Pagtatalaga sa sarili. Be committed to your goals and dreams. Be committed to your responsibilities in life. Be committed to a healthy lifestyle. For 75 years, Jack La Lanne has been inspiring men and women to exercise and eat right, earning him the title of the Godfather of Fitness. La Lanne was inspired to adapt a healthy lifestyle at the age of 15. Jack says he stopped eating sugar, became a vegetarian and joined the local YMCA. He says he hasn’t had a sugary dessert or missed a daily workout, listen to this, since 1930. Amazing.
You know what, life is tough. There will be times our commitments will be tested. In one of the books of John Maxwell, there are four types of people when it comes to commitment:
One. People who have no goals and do not commit
Two. People who don’t know if they can reach their goals so they’re afraid to commit
Three. People who start toward a goal but quit when the going gets tough
Four. People who set goals, commit to them and pay the price to reach them
As seven times Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong would say “To win I had to be willing to ride when no one else would ride.”
Life Coaching Infinity’s “To Ride When No One Else Would Ride” is available at Planet Infinity, the first and only wellness facility in the Philippines. Visit us at the 4th Floor No.77 Mother Ignacia Avenue, Quezon City. Office (632)4107926. Facsimile (632)3762044. This article is the property of Planet Infinity. Unauthorized reproduction, distribution or exhibition violates applicable laws with severe penalties. All rights reserved. © |
