Transformation 5.0

What Ifs, Willpower, and Generation Iron

What If

What if you don’t reach your goal?

What if all the effort is for naught, if the sweat doesn’t translate?

What if…?

Simple.  You adapt.  You improve.  You try again.

Anytime that you raise the stakes and take a risk, what ifs occasionally (or more than occasionally) creep onto the mental radar.  It’s critical that when they do, you creep them right back off of it.

In the words of Epictetus, “learn to distinguish what you can and can’t control”.  An extension to the quote is to pour every ounce of energy you have into what you can and none into what you can’t.

Your personal store of mental energy, of willpower, is finite.  Whatever you waste on chasing ghosts is less you can devote to what actually matters.

If you’re having difficulty extinguishing thoughts of failure, take them a step further and complete the thoughts.  It’s official: you failed.  What now?  How do you respond?  Develop a plan.

Completing this exercise removes the fear factor.  You are aware that even if disaster strikes, you are equipped to handle it.  You will survive.

Now get back to the present moment.  Put your head down and give it your all.  Focus on what you can control, discard the rest, and let the chips fall where they may.

The irony?  Consistently doing the above creates an incredible future.

Day 15 Recap

It was a recovery day in the exercise world.  I continue to be amazed at the lack of critical soreness, even after big workouts.  It’s directly attributable to the nutrition.  The grass-fed dairy experiment rears its head again.

Steps and miles checked in at 14,067 and 7.61 (add 20%).

Sleep checked in at 7 hours and 45 minutes (10 restless minutes), although I saved myself an hour or more by tearing myself away from the NBA Finals.  I accept all grandpa related jokes.

The nutrition

Breakfast: Grass-fed yogurt, whey protein isolate, (5g) creatine, raw cacao nibs, chia seeds, coconut flakes, organic blueberries, banana, cinnamon.  Black gold.

Day 15 Breakfast

Lunch: 5 free-range eggs, sauteed greens in avocado oil, sauerkraut, organic sweet potato.  Fish oil and probiotic.  I experimented with a new type of kraut – Food and Ferments Sea King, which includes seaweed.  Decent.

Day 15 LunchDay 8 Lunch 2

Afternoon Snack: Rise Bar.

Day2Snack

Dinner: Free-range turkey (half dark, half white meat), quinoa, wilted spinach, broccoli, salt/pepper/garlic/cayenne.

Day 15 Dinner

Daily Fuel

Last night we caught Generation Iron, which profiled the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding contest and several contenders for its crown.  It comes from the same producer as Pumping Iron, which introduced Arnold Schwarzenegger to the world decades ago.

What a documentary!  Great stories, ruthless competition, and incredible work ethic (yes, there are plenty of steroids involved – this is noted in the movie – but the dedication is insane).

Anyone who is pushing towards a personal goal will get a lot out of this.  Ditto for those who appreciate competition at the highest level.

“If you want something you’ve never had before, you’ve got to be willing to do something you’ve never done before.”

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