This fact might sting a little …
But … not everyone will succeed.
It sucks to think about that but it’s true.
It’s especially true when it comes to body composition goals but it’s also true in every area of life.
I remember when I was younger and completely obsessed with sports.
Almost every family trip, we’d all play tennis together.
My grandfather and I were doubles partners and ended up being undefeated over the many years we played together.
Then I got older and made varsity as a freshman in high school.
The entire team was a bunch of seniors and little ass me walks on the court, barely says a word, and lands the #3 singles spot as a freshman.
The following 3 years I played number 1 singles and earned some pretty high accolades.
But I honestly wasn’t that good.
To play at the next level would have required a level of commitment and sacrifice that I wasn’t willing to make.
This was a common lesson in life that I learned through sports.
No matter how good I got or how good I thought I was …
There was always another level up.
And each level requires a whole new dedication and commitment to get there.
Even then, there are limitations.
For example, I was pretty damn good at my peak in basketball.
But being 5’10 was something that I couldn’t control.
Even if I had dedicated my entire life to playing in the NBA, it wouldn’t have been good enough.
And that’s ok.
There’s a point to all of this.
Most people never reach their genetic potential.
The late, great John Meadows used to talk about reaching your genetic potential.
And that most people never even come close.
I think the reason for that is because of the various levels of success that exist and the amount of dedication and commitment that it takes to reach each one.
In other words, if it were easy to become part of the 1% … then there wouldn’t be a 1%.
Now, I can confidently say that I am nowhere near my genetic potential when it comes to my physical goals.
I’ve never competed in body building and have no intent to ever do that.
The next level would require sacrifices that I don’t want to make.
The point is that you have to know what YOU want.
And you can’t compare that desire to what anyone else is doing.
Remember, your genetic potential looks radically different from everyone else’s.
Which means the various levels on your way to whatever it is you want to accomplish also looks radically different.
It’s easy to lose sight of that in the social media world that we live in.
You’re bombarded with unrealistic images and standards that don’t exist.
All that does is gets you out of your lane.
The main thing that allowed me to thrive as a tennis player, despite being way less skilled than many of my opponents, was the ability to play my game.
I never tried to play like anyone else.
I stayed in my lane and I played my game.
And it often frustrated the shit out of my opponents and they would quickly unravel.
When you try to play someone else’s game … you likely unravel too.
Your game can’t be found in some diet rulebook or by following what some unfulfilled influencer is telling you to eat.
Your game can only be found by knowing what you want, knowing what’s important to you, and understanding the sacrifices you’re willing to make along the way.
Read that again because it’s the foundation for everything.
If you say you want to be healthy and fit for the long haul, and you want to age well and live longer for your kids …
Well … that game doesn’t include crash dieting and trying to lose weight as fast as humanly possible.
All the sudden your lack of patience is diametrically opposed to the game you want to play and you wonder why you unravel?
Stay in your lane.
Run your race.
Remember what you actually want and what’s truly important to you.
Play your game and you’ll be successful by your OWN definition of success.
And that’s way more fulfilling.
That’s all I’ve got for you today.
Hope it helps!
