10,000

No, not steps. Hours. It’s the 10,000 hour rule and I want it to move you. We all know that mastery – even of our health and body – takes time. This is where the 10,000 hours comes in to play. It takes about 10,000 hours to master something, even yourself. But we live in a minute world. We can microwave our dinner and have it ready in a few minutes. We can go through a drive thru and get it even quicker. There are 17 minute workouts, 20 minute workouts, 4 minute abs and bikini bodies in just 6 weeks… But somehow we are fatter than ever.

You may look at some of the clients I have that excel in their health and think it must be genetics, or surgery, or they must have had an easy life. But the reality is that they’ve been overweight, had cancer, had heart disease, had loved ones pass away, had problems conceiving, have dealt with depression and much more. But they kept going – they reached the 10,000 hours. Not because it’s a magic number to the fountain of youth. But often because it’s what got them through the tough times. Now they are reaping the benefits. Want to know their secret?

1. Time – you have to put in the time. To become stronger, leaner, and more efficient a lot has to happen to our muscle, nerve, and brain. Start on your 10,000 hours right now.

2. Train smart – this is often where the trainer comes in. Don’t just train… train smart. Your training has to be well designed, balanced, and progressive. Think of it as the place between what you can already do and what you absolutely can’t do right now. It is our job to know where that is.

3. Training is not always fun – stop feeling like you must be constantly entertained and understand that to improve it will very often be difficult. If you find it to be too boring, then you are not concentrating or you are not being challenged enough.

Now here’s the kicker. What are you thinking? If you now think…. Ok, I’ll try. Stop it. “I’ll try” is just the excuse for what you probably are not going to do anyway. So eliminate those words, right along with “I can’t” and instead plan with your trainer for a goal that you are going to achieve.