Senior Sneakers: The power of 'won'

When was the last time you won something? Was it an award, a competition, a prize? How did you feel when you won? I don’t think anyone has ever felt let down or discouraged from winning, especially when it was something that you had some control over, as with an award or competition. What are the components, or variables, that went into the win? Have you ever evaluated the differences in effort or the variables involved with your wins compared to those times when you didn’t win? Often the difference between a win and a near-win is nominal. It’s the difference between percentage points, tenths of a point or minute details. Big wins are really just the summation of individual points and smaller wins.

So why, then, at the beginning of the year (Happy New Year!), do people go for the home run with their health, rather than making small sustainable changes? Why is your diet going to completely change from what it was last week? Why are you committing to working out five days a week now, rather than zero days a week you were working out last year? While this article started out with the power of “won,” it’s really the power of “one” that leads to the win. One more workout per week than you did before. One more healthy meal in place of an unhealthy one than you did before. Over time, you increase the one.

Still too broad? I own a gym and I hear the misconception from people, quite often, that I must “work out all day long.” The reality is that I sit at a desk for a majority of the day in front of my computer and have a difficult time fitting in a workout, even though I’m in a gym most of the day! Just like many of you, one missed workout turns into two and two turns into a week. And then that’s a slippery slope! But I made a commitment to the “power of one” this week. So, on Monday morning…I missed my first workout. Oops! I didn’t let it discourage me. I committed to one. After my day of working, when I normally go home to relax, I ran one mile. Just one. And I did it again on Tuesday. And on Wednesday. I’m going to get a workout with some weights in here, too! But only one for that day.

I didn’t commit to upending my entire daily routine, because it’s the small changes that bring sustainability and the win that I’m looking for. We all have so much going on in our lives these days with work, family, doctor appointments, non-profit work, meetings, etc. The list goes on and you probably can add some specifics from your life to it. And then we want to add the stress of a total lifestyle change at the beginning of year to our schedule?! That‘s why many gyms are crowded for the first few weeks of the year and then get back to the normal flow of traffic by the end of February. Because we’ve set too great an expectation for ourselves if we miss one workout, then we feel we’ve come off the tracks! There’s that power of one, again. It works the other way, too!

If you don’t know where to start, we provide our new members with a free 30-day customized Get Started workout plan to make your journey toward “one” easier. We want to still see you in our gym in November of this year. So instead of committing a total lifestyle change now, commit to the power of one workout today and do the same tomorrow. Your change in health and lifestyle will be gradual, but sustainable. Let us help you make the power of one a healthy win for you in 2016!

PATRICK MCGAHA, JR., Member Experience Manager at Anytime Fitness, Winter Park, is dedicated to building a welcoming environment in the club, conducive to helping members and clients reach their health fitness goals. To get your fitness and nutrition related questions answered by a certified personal trainer, or for a free personal training session, call us at (321) 972-5833 or email [email protected].