You know the old saying birds of a feather flock together? Well apparently they get fat together too. You know the biblical story of Jonah? In case you don’t, it’s very simple really. God calls Jonah to go to Ninevah but he’d rather see them burn in hell before he helps save them, so, Jonah runs away to Tarshish by ship, God causes a huge storm to arise, the crew realizes it’s his fault, and so toss him overboard. He gets swallowed by a big fish which spits him out three days later and he delivers God’s message to Nineveh and they repent.
And I know at this point you’re probably wondering what that has to do with fitness and the answer is “plenty”. I use the story to make the simple point that sometimes there will be issues; grief, strain, unrest, hardships (storms) in your life brought about by negative people and influences in your life and the only way to get rid of the issue or problem is to get rid of the source or the negative influence. It’s true about every aspect of your life, including your health and fitness and your ability to achieve your goals.
A recent study confirmed what most of us probably already knew or suspected…that our friends and family heavily influence our drinking and eating habits. Another study shows that your social networks also influence weight and obesity by influencing our eating patterns and the content of our diets. The study claims that people are more likely to be overweight and unhealthy if their friends or social networks are. It concludes that “friends influence each other’s diet and exercise patterns”. You know the old saying birds of a feather flock together? Well apparently they get fat together too.
How many times have we seen contestants on the Biggest Loser™ reality show absolutely freak out at the prospect of returning home prematurely or before they’ve made any significant headway in their weight loss journey? They know all too well that obesity is contagious and that the unhealthy habits and lifestyles of their friends and family affected their own and are likely to undo any progress they would have made.
Just last week I had a coworker who recently embarked on an exercise regimen to lose weight, confess her own trepidation about going to visit her family in the UK for the exact same reasons - fear of being lured back in to the excessive drinking and binge eating that are such a common part of life for her friends and family.
Let’s face it. Exercise and weight loss are hard enough without the constant enticement to stray that is bound to come when surrounded by compulsive overeaters. And this helps highlight a very important point that most people forget, that exercise is as much mental as it is physical. It takes a tremendous amount of willpower, discipline to start and perhaps more importantly, maintain any gains you achieve, and that requires some exercise itself. The good news is that that self discipline will spill over into other areas of our life not even related to exercise. It will improve your brain function, concentration and focus, goal setting and achievement ability. But no point subjecting yourself to unnecessary inducements to stray. Here’s another lesson straight from the bible that will help keep you in good stead. Matthew 5:30 says “if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” That’s good advice right there. You have to eliminate the things, and people in your life that act as hurdles or hindrances to the achievement of your goals or that will cause you to go astray in any sphere of your life or development as a person. The trick is to surround yourself with positive people who can help build you up.
When it comes to fitness, the power of the group is as powerful, as in any other area of life. Studies have shown a connection between social support and fitness success. A study that asked women to exercise on their own, compared their results with a group working out with friends and the results were astounding. Most of the people working out on their own dropped out of the study, while the others who worked out with partners, were able to complete it.Working out with people with similar goals helps build your own enthusiasm, and motivates you to push yourself harder, especially if the other person is able to lift more or run faster, or do more repetitions than you can…then you can work off of them, and set targets to match or surpass their performance.
You know you want to get into shape and lose some pounds this New Year but you’re not sure you can do it. You need to prepare yourself mentally for it first of all because it’s going to take hard work, discipline and commitment, but once you’ve decided, get help, partner with someone who shares the same goals as you do, to take the journey with you, and to help you keep each other accountable and motivated, and stick with that person. Stop hanging out with people who are going to suck you back into the same unhealthy practices and behaviors which got you to this point to begin with. Together with your new body you may want to consider getting a new set of friends and tossing the old ones over board.
About the author: Kendal Burton is a Certified Personal Trainer, Yoga Instructor and Sports Nutrition Specialist.
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