One Key Factor for Fitness Success

Written on July 4, 2024 - 2:51 am | by Terra

There are many variables that you can tweak that will improve your efforts at getting fitter, and healthier. They apply to your diet and also exercise, whether your goal is to lose fat, gain muscle, get bigger, stronger, faster or to get healthier to live better and longer. But there is one thing that has the greatest impact on how consistent you will be with your efforts, and ultimately how successful you’ll be at reaching your goals. It isn’t a diet or exercise variable. It is not your level of motivation, or even enthusiasm, although they are also big factors. This one, super-important factor is more of a trait. It is DISCIPLINE.

Discipline can be the deciding factor on whether that package of junk food ends up in your shopping cart or stays on the grocery shelf. Are you disciplined enough to prepare a shopping list and stick to it when you go shopping? Do you have the discipline to accurately and thoroughly maintain a detailed food log? Do you have the self control to not have seconds, or for those of you trying to add muscle mass, do you have the discipline to stick to a regular feeding schedule, hungry or not?

Discipline dictates not only how intense your workouts are, but how productive they’ll be. Not to mention the other variables like frequency. Do you stick to your schedule or do you allow yourself to make excuses not to exercise? Self discipline is the difference between sleeping in or waking up a bit earlier to do your workout. Discipline stops you from calling your trainer and canceling just because you don’t feel like working out.

It can impact the quality of your workouts. You need self discipline to push yourself, and not easily give up. Discipline will keep you from cheating during exercise, like not going through the full range of motion, or not, at the very least, giving 100% effort into reaching the specified number of reps or seconds or minutes of activity. You need self discipline to maintain proper form and correct posture during exercise. It doesn’t matter if you are being coached or not. If you’ve been cued and reminded for more than half the set, lack of discipline might be partially to blame.

And let’s not forget about the factors outside of diet and exercise. Think how it might affect your sleep. Do you have the self control to turn off the TV or computer, and get yourself to bed early enough for a great night’s sleep? Can you limit how much alcohol you drink so it doesn’t have a negative effect on how you sleep and perform the following day?

It’s one thing to have great intentions to exercise and eat right. But remember, the greatest exercise programs and nutritional programs in the world won’t do you any good if you don’t have the self-control and power over self-defeating urges to get yourself to apply them, and most importantly to stick to them.

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