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Summary
On episode 399 of 40+ Fitness, Coach Allan closes out his three part mindset series by asking a simple, direct question: are you committed? He argues that resolutions, diets, and fitness regimes fail because there is no real jeopardy attached to them, while a true commitment comes from a much deeper place.
Allan explains that our bodies are wired to find balance, or homeostasis, and will happily let us stay unhealthy if that is what we allow. Breaking that balance takes stimulus and consistent work, and it only holds if the commitment behind it is rooted in self-love rather than fear.
He closes with a practical formula: make the commitment deep and emotional, make it public, and know the vision behind it, the same way people are told to know their vision before getting married.
Links
- https://40plusfitness.com
Key Takeaways
- A commitment is not the same as a resolution, a goal, or a diet. Those words carry no real consequence when broken, so it is easy to slide off the wagon and tell yourself you will restart on Monday. A commitment, in Allan’s framing, does not carry that built in excuse.
- Your body is designed to protect its current balance, not to change. Homeostasis means your body will let you stay 200 pounds overweight if that is what you allow, because it can adapt around almost anything, including declining strength.
- Real change requires stimulus, and stimulus requires work. Improving fitness means pushing yourself across different modalities, and improving nutrition means changing what you actually eat, not just wishing for a different outcome.
- Fitness means being fit for task. Allan defines it as being capable of doing what you actually want to do in life, whether that is getting off the toilet unassisted at 105 or keeping up with grandkids on a hike without being wiped out the next day.
- Commitment has to come from self-love, not fear. Fear motivates only until you leave the movie theater and the feeling fades. Self-love sticks around because it is deep, emotional, and tied to identity.
- A commitment needs to be made publicly. Allan compares it to the shift from fiance to spouse: the public declaration reinforces the internal decision and makes backing out harder.
- You need a clear vision of who you are becoming before you commit. Allan uses his own early marriage as an example: without a shared, well defined vision, even a sincere commitment can fail to hold over time.
- Identity has to include the habit you want to keep. If you do not see yourself as someone who trains regularly, the behavior will not stick, no matter how strong your initial motivation is.
“Fear is something you feel in a movie theater and then you walk out of the theater and you’re not afraid anymore. Love is something that you just keep on feeling.”
Coach Allan Misner