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Summary
On episode 511 of 40+ Fitness, Coach Allan sits down with Delatorro McNeal, who holds a master’s degree in human performance enhancement from Florida State University, has authored six books, and has delivered more than 4,000 presentations to corporations, pro sports teams, and leadership conferences over the past 15 years. They discuss his book, Shift Into a Higher Gear, which uses the experience of riding a motorcycle as a framework for lasting change.
Delatorro’s core mantra is “better your best,” the idea that you ask yourself daily whether you will be just 1 percent better than yesterday. From there, he walks through the six phases of real change (it must change, I must change it, I can change it, I will change it, I am changing it, I have changed it) and explains why so many people stall out in the gap between “I can” and “I will.”
The conversation also covers his motorcycle metaphor for commitment: a motorcycle only has one gear, forward, unlike a car, which gives you park, neutral, and reverse as tempting escape hatches. He closes with three of his eight R’s for actually achieving goals: room, roadmap, and rewards.
Links
- https://shiftintoahighergear.com
- https://delatorro.com
- https://helpmecrushthestage.com
Key Takeaways
- Ask daily: will you be better today than you were yesterday? Delatorro’s “better your best” mantra is about getting just 1 percent better at something each day, whether that’s patience, fitness, or nutrition, rather than chasing one giant finish line.
- Real change moves through six phases. It must change, I must change it, I can change it, I will change it, I am changing it, I have changed it. Skipping straight to the end without moving through each phase produces a quick change that rarely lasts.
- There is a real gap between “I can” and “I will.” Can is potential and confidence, but will is the actual determination and follow through that crosses the bridge from possibility to action.
- A motorcycle takes its direction from your intention. Where you put your weight is where the bike goes. Delatorro extends this to say you have to put your weight (your best effort) into something, and also your wait (your patience), sticking with it long enough for it to actually deliver.
- How you do one thing is not how you do everything. Delatorro pushes back on that common self help line, pointing out that people can be in drive in their business while in reverse with their fitness, or in drive as a parent while in park in their marriage.
- A motorcycle only has one gear: forward. Unlike a car, which offers park, neutral, and reverse, a motorcycle only lets you go forward, faster or slower. The metaphor is a call to keep moving in one direction rather than giving yourself the option to stall out or backslide.
- Goals need room before they need tactics. Before adding a new habit, get clear about what has to come off your plate to make space for it, the same way a family prepares physical space in the home before a baby arrives.
- A roadmap comes from someone who has already done it. Find people who have achieved what you want, study what they actually did, and be willing to do the same work rather than just wanting the same results.
- Delatorro’s three strategies to get and stay well: make room for wellness in your schedule (use alerts and apps to protect the time), do it with other people (build your own “biker posse” or tribe), and make it enjoyable by choosing activities that actually fit you instead of forcing yourself into a gym routine you dread.
“Your I will is more important than your IQ.”
Delatorro McNeal