Monday, November 19, 2007

An Act of Discipline

"First we form habits, then they form us. Conquer your bad habits or they will conquer you." -Rob Gilbert


This week marks the start of the holiday season and for more than a few of us, the holiday consumption. Work places become veritable bakeries with sugar cookies and sweets; office parties are frequent, alcohol consumption is commonplace and late-nights are the norm. Throw on top of that the stress of shopping and traveling to visit family and it no wonder most of us spend the first week of the New Year recovering from a sleep-deprived, sugar-induced coma. Time to brace yourself.

My piece of advice is this: develop an act of discipline to learn moderation. Don't undo the past year(s) of Crossfitting in the next six weeks, only to have to regain the traction you have built. Don't be the New Year's resolution cliche. Develop good habits now.

On a personal note, my weakness is chocolate. I can think of very few things that are as satisfying on a visceral level. But, what I've learned is a taste holds me over without the regret the whole bar brings. I created a daily act of discipline. Every couple of weeks, I purchase a really good quality dark chocolate bar and every night, I eat one square. That's it. I eat with hormonal intelligence everyday and Crossfit religiously and that one square satiates any desire I have to consume recklessly. I don't have to have a piece everyday, but knowing it's there is enough.

So, as we enter this season of temptation, think of an area of your personal habits that need tightening-up and approach it with a sense of purpose and intention. Make a plan, set a schedule, sort it out.

Coach Kevin

6 comments:

  1. Can you really lose all of your fitness in 6 weeks?

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  2. Anonymous10:52 AM

    No, but you can sure lose a lot of ground, especially if you're new to working out/fitness etc.

    -Boz

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  3. Great advice.
    Moderation, moderation, moderation...

    Forming habits is like forming rivers:

    It starts with a shallow stream of water that can splash freely across the land. As that water habitually flows down the same path, it's bed becomes deeper and more defined - thus it's habit becomes harder to break. Once we find our direction of flow, it becomes harder to go astray.


    --danny

    Dan Segelin
    Head Strength and Conditioning Coach
    The New York Fitness Institute
    www.TheNYFI.com
    718.864.6878
    dsegelin@thenyfi.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous7:40 AM

    Great work.

    ReplyDelete