April 2025

Few people live a truly charmed existence. All of us will have to face and overcome difficult circumstances at some point in life. The manner in which we handle those challenging moments will determine just how successful we are in our chosen endeavor. In his book "How Good Do You Want to Be?", former Alabama head football coach Nick Saban says, "In life, your road map is knowing what you want to accomplish then committing yourself to doing the things necessary to reach that destination. You cannot get there without hard work and perseverance." Total Results clients know just how challenging our workouts are, but this is the price they are willing to pay in order to achieve good health and continued independence. The adversity that they conquer during their workouts fortifies them for whatever life throws their way.

Many regular readers of this blog are familiar with the concept of voluntary hardship. This can take on many different forms, such as taking a cold shower, going for a walk outside in winter without wearing a jacket, completing a twenty-four hour fast, or standing for long periods of time rather than sitting. The key word here is voluntary; these are not things that are being forced upon you. The idea behind voluntary hardship is that it fortifies you both mentally and physically; to experience some physical discomfort makes you more resilient and also gives you an appreciation for the relative good fortune that most of us are blessed to have. Total Results exercise is a form of voluntary hardship. No one is forced to participate in our program; clients willingly come to us to learn how to become the best version of themselves. Our workouts are brief, infrequent, and intense, and no rational individual would consider them fun, at least not once you start working with a great deal of effort.

The mental component of exercise can never be underestimated. In order to give your best physical effort, you must be in the proper mental frame of mind. Eliminate distractions! If your mental focus is hampered because you are thinking about something else, you cannot come to grips with the challenge you are about to face. Visualize the workout as an opportunity to overcome some adversity and accept the fact that the next twenty minutes will likely be unpleasant and uncomfortable. Chase after that discomfort, rather than run from it. Facing an obstacle head-on makes it a lot less scary. While we are tricking our bodies into thinking that we are engaged in a life-and-death struggle, in reality we are in a perfectly safe environment. Sometimes clients that take a layoff forget about the amount of effort and focus that is required for optimal performance. Accept the fact that this is hard; better yet, celebrate it! Be proud of yourself for doing something that not many other people are willing to do.

The effort that you give when you are not at your best shows the depth of your character. There are going to be circumstances in life that come up: work deadlines, family emergencies, life stress, and even self-inflicted difficulties. We are all human, and there will be days when you simply "don't feel like it." This is where being process-oriented rather than outcome-oriented is really beneficial. Your best effort may vary from one workout to the next based on factors such as sleep, nutrition, and activity level but there is great honor and satisfaction to be derived from simply doing the best you can on a given day. Don't just try to "get through it", but rather find meaning in the effort. Coach Saban says, "When an opportunity presents itself, approach the challenge not with concern about the outcome but with courage to do your best. Find honor in how you compete."

We are what we think we are, for better or worse. A positive attitude goes a long way. Nothing worthwhile is ever easy, but once you finish a Total Results workout the hardest part of your day is over. Relish the fact that you have the opportunity to do this, and be proud of the adversity that you are able to overcome. The name of the game is effort!

Last month, I celebrated my 82nd birthday. As I age, I'm curious about how to maintain my fitness and independence. At Total Results, I've been consistently doing a 20-minute workout every week since 2007.

Strength training is paramount for maintaining independence, overall health, and enhancing quality of life. Being independent is my top priority, and the experience of being partially or totally independent can be life-changing.

To better understand my perspective, I recommend visiting a nursing home. Observe the residents coming and going in the lobby. It was eye-opening for me to realize that if I hadn't been strength training for the past 17 years, I might be in a similar situation. Losing my independence is my driving force to stay consistent with my workouts.

I adhere to the Total Results protocol, which emphasizes proper breathing, form, speed of movement, and thorough inroad. My attitude plays a crucial role in achieving these results. Understanding the instructions and executing them are two different activities. I read books and watch instructional videos on playing golf, but it's entirely different when I'm actually on the course. Without the right attitude, focus, and help, I'm in trouble. I try to maintain an open mind and concentrate on the present moment.

I record my times, but only to track my progress and adjust my weights accordingly. I'm not overly concerned about the time under load for each activity. Instead, I focus on giving my all and giving it my best effort during each exercise.

After completing my workout, I can honestly say, "I did the best I could today", and I move on.

When it comes to achieving what we want in life, it is human nature to focus on the outcome rather than the process that is required to get there. The Philadelphia 76ers are a storied NBA basketball franchise, with three world championships on their resume and such luminaries as Wilt Chamberlain, Julius Erving, and Allen Iverson counted among their greatest players. By the early 2010s, the franchise had fallen on hard times and experienced several losing seasons in a row. Former Sixers general manager Sam Hinkie developed a mantra that he called "Trust the Process"; this was his vision for how to turn the franchise around, and it involved trading away their most valuable players (who didn't necessarily buy into this concept) in exchange for high draft picks. Hinkie was widely criticized by those who thought the Sixers were losing games on purpose, but the strategy eventually paid off. Philadelphia has made the playoffs every year since 2017-2018 and has won more than 50 games four times.

Lanny Bassham is a former world and Olympic champion rifle shooter who wrote the outstanding book "With Winning in Mind." Lanny has taught his Mental Management � system to Olympic athletes, professional golfers, Miss USA winners, and the United States military, and he teaches his students to become process-oriented instead of outcome-oriented. Bassham believes that if you are solely focused on the outcome you will become disappointed and discouraged if you do not reach it. In addition, over-trying is usually the result when you focus on winning instead of executing the process. The 1976 Olympic champion says, "Put out high-quality effort, consistently over time, and you can do anything you consistently dream of doing."

You are far more likely to achieve something if you write it down and see it every day than if you just dream about it. In his book, Bassham details an entire goal-setting system that can be applied to any endeavor, whether it is quitting smoking, succeeding in business, or becoming a champion rifle shooter. Some of the most important components include determining a goal worth trading your life for, listing the pay-value of the goal, evaluating the potential obstacles in your way, formulating a plan for how to achieve your goal, and starting now. Remember that life is about making a series of choices, and you cannot do everything that you want. Some things must be prioritized, while others may have to be pushed to the back burner or even eliminated entirely. How badly do you want to achieve this goal, and what are you willing to do to get there? Do you want immediate gratification, or are you willing to play the long game by making incremental improvements? Only you can answer these questions, but being honest with yourself, formulating a plan, and marking down your progress are positive steps to take.

What does all of this have to do with exercise? In order to succeed in terms of gaining strength, reducing body fat, building bone mineral density, improving metabolic and cardiovascular conditioning, and reducing systemic inflammation you need to have a plan of action. Otherwise, you will likely end up like so many people wandering around aimlessly in commercial gyms without the first clue of what you're doing. Contacting Total Results is the first step. We can help you formulate a plan of action and educate you on the physiology of how to stimulate positive physical change. Remember that the main exercise objective is thorough inroad, and this is the stimulus that spurs positive physical improvements. We can help you to set ambitious but achievable goals, and we'll do check-ins periodically to see how you're doing. Are you facing obstacles in your process because you aren't a morning person? We can find a time of day that works better for your schedule and helps you stay on track. 20 minutes, once or twice per week, combined with simple lifestyle changes is all that you need.

Every repetition matters, but proper form trumps everything else. Concentrate on this exercise, this repetition, this turnaround; don't worry about what comes next. Stay in the now! Total Results is the accountability partner that you need to help you achieve things that you didn't think were possible. Focus on the process and the end result will take care of itself. How badly do you want it?