5 things I would say to you

Imagine you and I were sitting in your local coffee shop...(or on the patio, with Bally the Dog at our feet - since he'd go crazy if I left him outside)...talking about your lack of motivation. What I'd do is give you my 5 most powerful & inspirational quotes to get you inspired to take action.

So even if you sat there in your favorite chair, and told me, between sips of your piping hot green tea, that you were really struggling, here is what I'd say to you (digging deep into my vault of favorite quotes)...

1) I'd start by reminding you,

"To get something you've never had, you have to do something you've never done"

According to the TT Survey, 48.1% of TT readers want to lose the last 10 pounds. Another 32.5% want to lose 10-25 pounds. And with Joel's program, he is going to show you how to do that BEFORE summer.

Yes, you'll surprising diet methods that you've never used before, but you'll also get the results you were never able to get before too.

2) Then I'd get quite serious and I'd say to you...

"Emotion leads to motion", and I'd follow that by quoting speaker Larry Winget who says, "You will not change until you first become uncomfortable with
where or who you are."

I'd let that sink in as you thought deep down for your powerful reason for wanting to change, and for wanting to reach your peak potential.  

And whether it's the fear of being embarrassed on the beach (again) this summer, or the desire to regain the sexual desire of your partner, or simply to boost your confidence & energy, we all have a powerful emotion within us that is driving us to take action with our health & fitness.

I encourage you to find the emotion that leads to your motion.

3) So I'd probably give you a few seconds to think about that, and savor your tea. And then I'd say, you know, a wonderful guy named Frank McKinney once wrote...

"To live an extraordinary life, you must resist an ordinary approach."

Because now I'm trying to open your eyes to what you can achieve if you are willing to step outside your comfort zone.

You know you won't be satisfied with your results if you stick to cardio and a politically correct diet from a magazine you read while doing that cardio.

Those are "ordinary" approaches. And you've know what ordinary results are, right? Just look around at all the folks using those programs and the cardio machines. That's not what you want. You deserve better, and yes, that means going out of your comfort zone.

4) Then as we started to wrap up, I'd say...

"Don't be one of those people who waits for the 'time to be right' (i.e. until it's too late) to take action on your goals. If there's something you really want to do - if there is a dream body you want to achieve - then find a way to do it now!"

And there is no better time than now...so close to summer...and with the most complete plan ever...now is the time!

Then finally, before we got up to go, I'd give you one last gentle reminder to think about...and yes, you might call me "cheesy" for saying this, but deep down you'd know I'm right when I say:

"TODAY is the first day of the rest of your life. So don't dwell on past mistakes, that will get you nowhere. Instead, focus on what you can and WILL do today, tomorrow, and the rest of your life, and all of the great things that will happen because of your actions."

Taking ACTION will work for you, and it has to, because the year 2010 is already over 33% gone. Crazy, huh?

Can you believe it's gone by so fast? Summer is here...and are you going to be happy with your summer beach body?

It's time to review your goals, be honest with your progress, adjust, and replot your course. If you want things to change, you have to take action and change them. There's no better day to start than today.

I can't wait to hear about your results.

More inspiration to come,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS

PS - One more before I go...and this is one of my favorites from the legend, George Foreman:

"You can do more; you're better than that. You can dare to dream even bigger...aim higher, do more, be more, earn more, and go further. If nobody else believes you can do it, I believe you can do it, I believe you can. But whatever you do, commit with all your heart & don't stop until you get where you want to go."

And I'm right there with George. I believe in you so much. I know it's tough to get that feeling through to you just by writing a blog post (it would be a lot easier if we were sitting around having a green tea), but I've seen so many people succeed - so many people just like you - that I know YOU can do it too!