In business, just having an idea doesn’t cut it. An idea in your head isn’t going to make you money. Your “business” won’t see profitable results because as just an idea it’s not even a business yet. You have to take action on that idea. This means making investments of time and money to fuel your idea and manifest it into a tangible thing that brings you profits.
So where do so many go wrong when it comes to their health? It’s not realizing that your health requires investment, just like a business, to get you results. Just having the idea in your head that you want to start living a healthier lifestyle isn’t going to get you any results without action – and that action is an investment.
In business, you have to carefully choose how you invest your money and time. You don’t want to waste your resources on investments you won’t get a return from. Likewise, you wouldn’t want to waste your resources doing things that won’t get you real results when it comes to your physical fitness. So many people throw their money away on diet plans that aren’t tailored for the individual needs of the dieter, or bizarre exercise devices that promise to “be the only thing you need!” and it all ends up being a total waste of their time and money which causes them to get discouraged.
There ARE GOOD investments to be made.
Nutrition
Invest in feeding yourself quality food. Basically, stop eating garbage. Start buying and preparing fresh vegetables, meats, nuts, fruits, etc. instead of filling up your cart with quick frozen dinners and boxes of highly processed junk food. Buy some cookbooks if you need somewhere to begin with preparing your own food – learn to cook.
Exercise
We are creatures that are made to move, and move a lot. Modern culture has really scaled back our physical activity in our daily activities. The solution? We have to make sure to schedule in regimented physical exercise. We have to invest the time each day to be active, and may also benefit from investing in tools that will get us moving, and get us staying physically fit. This is where Gym Memberships, Personal Training, Information Online/Videos, or Purchasing Your Own Equipment fall into play. You don’t have to buy any of those things of course but if you actually USE them they can be of great benefit.
A gym membership can be your ticket to a variety of awesome equipment, a motivating environment, and access to a community of like-minded people. Problem is most people don’t go, and many gyms base their whole sales model off this fact – they sell more memberships than the gym could actually handle if everyone showed up because they know most people won’t come. If you find it hard to go to the gym due to time, or find you don’t like the environment for whatever reason you may find you enjoy working out at home more – which can have its advantages (it’s what I normally do, in fact).
Buying your own equipment can be very expensive but it can also make getting your workout in much easier since you are already at the gym if the gym is at home! Don’t waste your money on “all in one solutions” though; no machine does everything, and in fact you may not want much else than a treadmill, bench, and a variety of free weights. If you want to go super minimal, a set of adjustable dumbbells is probably the single most useful thing someone can buy if they are only buying one piece of equipment for home. You can always add to your arsenal of equipment over time as you develop the need for new things – e.g. if you need heavier weights to progress.
Paying for Personal Training can be an excellent way to stay the course. A personal trainer can provide someone you are accountable to (though you should always hold yourself accountable to yourself first). It’s also a great way to learn! A good trainer will actually TEACH you how to do it yourself, and not make you totally dependent on them for instruction. They will also help you get results – not just keep you entertained and coming back for more. Beware “trainers” that are little more than salesman of gym memberships or spokesman for supplement products. Also ASK their credentials. Anyone can call themselves a “trainer”, “personal coach”, etc without having any training or education about fitness, nutrition, and the human movement system, in fact, they don’t even have to have ever set foot in a gym. There are no legal ramifications to calling yourself a trainer without any training or certification, so ask them. Don’t go solely by appearance either. In a world of “Instagram/Youtube Influencers” in fitness, the reality is that their appearance may not always be totally due in part of their training application, let alone because of whatever supplement they say they use that they want you to buy to “get results like them”. Steroids, Growth Hormone, etc is rampant in the fitness industry, and that “dirty little secret” is finding itself more and more in the limelight lately and people are getting fed up with being lied to.
Paying for Online Content is the new “Workout Videos” of this day and age and there is some excellent information out there from some great fitness experts and organizations. Most charge you but obviously (since you are here) you know there are free resources out there too. No matter where you go – make sure that the author of the information is credible (just like with in-person training) and double check and compare the information against known credible sources. Beware anyone selling “Diet Plans”; there is NO BEST DIET FOR EVERYONE. You can’t buy a plan that is great for everyone because it doesn’t exist. Everyone has varying needs based on their own biology.
Mental / Spiritual Health
The other two elements of health in the trifecta. Physical + Mental + Spiritual. This is mostly a time issue. Most people assume “everything is fine, I can handle it all” and continue to pile more and more activity into their lives which can lead to chronic stress. The best way to keep this in check is to invest time into our mental and spiritual health. When I say Spiritual I am talking about having a deeper meaning to your life – whatever that may be. Having a healthy mind by practicing meditation, good stress management skills, and taking time for quiet and relaxation away from the daily grind and having a sense of deeper meaning to your life to provide a stable, larger picture to remain focused on can really combat the daily rigors life and give you a solid foundation for your overall health. Chronic stress leads to weight gain, illness, depression, and early death so it isn’t something we can neglect to counteract. Practice meditation, get outside in nature, read books.
Summary
As you can see by the length of this (which is by no means the complete discussion) there are many aspects of our health we need to make investments in. Once again, you have to make those investments to see results. Otherwise, it is just wishful thinking, a stagnant idea. Just as no company wished itself into existence without the action of investment you won’t wish yourself healthy. Carefully making smart investments in Nutrition, Exercise, and Mental / Spiritual Health will set you up for a lifetime of wellness. Time to put up.
– Nathan Kendrick
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Original Article at: NathanKendrick.com | The Cost Of Doing Business
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