Discipline is without a doubt the hardest skill to master. But commitment is about showing up every day, no matter what.
I was in the best shape of my life prior to my wedding day (February 17th 2020), looking forward to a new chapter and exciting times.
A month later, well, Covid happened. Like many others I had to isolate, as my family had vulnerable people who would be affected, so I stayed home.
I was able to work from home, look after my family, pitch in and do my share of the childcare and housework. As a family, we helped each other through a strange and stressful time, by being together.
But the lifestyle change wasn’t all great. I was just in the house, every day. That led to not eating the best and not exercising as much. It was inevitable that I would get to a place where I was physically, mentally, and emotionally not where I wanted to be.
A resolution to change
It was now January 2021. I wanted to change my current state.
I made a decision early in the year: I wanted to look and feel the best I ever have in my life. Little did I know what that statement would mean in a pandemic with no gym and no personal trainer.
So January 4th is when everyone makes a New Year’s resolution. Mine was, for 360 days of the year, to do at least 20 minutes of exercise every day.
What I learned in a little over half a year is that discipline is without a doubt the hardest skill to master.
Commitment is about showing up every day, no matter what. I get up at 5am before the kids and Mrs wake, get in a session, and repeat. Simplicity is the key.
This has been a fitness journey and I have enjoyed every phase of it: getting stronger, the wonder of not seeing the scale move a pound, the disbelief from not seeing any change, and then the joy of suddenly looking like a slimmed-down version of your former self.
Every goal needs a support network
Support is required to achieve any goal you set yourself. Doing it alone often leads to failure.
The best thing throughout was that I did not do this challenge alone. Jamie, my company CEO and long-time friend, decided to join in for the ride. Having someone there with you at the start, making that commitment alongside you, makes the resolution so much more powerful.
We created a JH 360 Fitness Challenge WhatsApp group and committed to sharing our exercise every day. A walk, a run, yoga, a class, a workout, whatever it was. Screenshots and sweaty selfies welcome.
The group has now grown to nine people. We cheer each other on and it’s a great vibe, full of banter that encourages everyone to get in at least a 20-minute session every day. There’s something about knowing your friends and colleagues are along for the ride. Speaking to them every day brings another level of accountability, and all those “well done!” messages make you feel doubly good about yourself and your achievements.
Change your mindset. Nothing that lasts for a long time is ever rushed.
Gaining so much more than I imagined
The changes have not been just physical but mental too. Battling every day at 5am to get out of a warm bed, finding a programme that pushes you to exhaustion, breaking through it, and recovering from fatigue: it all changes your concept of what is achievable within a fixed time limit.
Setting goals and achieving them, then surpassing them, leaves you in a place far above anything you could have imagined. You are just levelling up more and more.
To realise success and see change, you have to change what you do. Doing the same thing day in and day out leads to reaching a plateau.
I love my Jamaican food, but I realised that opening my palate and stopping consuming meat for three months was a game changer. That combination of exercise and eating well was effectively a cheat code to getting where I wanted before turning 40. I would say that now I am mostly vegan.
Having just celebrated my 40th birthday, feeling physically and mentally better than ever, I am now on a journey, looking forward to seeing where it takes me. I learned that discipline, commitment, and support are necessary to achieve any goal.
So no matter what your goal is: get that in place and you will be sure to attain it.
My exercise regime
Focus T25
Lift4
P90x3
Muscle Burns Fat
With thanks to my support network
The wonderful Mrs Codling and her amazing Jamaican vegan cooking
The JH wellbeing budget initiative for making the investment in exercise guilt-free
The 360 fitness challenge group: Anastasia, Andy, Emma, Jamie, Joyce, Polly, Ofe, Oli, and always room for more
