"I'm too busy with school"
"I have midterms to study for and homework assignments to complete"
"I don't have any days off from work"
"I can't, I come home late, and I have to be up early the next day"
"I don't have a workout partner"
"I don't know what exercises to do"
"I'm going to start next week/month"
...The list goes on. I actually find most of the excuses I hear extremely amusing because there was once a time when I was in the same phase and would use the same excuses and "good reasons" to justify why I couldn't go to the gym, that is, until I realized that fitness is something in which you actually have to invest time and effort to achieve tangible results.
I want to start this segment off by distinguishing the difference between an excuse and a "good reason". As defined in Saljoq's Dictionary of Fitness an excuse and a "good reason" can be defined as:
Excuse (ex-cuse): A reason or explanation put forward to defend or justify a fault. A really bad attempt at making yourself feel temporary relief and usually results with the individual feeling worse about him or herself later on.
Consequence: Individual doesn't end up going to the gym and does not achieve whatever goals he/she set for themselves.
Example: I don't feel like going to the gym today, i'll go tomorrow
Good Reason: A reason or explanation put forward to defend or justify a fault. Basically another version of an excuse except this time the individual feels that his/her reason is good enough to justify the behaviour and the person doesn't tend to feel as bad since they can just blame their circumstances.
Consequence: Individual doesn't end up going to the gym and does not achieve whatever goals he/she set for themselves.
Example: I'm coming back from work really late and I have to finish an assignment and study for a test the next day so I cant go to the gym.
As you can see regardless of whether your justification is an excuse or a good reason they both end up with the same outcome! In both situations the person does not end up going to the gym and in both cases he/she is getting further from achieving their goals. the only difference between an excuse and a good reason is that a good reason is a from of justification that makes the individual feel better since he/she can just point their finger at their circumstances or other external factors.
The point i'm trying to make is that to be successful in the gym you must put in time. There are no short cuts, you need INPUT to produce OUTPUT. Some of the reasons you come up with may actually be valid justifications but regardless of how good your reasons are they still result in the same consequence as a person who uses excuses. Regardless of whether you are using bad excuses or "good reasons" you have to understand that neither of the two will get you the results you want. There is simply no way around it, if you don't have time you need to make time.
"Whatever set of rationalizations you have of the certain circumstances that exists today that would stop you from going to they gym, are going to be there every single day" -RSD Motivation
As you can probably tell by now, I will not be talking about any technical tips about dieting or exercising in this segment. Instead I want to focus on the most important aspect of succeeding both inside and outside the gym, your mental mind set
If your diet and exercise routine is perfect and you're still not seeing the fruits of your labour you need to be patient. As I mentioned before people have a habit of choosing the road less travelled, the easy way, the short cut. Everyone wants to get big or get in shape, but no one wants to work for it. You have to fall in love with the process, you cant stand on the weight scale after every workout, or stand in front of the mirror looking for your results. Your body doesn't owe you anything, you owe your body. You have to ensure you are providing it with the nutrition it needs. Your body is like a garden, you need to care for it and tend to it on a day to day basis. Remember success does not ever happen by accident, its a vary deliberate process.
Remember,
"If you want your compensation to reflect your contribution you need to be consistent"
