In the first part to this article I showed you how your health and fitness results are a direct result of your health and fitness decisions. You are responsible whether you like it or not. In this second part to the article, I share with you how saying you are not responsible robs you of your health and fitness power, while taking responsibility, give you all the power you need. Plus I share the one big step you need to take as soon as you have taken responsibility.
When you do not take responsibility for you health and fitness, you rob yourself of the majority of your power over your health and fitness. You may say “I am this way because of my genes, or my metabolism.” Well what influence do you have over your genes or metabolism? Very little or none. If you grant power over your health and fitness to external influences your outlook is bleak. You have no chance. The world is a scary place, and you are at its mercy.
On the other hand, if you say “My genes and metabolism are just an influence on me, and I am ultimately responsible for my health and fitness” you claim back your power (didn’t you feel a little of that power as your read those words?). The world is a brighter place and you can for the most part, chose what you do, where you go, and what you achieve.
Those who have taken responsibility for their health and fitness are plain to see. They are the sports stars, and athletes that are idolised (don’t you have a favourite sport’s hero?), or those fit people that you know which everyone takes notice of and admires. Every one of these people has taken responsibility for their health and fitness.
Once you tell yourself that you are responsible for your health and fitness, and that you are able to work with influences such as genes, metabolism, or the lingering effects of past illnesses or injuries, you must take THE FIRST BIG STEP.
What is this first big step? It is to start getting yourself a health and fitness education.
Most people’s health and fitness education stopped the moment they left school, or college. Your health education should be a life long study, rather than just a few years in formal education. Rather than your teachers being responsible for your education, you need to realise that you need to be responsible, and responsible on an on going basis for the rest of your life. It is only by acquiring this knowledge will you know how to act to ensure that you become healthy and fit and remain so for the rest of your life (like me learning about the effects of smoking on my sight).
And it is not difficult. Taken a little bit at a time over the rest of your life, it is easy, and becomes, enjoyable and second nature. Health knowledge is all around. In newspapers, magazines, on the television, books, and on the internet. And as soon as you tell yourself that you want to learn what you are reading, you will automatically take more in and remember it more. And the more times you read something, the more it sinks in. Make yourself the habit of reading every health and fitness article twice. You’ll be amazed at the results.
What about the maze and masses of often conflicting information out there? Well, I can tell you from experience that this is a little bit of a myth. You’ll be surprised at how quickly you’ll find that the maze is not as big as you expected it to be.
So decide today to empower yourself by taking responsibility for your health and fitness, and start getting your lifelong health and fitness education.
Damian Miles is a writer of ezine articles and ebooks, on the five key elements of any successful life: health, wealth, happiness, love, and security. Through his website http://dlmiles.co.uk he runs his weekly ezine and sells his ebooks and eproducts. His ezine "Think Yourself Fitter in Thirty Days." His ezine teaches how to develop the right attitude to health and fitness, an attitude that will almost guarantee you set and achieve your health and fitness goals. Damian is currently developing a workshop on Happiness, and training to run the 2007 London Marathon.
Written By: Damian Miles
