The Three Questions

In my normal search to find worthwhile articles, I came across one published on breakingmuscle.com by Sam MacIntosh titled "3 Things a Nutrition Coach Can't Do for You" which was an eye opener for some. The article came to the defense of nutrition coaches by placing some of the onus back on the client. While Sam's focus was on nutrition, it isn't a stretch to consider the article from a general training standpoint.

I thought the article was relevant to a lot of people on a social media site, so I posted it with a brief summation. Simply, Sam made these three points:

1. They can't give you purpose.
2. There is no perfect program.
3. They can't control your thoughts and demons.

The article, along with my three point summation led to a great discussion regarding realism, success, and the role of a good coach. Chris McClinch, who is a very wise man, brought up three more valid questions during the discussion that not only need to be considered but need to be honestly answered.

1. Do you truly understand where you are right now? (Point A)
2. Do you have a realistic goal in mind? (Point B)
3. Are you willing to sacrifice to get from point A to point B?

These are a killer three questions and ones that even I struggle with. These are also questions where the assistance of a good coach is invaluable. A good coach can help you understand where you are right now and help you choose a realistic goal. The coach will be able to explain the potential sacrifices and revisit the goal if need be. The questions all tie back to one another and cause ripple-like changes when we modify one point. While we all want to say we can answer them honestly, I have to ask, can you really? Experience tells me it's very hard, if not nearly impossible, to be 100% objective about yourself. Some of us are harder on ourselves, and others think too highly.

Where are you right now?

Let's be honest about this, many of us are surrounded by people that can't or won't tell us the whole truth. They are either ignorant when it comes to fitness or they just don't want to be seen as unsupportive and negative. I'm not just talking about our friends and family, but about our acquaintances, coworkers, and general passersby that we speak to. The general public can't define fit or healthy. Our "community" most likely doesn't know what the difference is between a good figure for an average person on the street and a competitor. They can't tell normal from strong. Unless somebody is also involved in fitness, they are probably giving you bad information. There are also the big fish in a small pond folks that only know their small world. Unless you purposefully surround yourself with people in the know, your community won't be of much help. Take any organized sport. At the community level, an athlete can be the best and will hear it from everybody. Move that same athlete to the regional level and they'll still hear they are good, but less frequently. Take one more step up to the national stage and they might not hear a single praise. Why does this matter to me?

If we don't truly know where we are right now, our Point A, it is hard to say if our goal, our Point B, is realistic for us. More than being a realistic goal, we won't be able to plan the right course of action because we are launching from the wrong point.

Do you have a realistic goal in mind?

Goals are something that can be one of the biggest aids in keeping us on track with fitness or one of the biggest hinderances. We want to pick a goal that challenges us; a goal that will make us work hard, but is achievable. And when we realize we aren't ready for that goal, we need to be willing to let it go to be revisited later. Each goal has sub-goals that define the path to success. Choosing a good, realistic goal is crucial.

Assuming we have an appropriate goal, there are two possible scenarios:
1. Our Point A is accurate
or
2. What we perceive to be Point A is nowhere near the truth

In the first scenario, since we have chosen a realistic Point B and we have an accurate Point A, we can develop the steps to go from A to B. This allows us to also determine what sacrifices must be made in the path to achievement.

In the second, and more common situation, we choose a Point B based on our perceived Point A. Unfortunately, since we aren't really on Point A, our goal may not be reachable. Think of it like getting directions without street names, if you give the wrong staring point, it doesn't matter how accurate the distance and turns are, you'll never get there. Since we have an incorrect path, we also don't know if the sacrifices we're willing to make are enough.

Are you willing to sacrifice to get from Point A to Point B?

I think this may be a more important question that having a realistic goal. There are no two ways to explain it, if you choose a goal, you will have to make some level of sacrifice along the way. Sacrifices can be any combination of diet, training, social, time, or financial. How much and how often you are willing to sacrifice can determine whether we can reach Point B.

Whether you knew your Point A or not, if you aren't willing to give all the sacrifices needed, Point B may be out of touch. If Point B requires extra hours you aren't willing to sacrifice, it's going to take a lot longer or it may be out. If it means restricting your diet and prepping meals and you aren't going to do it consistently, it's over. If giving up happy hour drinking isn't on the list, it's time to ring out. At this point, it's time to take what you're willing to sacrifice, and go back to choosing a Point B.

So the next time you sit down to map out some fitness goals (or if you're struggling to reach a goal you've already set), get out a pad and answer the three questions. Be honest about where you are, what you're willing to sacrifice, and choose a reasonable Point B. If you have 1 thing that doesn't line up 100%, consider a re-evaluation of your Point A and your Point B because if your positions don't work or you aren't willing to sacrifice enough, your chance of success is tremendously low.