Importance of a Plan

Most of us have taken a road trip in our lifetimes.  Some of us more than others, but at some point we have gotten in a car and driven many hours to a particular destination that we had never been to before.  Most times, if not every time, we have had a specific destination in mind.  We picked this destination for some particular reason.  Whether it was for work, visiting friends and family or for a fun family vacation.  Imagine this was a place hundreds or even thousands of miles away.  Would we start this trip out by jumping in the car and begin driving until we found our destination without ever looking at a map?  This would not be a very smart or efficient way of arriving at our destination and there is a very good chance we would never get there.

Why do most of us continue to do this everyday with our own health and fitness goals?  Wait, but isn’t it good enough that I am at least doing something?  Do you know if that something is truly taking you closer to your goals?  Do you know what your goals are?  Would you continue to kill yourself doing hours of cardio on the elliptical or treadmill if I told you this activity was having the opposite effect of what you really want?  Maybe you are totally comfortable with the current state of your health.  Maybe you are totally happy continuing to do the same workouts day after day, week after week to maintain where you are at?    But, is comfortable really where you want to be?    Is there such thing as “maintaining” when it comes to your health?  The answer is no!  Everything in our bodies is in constant motion.  Either you are moving forward or moving backward.

Wait a minute, I have a bad back so I need to be careful or my massage therapist says my muscles are too tight and I shouldn’t make them tighter by lifting weights…WRONG!  Your back probably hurts because your core is weak.  Your muscles are tight because you have a muscle imbalance.  Your body is a complex machine made up of muscles, bones and connective tissue that is designed to work together.  If you have a tight muscle, there is a very good chance that this is the result of a compensation.  The muscle that should be doing the work is not firing appropriately or lacks strength so another muscle designed to assist is taking all of the workload.  What’s your plan to fix this?  I think I’ll just rest it.  How’s that working out for you?  Let me guess, your back still hurts or you still feel tight.  Have a plan!

Personally, my goal is to continue to move forward.  This requires a plan or roadmap to specific goals along the way.

Know your goals.  Have a plan.

If you need help starting your plan, we recommend HB Blueprint!