Aspiration-a-whhhhhhhhhhhhaaaa?
I know. The title of this post sounds all psychological/sociological/that-doesn’t-make-any-sense-oligoical. It might be due to the fact I just made the phrase up but bear with me. If you’re after a fitness goal, if you’re trying to get ripped, build muscle, tone up or just use exercise as a fail safe against ripping pant seams and popping buttons off at random… aspirational indoctrination is one of the secrets to motivation, persistence and is a key to success for many of the most determined and fitness success stories.
But first, let’s dust off the dictionary and define what the crap these two words, when combined into a powerhouse of fuel to the fire, really mean:
Aspirational:
as·pi·ra·tion [as-puh-rey-shuhn] n.
1. Strong desire, longing, or aim; ambition: intellectual aspirations.
2. A goal or objective desired.
Indoctrination:
in·doc·tri·na·tion [in-dok-truh-ney-shuhn] n.
1. The act of indoctrinating, or teaching or inculcating a doctrine, principle, or ideology, especially one with a specific point of view.
Combine the two and what do you get? The concept of teaching yourself a principle that aligns with the new goals you’ve set. In short, it’s surrounding yourself with the ideas, people and information that will get you to your goal of being fit.
Surround Yourself With Ideas Oriented To Your Fitness Goals
Have you heard of the saying that you’re the reflection of the 5 closest people you associate with? No man/woman is an island and if you’re surrounded with negativity or people who refuse to help you align with your goals, chances are greater you’ll fail.
I’ve talked a lot about places like Team Beachbody and Fit Spot which offer the tools of support and accountability… but there’s more to it than that. After all, a hammer in hand won’t get much use if you’re looking at cutting a cake instead of building a house.
So in the mean time, the key is to keep your focus on building that house… which in this case is that body, right? Right! So how does this translate?
Keep your eye on the ball. Feed your desire and goal with information that will keep you focused. That’s what “Fire It Up” is all about: images to inspire. That’s what HDIGF articles are about- to keep you motivated, focused and able to deal with question that could potentially become roadblocks if left unanswered. IE- feed your inspiration.
Conversely, don’t feed your weaknesses. This isn’t “life as usual”. Change begets change– and if you’re going to change your body, you’ve got to CHANGE YOUR HABITS. No more looking for dessert recipes while trying to clean up your nutrition. No more going out to dinner with friends with no thought as to where/how you can keep your food aligned with your goals. No more staying up late so you lose your desire to workout in the morning and then fail to get it done.
Life happens of course but to really get keep your fire lit, you have to surround yourself with ideas, reading and people who will support your lifestyle and fitness changes. That’s aspirational indoctrination- teaching yourself through your desire to obtain your fitness goal. And ultimately, that’s where you’ll find one of your greatest keys to success.
Real-world support, accountability and motivation can be found here at HDIGF (How Do I Get Fit) when you make me your Free, no-nonsense fitness Coach here. Hit me up any time at dan@howdoigetfit.com. You can also find me on Facebook, Google + and Pinterest.
