Regardless on one’s goals—material, spiritual, physical, and otherwise—this much is true: success demands a sacrifice.
Thus, when one comes to the altar of success praying and asking for its fruits and blessings, one must bring something to offer in exchange. Time—often, the biggest one; commitment and dedication; the comforts of inertia; or, doing with less now for the promise of more in the future. “Blood, sweat, and tears” is probably the most popular way of summarising this exchange.
With fitness the questions are the same. In the pursuit of strength, stamina and endurance, flexibility and mobility, or more athletic profiles, it remains crucial to ask oneself what has been given up in order to obtain the desired results.
How many sunrises have you seen in order to integrate exercise into your routine? To run that marathon you will have to avoid hitting the snooze button.
Have you given up Friday night drinks in exchange for meeting up at the pull-up, bench press, or deadlift bar? There are vices which need to be relinquished in order to improve one’s discipline.
What comfort food have you forgone in order to shed the excess weight? It is impossible to have one’s cake and eat it.
What pain, discomfort, boredom, and disappointment are you willing to endure? Because suffering is an essential part of salvation.
There are more personal questions one could (and should) ask themselves before lamenting the lack of results. Success is generally commensurate with the sacrifice.
The truth remains, though, that something must be left behind on the journey to achieving one’s goals. And, oftentimes, as many successful people will testify, it is a version of the old self. In order to remake, one must leave that which has already been made.
So what are you willing to give up in order to reach your goals?
Rémy Ngamije is an award-winning Rwandan-born Namibian author, editor, publisher, photographer, literary educator, and entrepreneur. He is the founder of The Forge.