Just Start

April 24, 2016 – 

Talking with a friend today I heard the very common statement “I used to be able to do that.” She said she recalled (not to long ago) telling herself to keep it up and maintain her fitness or ‘one day’ she may not be able to take a stairwell 2 steps at a time. As she was saying the words I recalled how I used to run bleachers and stadium stairs as cardio and not too many wrestlers or football players could do much better than I did. I was fast! Today, running up 2 or 3 flights of stairs in a hotel just winds me. Sweating, I huff and puff for 5 minutes afterwards. So, I could relate.

The point was this, I told her that she is capable of taking the stairs and maybe she should just start taking a few extra ‘doubles’ every so often. I know right now each of you are thinking about how your abilities may have changed from 3 years ago (what about 5 years ago?) … think about it.

What were you doing then you may not be able to do now? Maybe you were running, playing tennis, doing push-ups, enjoying long hikes or biking? Is there something that you used to do that you should be capable of today … what is it? Would it be good for you today? I know you are busy. I know you may have lost some strength, but it is all a story you tell yourself (negative self talk). Run here at FIT where it is cool. Do push-ups in the bedroom when you wake up. Practice the stairs at home. Do something every day. Just start.

Way back in 1988, a few tennis shoe companies were fighting for market share during the fitness craze. The Reebok brand was directing their campaign at aerobics and gained popularity in a movie with John Travolta and Jamie Lee Curtis (1985) titled ‘Perfect’ about Health Clubs and the singles life. NIKE responded with a tough, take no prisoners ad campaign, “Just Do It”. One of the campaign’s objectives was to target all Americans regardless of age, gender or physical fitness level. This led to Nike being worn as a fashion statement, not just as fitness gear. (FIT Fact: Nearly 80% of Nike’s running shoes aren’t worn for their intended purpose.) Nike’s fundamental objective was to represent sneakers as a fashion statement to consumers, especially females, teens, and male’s aged 18-40. My first pair was lime green with a white swoosh. (Just in interesting tidbit to share about myself).

NIKE’s campaign was a magnificent hit with Jordan, Bryant, Federer, Nadal, Agassi, and so many other athletes supporting the brand. Today, I would like to launch a FIT campaign for those of you/us who want to be as strong and healthy today as we were three years ago. It’s called, ‘JUST START!’ Want some help, let’s talk it over. Here comes swimsuit weather…are you ready! JUST START!

In good health,

Bob

“You don’t have to be good to start … you just have to start to be good!”
― Joe Sabah