“I’ll never be able to do that, it’s too hard for me.”

“What if I fail?”

“What if I look silly?”

“I don’t know how to do that.”

 In the words of one of the greatest philosophers of our time, Oprah Winfrey, here is what I know for sure…

I’ll never be able to do that, it’s too hard for me.

Everyone starts from their own beginning.  You can’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.  In fact, let’s not compare ourselves to each other at all.  Let’s just compare ourselves to ourselves.  Think about where you started from, did you think you would be where you are now?

We all have different circumstances, health issues, and life issues, that contribute to our levels of fitness.  Some days are better than others even for the most elite athletes. Working out is supposed to be a challenge that is why it is called WORKING out and not napping or brunch.  

You might find a workout that you absolutely need in your life if you try something new. 

Body Combat anybody?  I  just love punching and kicking imaginary opponents.  Or pretending to punch and kick actual people, like my teenagers who can, on rare occasions, be a giant pain in the…well you get the idea.

But I digress, the point is you might realize that you are a Deadlift Diva or the that you rule the HIIT workouts.  You might find that lifting is your favorite.

You may even prove to yourself that you can do things you never thought would be possible.

You will never know until you try.

You can’t learn from the mistakes you don’t make.  I wish I had thought up that little gem on my own but actually I heard it on the radio the other day.  I am not even sure what the song was, I only caught the last chorus, but I have been repeating that to myself ever since.  It’s ok to make mistakes and in fact, that’s how we learn the most valuable lessons.

 All of the greatest people we admire weren’t born into greatness.  Their road to success was paved with failures.  They just kept trying until they learned how to do better.  The great ones are the people who refused to give up.

Will you be perfect at an exercise the first time you try it, probably not, but odds are you won’t be an epic failure either.  You will probably just be an average failure and that IS perfect because it means you took a chance at something.

You just might surprise yourself and succeed. 

What if I look silly?

Honestly, if you are worried about what you look like at the gym, you might not be in the right place.  You are gonna get hot you are gonna get sweaty.  Your hair will be a mess, you might pee a little. Do not fear the silly, embrace it.  Listen, if we have to do the work to be healthy and fit why can’t we have fun with it?  And if we are laughing at ourselves we are exercising our souls as well as our bodies.

Some of the most effective exercises look ridiculous anyway.  Don’t believe me?  Two words…hip bridge.

You might come to realize that some of your best moments are spent being silly in the gym.

You will never know until you try.

I don’t know how to do that.

Want to know a mind blowing, life changing secret?  Nobody has it all figured out, well besides Oprah.  The rest of us are all just figuring it out as we go along.  But isn’t it comforting to know you don’t have to do it alone?  Dedicated instructors and trainers actually want to teach you things about working out and being fit, like it’s their job or something.  Weird.  You will probably make them swoon if you ask a question about proper form or ask them to show you a new exercise.  They live for that stuff!  And don’t forget about all those other people at the gym who feel like they don’t know what they are doing either, exercise partners and gym buddies provide a powerful combination of support, accountability and motivation.  It’s a group effort.

You might find you make some of the best friends of your life at the gym in that new class you almost didn’t try.

You will never know until you try.