2 Lessons Exercise Has Taught Me About People

Exercise has been a part of my life since I was born!

In fact, it’s been a part of yours as well, even if you don’t know it. After all, you did crawl, then learn how to walk, ride a bike, run every now and then, and so forth, right?

As human beings, our bodies were designed for movement. That’s one of the primary reasons that we have the muscles that we do.

Because of my passion for being fit and living an active life I decided a long time ago that I would dedicate my life to inspiring and helping to do the same. Over the past 12 years, I’ve worked with over 1,200 personal clients and hundreds of athletes of all levels.

And today, I want to share 2 lessons that exercise has taught me about people. I’m sure you’ll find some value in these lessons.

As always, if you have anything you’d like to add just drop your thoughts in the comments below.

Alright, here we go…

LESSON #1 – How you do anything is how you do everything

I first heard this saying from personal development guru, T Harv Eker. And when I heard it, it really got me thinking about some of my clients and how they worked out and lived their lives.

What do I mean?

Well, I started to wonder whether my clients who were able to push themselves through grueling workouts (even when the didn’t feel like it) lived life in the same way?

Were they able to get out of their comfort zone in other areas of life and stretch their limits? My intuition told me YES. And so too did my findings.

On the flipside,  I also had clients who would give up when they were tired, when their muscles were burning, or when they simply didn’t feel like like working out on that particular day.

Well, you know what? These same clients were also doing this in their life!

That’s when it hit me – HOW YOU DO ANYTHING IS HOW YOU DO EVERYTHING!!!

Because of this, I can almost predict how successful someone will be in their life based on how they workout. I know that may sound pretty limited and I know it’s not cause and effect. But there is definitely a strong correlation.

Let me highlight this point with one of the players that recently graduated from our soccer program at the University of Toronto. His name is Nevin and he’s now in medical school after having played 5 years between our program and that of Queens’ University (in Kingston).

Here was a guy who was always early to practice, always willing to help out, always encouraging and pushing his teammates, and always at the front of the pack when it came to our fitness sessions.

A real leader he was (and still is).

I’ll never forget one fitness session I ran in late October. If you live in Toronto you’ll know just how cold it gets in late October, not to mention that our practice was at 8pm at night!

My fitness session had the team run an all out 12-minute run fitness test. This is a grueling test and requires you to run as fast as you can and cover as much distance as possible in 12 minutes.

Guess who finished first and covered the most distance? That’s right – Nevin!

But it got even better. Check this out.

After completing the 12-minute run, I brought the guys in, congratulated them on their great work, and gave them some time to recover and grab some water.

Then I dropped the bomb on them!

“Guys, get ready because we’re doing it again!”

Their jaws dropped to the floor and the swear words began to fly. Sure, I probably pissed off some of the guys but this second test wasn’t about measuring their fitness. I wanted to see how mentally tough they were.

I even told the guys that if they covered more distance than in the initial 12-minute run test, they would be exempt from fitness the following week!

Once again, the guys pushed themselves and a few of them even surpassed their previous distance. But something made me laugh and appreciate the human spirit, at the same time.

During this second test, I see Nevin running around the track (again in first) without his shirt on! It was freezing outside and here is Nevin running topless and loving it!

Nevin later told me that he loves the feeling of lactic acid building up in his legs. He thrives on it. Imagine that!

Most people associate that feeling with pain and an unpleasant experience. That’s one of the reasons that more people don’t exercise – because it gets them uncomfortable.

So here’s Nevin – loving the pain and even smiling at it.

Do you think he’s the same way in his life? Of course!

He doesn’t necessarily enjoy physical pain but he has learned (perhaps through exercise and soccer) how to push himself out of his comfort and reach new limits. And, as a prospective doctor, I’m sure Nevin is going to go on to do some incredible things for a lot of people in need of his help.

Nevin’s story is just one example of what exercise can do for us. Most people who workout regularly know the benefits that exercise brings them in other areas of their life.

How about you – what have you learned about yourself?

LESSON #2 – We are capable of incredible growth

I’m fascinated by the human body, aren’t you?

It is definitely the most intricate “machine” ever invented – without a doubt!

And one of the amazing things about our body is that when we stress it (with a positive form of stress), it grows and gets stronger. It becomes more resilient to this same stress.

Just as we grow when we get out of comfort zone, so too do our muscles when we push them beyond the status quo.

If you need proof of this, just look at the millions of bodybuilders all the world who have taken the human physique to the limits. Through consistent and specific exercise training, they have enabled their bodies to grow and bring the possibilities of the human body to the forefront.

But maybe bodybuilding isn’t your thing. It isn’t mine but I still respect the incredible discipline these guys and girls have. And the results show. Look at any athlete and you’ll see similar (ok maybe not so similar – lol) physical adaptations.

Growth isn’t just limited to our muscles. When you exercise and have the ability to challenge yourself (maybe through sport or just working out), you also begin to grow as a person.

I can tell you firsthand that playing soccer for the past 30 years has taught me more about myself than any psychology degree!

And the same holds true for any physical endeavour.

For instance, running (which I used to loathe) is now a form of movement I use to clear my mind, push my boundaries, and to feel great.

Tennis – my 2nd love (after soccer) – has helped me grow out of my “John McEnroe phase” of swearing and throwing my racquet across the court to becoming more zen and focusing on the now.

At the end of the day, exercise is an incredible vehicle for helping you reach your true potential. I think this is important because we are not our resumes or what we’ve accomplished in the past, but rather what we are capable of being and doing today and tomorrow!

=> What do you think? Let me know in the comments.