As we start off another year, most of us will make a commitment to change something – to “better ourselves”. And for a lot of us, it will involve in some way our health. Whether it be eat less junk food, lose weight, commit to exercise, or any other wording of something similar – that is a very popular theme at this time.

But if we are honest with ourselves – how many of us had made this resolution before..?

Probably all of us…and if you need proof of that just go to the gym one Monday evening in the beginning of January, and then go back on a Monday evening in March…

The point is, why do we that? We obviously want to change something – and we probably know we also need to…but what happens?

And before you start listing off all of your “reason”, let me stop you. They are not “reasons”, they are EXCUSES.

So I have a challenge for you – let this year be different. Make this the year you OVERCOME those “reasons” (excuses) and finally make the change you have wanted to make for (x) years…

So when it gets hard, it’s simple – just don’t quit. I watched my wife complete an Ironman triathlon in November of 2011 – talk about a humbling experience. She trained for an entire year, hated every minute of it, and didn’t even enjoy one of the events, but never the less completed it and beat her goal by over 2 hours…all with a stomach infection and severe dehydration.

Am I bragging on my wife – yes I am. But the point is, every time it was “hard” and she wanted to quit, she didn’t. And it really was as simple as that. Not easy by any stretch, but simple.

Don’t quit – OVERCOME!

No…it isn’t.

This one is simple – think about it. Anyone who has ever accomplished anything worthwhile, from someone you know all the way to Michael Jordan and Lance Armstrong, there were deciding moments in their lives and on their path where they had a choice – quit…or try again.

Because I don’t know everyone you do, let’s look at a few people we have all more than likely heard of.

Michael Jordan

When Michael Jordan tried out for the Varsity basketball team in high school he didn’t make it. He lost over 300 games in his career and missed over 15,000 shots. 26 times he had the ball in his hands with the chance to win the game, and missed. At each of those moments he made choice…not to give up.

In his career Jordan made 20,100 shots, won 6 NBA Championships, 2 gold medals, was a 14 time all-star, and is in the NBA Hall of Fame as one of the greatest players in the history of the game….because he never gave up…he NEVER quit.

Lance Armstrong

At age 25 he was diagnosed with stage 3 testicular cancer. The cancer had also spread to his lungs, abdomen, and brain. The original prognosis gave him less than a 40% chance of survival and less than 10% that he would ever compete in cycling again.

Then in 1999 Lance Armstrong won his first of 7 consecutive Tour de France races, including 22 individual stage wins. Some of his career accolades include: Wide World of Sports Athlete of the year (1999), Prince of Asturias Award in Sports (2000), Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year (2002), Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year (2002-2005), and the ESPN Espy Award for Best Male Athlete (2003-2006).

So the next time your workouts get hard or eating healthy gets hard and you want to quit remember that as a pivotal moment in your life and on your fitness journey. If you quit, you will NEVER succeed. W only truly fail when we stop trying.

The crazy thing is we have been open almost 1 year and it feels like only yesterday we were watching the framers and drywall guys build our studio…It truly has been an amazing year and we are so thankful and humbled by how many people have stayed with us and come to be a part of our family at Fit 4 You.

People ask me all the time “why did you start this business?” and “what makes you guys different?” The answers to those questions are so hard to put into words…but I’ll do my best.

When I decided to get into the fitness industry it was for one thing – to make a difference in someone’s life – period. That may sound cheesy or typical, but let me explain. There is a difference between making someone’s day and profoundly impacting their life. I never wanted to be a trainer that made a difference for set period of time or for the short term. If I am lucky enough to impact someone’s life they are forever different having known me and that is something that you cannot put a dollar sign on. I never became a trainer to get rich and famous – because the value of my life and the blessings I have are worth so much more than any amount of money.

So opening the studio was a no brainer – I was stuck working in a money making machine. No fault of my former employer, it’s just the nature of the beast and the way the industry as a whole works. And what has kept it and will keep it going is finally accepting that I need to live to fulfill God’s purpose with my life, not my own. Maybe that sounds silly to some of you – as if God wants me to help people work out…and if that’s what you’re thinking, let me explain.

We are all called to serve and in many different ways. The skill set I have been blessed with is to relate to people on this level – to reach them through their desire to be physically fit and healthier. It is far beyond just lifting a few weights and running on a treadmill…

And as for what makes us different…I had an idea for this one. To kind of bring things full circle and affirm exactly what it is we do…and to see if we are doing it right, why don’t YOU answer that one. If we have made a difference of any kind or impacted your life in some way I will ask a favor of you and its simple. Tell everyone your story and what it has meant to you to be a part of Fit 4 You. You can either take a video clip or simply write it out – whatever you like.

The idea for this came yesterday as one of my favorite clients shared her heart about what we have meant in her life and it really did touch my heart. It reminded me about everything said above – why we do this, and what makes us different. And rather than listen to Katie, Mike, and I tell the stories, I think it would mean so much more and have so much more value coming from you.

So if this is speaking to you, please email your story to me via video or word doc to Fit4Eric@gmail.com, as long as you are comfortable sharing. I would like to post them all to our FB page and set up a special section on our Web site for them as well. This would be a great 1 year anniversary celebration!