“Knowledge comes from learning. Wisdom comes from living.” – Anthony Douglas Williams

My fitness story began at the age of sixteen. I had been athletic all my life, and had dabbled with lifting weights at the age of thirteen, but it wasn’t until I ran into trouble in high school that I really turned to lifting weights. After several years, I grew up and released myself from my troubled past, however, in the process I lost my purpose. Then I realized I could make a living at getting people in better shape, and transforming their bodies. I had done it for myself, so why couldn’t I do it for others?  Over the years I grew to understand that there was more to fitness then just telling people what to do to change their bodies. There was more than a physical component to what I was providing. I could see the need to impact their mindset, and,in some way, change this aspect of their lives for the better,

In the next two-part series, I’ve compiled some of the main portions of “wisdom” that have shaped my approach to training, and my ‘philosophy of fitness’.

1. When people want to grow and improve together it becomes infectious.  And that’s why we call MPT/TFW Vancouver, a community. There’s a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.

2. There are no gold medals handed out to those who worked the hardest and fastest. The true test in bringing out the ‘warrior within’ comes from the challenge of becoming more then you are—not by beating someone else.

3. Everybody has a warrior spirit inside. The biggest tragedy is never letting it out. You may think that being a warrior is reserved for someone who does combat, or a solider who fights for their country. But, what about the brave act of showing up with your best everyday, and stepping up to face adversity? Maybe that’s what it means to bring out the warrior within.

4. Enthus – means to be filled with spirit. IASM – (“I AM SOLD MYSELF”)
“Nothing was ever achieved without enthusiasm” If you want to impact someone, learn to be enthusiastic about what you believe in. It’s like a viral infection which, once passed on will spread like wildfire.

5. You compete to be better than where you are, not to be better than someone else. “There isn’t anything noble about being superior to another person.  True nobility is in being superior to the person you once were.”

6. The world isn’t set up to be healthy. It’s like people don’t want you to succeed. We are constantly being told that we can become successful, but at the same time world will tear us down every chance it gets.

7. Surround yourself with those who are on the same mission. When you arm yourself with people who care about what you care about, the journey becomes a wonderful adventure into the unknown.

8. MPT/TFW Vancouver, is a dojo where you come to learn about yourself, and become better physically and mentally. What you learn here brings out the best in you, so you can put your best foot forward in life. It allows you to conquer yourself and leads to greater self-discipline.

9. When it comes to fitness and nutrition, it’s not a knowledge problem. It’s an action problem. You have to figure out a way to act on the information you already possess. The difference between successful and unsuccessful people is that the latter group takes consistent action. At MPT/TFW Vancouver, we ensure you take action so we can guide you to success.

10. What it really boils down to is this—can you get people to do it!? Broccoli is good for you and many people know this, but how many people can you actually influence to eat it on a regular basis? Eating broccoli is a metaphor. You can do it, but can you get others to follow you? Doing something uncomfortable starts with yourself, and then you need to spur others into action. That’s the power of leadership.

11. Mastery is not about making things more difficult. It’s about making things easier.  Bruce Lee once said, “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” What he meant by this is that mastery isn’t just knowledge but the ability to apply that knowledge. Mastery requires commitment, repetition, and deliberateness. It’s a simple and easy concept to follow in the difficult and long journey towards mastery.

12.  Your body will respond to the SELF-SELECTED challenges you give it.
Either you set and accomplish goals for your body (workout, nutrition, competitive event) or LIFE and TIME will give you negative challenges to overcome – disease, fatigue, and other physical dilemmas.

13. When you look at food, ask yourself this question. Am I feeding my body or am I feeding my mind?  This may help you make a healthier choice.

14. Trainers and coaches can be seen as merchants of fat-loss. We rob people daily of their body fat.

15. Say “YES” more often than you say “no.” Great things never came from your comfort zone. It takes courage to say “yes,” because you know something will happen, but you can be sure that if you say “no,” nothing will happen. Be a yes person!

16. Don’t get good at something you don’t like. Don’t do it because it’s safe. Do it because you’re passionate.

17. No excuses. There’s no excuse too great that says your health is not the most important attribute in your life.

18. Life has two rules. 1.Never quit. 2. Remember rule #1

19. If you don’t stand for something you’ll fall for anything.

20. Everybody wants to feel great! They want to leave feeling great—not beat up. If we are going to take the time to drain one tank (physical) then we should be spending the same energy and time to fill up our other tank (emotional). Nobody likes leaving the gym feeling defeated.

21. Anybody can make somebody tired, but not everyone can make you a master at something. I remember my first mentor (Dr Mel C Siff) once saying, “”To me, the sign of a really excellent routine is one which places great demands on the athlete, yet produces progressive long-term improvement without soreness, injury or the athlete ever feeling thoroughly depleted. Any fool can create a program that is so demanding that it would virtually kill the toughest marine or hardiest of elite athletes, but not any fool can create a tough program that produces progress without unnecessary pain.”

22. You can’t make others better if _you_ don’t get better. If you are not continually trying to improve some aspect of your life directly attached to what you want others to do, then how can you expect them to improve?

23. Burn fat, build muscle, feel good! If you had to sum up in an elevator what we do and what we are about this is it. Short, simple and straight to the point. If you haven’t experienced one of these then we haven’t done our jobs to the best of our ability.

24. My job is to be a great chef—to leave you hungry for more. We’ve all experienced a great meal at some point in our lifetime. It’s one that makes you want more, or has you hanging on to the taste and sensations imparted to you. That’s because the chefs who created the meals possess personal attributes that have propelled them to be the best they can be. A coach is like a chef. There is planning, years of experience, creativity, passion,attention to detail and practice that allows a coach to create an experience that will leave people wanting more.

25. Don’t get through it—get from it. Exercise isn’t a chore we HAVE to do or get through. If we view or approach fitness like this we’ll never truly succeed in accomplishing what we need. If we look at what we can get from it, then we begin to understand the value of every session in improving our life.