Burning Out or Burning it Up?

This is a blog only to my 48 Days friends ... the post on www.learnactshare.com is barely inspiring to me today, so I won't highlight it here.

In the quest for a better life, I find it takes a LOT of energy. Finding self-confidence is a war within. It takes a great amount of work to combat my greatest enemy - myself. When I'm on the ropes, and feeling burnt out, I have to remember who put me on the ropes :-).

But this is much better than the trails I would suffer in other parts of the world. Two years ago I visited the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea. As I looked over at a country where dreams have been dashed for decades by a dictatorial oppression, I recall the hopeless feeling that came over me - and the relief to put it all behind me as I took the bus back to the hotel, and then flew back to the US. 

In exercise, when I'm lifting heavy weight, the sixth and seventh rep are always the hardest. It is here that I think, I can just stop for today and pick this up tomorrow. But my personal trainer is over my shoulder encouraging me to continue. With one finger, he "pulls" the weights in the right direction. He isn't lifting more than 1% of the weight, but that's all I need to push through.

And so it is here on this forum that I get continual encouragement. None of you write my posts for me. But you inspire, you encourage, you set the example of perseverance. 

I'm on the seventh rep in my 48 month transformation. I can see the vision at the end of the journey, and it is an inspiring one for sure. But the hard work is yet ahead. 

I have realized who I am. I have confronted the deep fears that have held me back these 40 years. While I have no doubt these fears will continue to try and thwart success, I finally have the tools to deal with them.

Dan, a good therapist, a great fitness coach, a fantastic wife, many of you and several mentors have all helped me to understand the imaginary tethers of fear, regret, doubt, and lack of action which have held me at bay while my dreams advanced forward.

Having a plan for the future is key. It is the sunlight through the storm. As I push through the seventh rep, I feel the pain. I know that I could quit now. I know what a relief it is to put down the weight now. But I also know that by rep nine I'll have forgotten this pain, so I lean in and press even harder. 

Pete