REASONABLE INSPECTION

When I competed in bodybuilding I had a pre-contest routine that was strange for those in the gym that I attended who were also prepping to compete. In a pre-contest regimen, its common to implement specialized dieting and abnormal workouts in order to "peak" as you draw closer to the competition date. It truly is a science. My routine was to wear over-sized sweat pants and sweat shirts during this period. While most pre-contest bodybuilders tend to workout either shirtless or with tights shirts (in order to monitor their muscle movements and development), I would only check my development and progress every two weeks. As tempting as it was to do what the others were doing, I forced myself to keep my sweats on until it was time to inspect progress. I did this because I knew that checking progress everyday would feed discouragement because it would be very difficult to see the minor physical changes that happen daily. However, checking for progress every two weeks would give ample time to see measurable progress and thereby encourage me to keep going. For me, this worked out well as I won numerous championships over a few years of competing. In your endeavors, measuring your progress from a day to day basis is just a set up for a letdown because visible and measurable change does not occur from one day to the next. It is delusional to think that you will see significant differences in the landscape of your goals from one day to the next.

Change takes time so stop the daily and even the weekly inspections. It is a bad habit that cultivates an unrealistic and an unhealthy obsession for quick results. Monitoring your development in the area you are seeking change is a good thing to do when done with a time sensible approach. Ultimately, if you work diligently and daily at your development you will begin to see that the change you desire will "peak" at the appropriate time.