The One And Only FItness Variable Which Matters

“Not one of you can out-will me. You may have been born with more genetic prowess than I have. But you cannot out-determine me. You can’t out-will me. You can’t out-want me. You can’t out-work me. You can’t out-desire me.”

- CT Fletcher

People ask about the right diet or workout plan. All of it is superfluous and immaterial without a mindset like CT Fletcher.

Your total program could be one single push-up and one single squat. The next day two. The next day three. In six months, 200 and 200. In a year, 500 and 500.

Your total program could be two days of total body lifting and four 30-minute jogs.

Your total program could be whole food, paleo, vegan, etc.

None of that matters AT ALL. Without a mindset like CT Fletcher, it wouldn’t matter if you had infinite resources, personal chefs, trainers, and more. Look at Oprah. No one on earth has had a greater advantage at being in shape than she; and she cannot even pull it off a little bit. It’s not her priority. It’s not where she allocates her drive. She’s not a bad person or weak. She just will not apply herself for wellness. Not another genetic gift, dollar spent, or hour of freedom will make that choice for her.

What WILL you do? That’s it. In 5 years, what WILL you do? In 10 years, what WILL you do?

People talk about starting a business, changing a social structure, altering their lifestyles. Consulting groups ask tens of thousands of dollars to help you build business plans. MBA programs ask 100k. Advocacy groups ask for your law degree. Weight loss apps ask for your credit card.

Without the mindset, none of it matters AT ALL. You could argue that people putting their money where their mouth is would be a testament to the mindset. I disagree. I’ve coached double-PhD researchers who were deep in depression, MDs and lawyers who wished they ran a bakery, multi-millionaires who begged for significance, and fitness celebrities with imposter syndrome. People can talk. Hell, they can even succeed in spades and still be unfulfilled.

You’re always going to be confronted with the same question whether you live on the street or in a penthouse suite: “How do I crush today?” Every single day comes again: “how will I show up TODAY?”. I know people who thought they could ride their own coattails into the sunset. They achieved every worldly checkbox of big houses, planes, etc. and are the saddest, hollowest individuals on earth. A lotto ticket today will not help you crush your day in 10 years. Only mindset will dictate how you show up tomorrow. The cover of Forbes today will not help you crush the day in two years. A weightloss win today will not say anything about crushing the day tomorrow.
Only mindset will. Only mindset will. Only mindset will.

Every single advantage on planet earth will not guarantee you know how to answer that question any better than every disadvantage on planet earth. I don’t like the silver-spooners any more than you do. They’ve never had to confront life in a real way. But they still have to find significance, meaning, and internal validation. Their intrinsic motivation is actually at a severe disadvantage. That can’t be gifted in a trust fund. That can’t be found in a bequest. That isn’t bestowed at a board meeting.
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Work ethic is built by numero uno alone. Mindset is chosen by the one in the driver seat alone. Internal development of character does not get an external booster. And it wouldn’t matter anyway. We’ve been dealt our cards. We can play them like CT Fletcher. Or we can keep whining about how we need another hand. None of us are getting another hand. And even if you were, we still have to choose how to play it.