Hips going out of whack, which then affected my lower back and of course the old stiff neck.
Since the age of 15 I put a lot of effort into getting a strong and fit body but neglected giving my body the chance to relax, via stretching.
So only two sides of my triangle where in place, which means my triangle would never stand the test of time. Put simply, my triangle would simply collapse without having all 3 sides in place.
As a 15 year old, I was so focused on becoming bigger, stronger and fitter, that anything that didn't contribute to reaching that goal was simply ignored.
At 15 through to my mid to late 20's I could get away with not stretching. Come 30, I started noticing the effects of not stretching consistently over that period of time.
Sore back, neck, joints and just feeling out of alignment overall started to present itself. Here's the crazy part!
I knew at some level that I needed to be stretching on a regular basis. Instead, I chose to ignored those messages because nothing was wrong at the time.
I even ignored the countless times I was told by people who cared and knew about looking after your health.
My message today is simple.
What are you ignoring to do on a regularly basis that could have a profound effect on your life and those around you in the long term.
Learn from my mistake and take action today. Don't put off doing the things you need to invest in on a regular basis any longer.
My Tips For Making Successful Long Term Changes
1. Build enough desire around what you really want to achieve. Be clear on what your outcome is to be. This will help you stay on track when the going gets tough. Use the S.M.A.R.T goal setting principle Specific - Measurable - Achievable - Realistic - Time.
2. Plan ahead - I set up my week before it starts (on a Sunday) so I can be prepared in advanced for when I am going to complete my targets.
3. Start with the smallest of steps: Instead of doing my old all or nothing approach to stretching. My first goal was to stretch Monday to Thursday for 15 minutes and do a Yoga session on Friday with a teacher.
4. The most important thing is that you build your self-belief and self-esteem by keeping your word to yourself. This means do what you said you would. This builds a track record for yourself and makes achieving others targets easier in the future.
