I don’t like Drake.

I can’t understand Man Buns.

I won’t stand for selfies.

People who text in between their sets piss me off.

“Sunday Fundays” annoy me.

Training Journals / Diaries perplex me.

CrossFit scares me.

Wannabe Instagram Stars depress me.

And not being proactive while working through an injury concerns me……….

The Two Types of People

As a Personal Trainer / Online Coach who has worked with hundreds of clients over the past two decades, I can honestly say that I’ve seen A LOT of injuries. While some of these injuries have occurred in the gym, the majority of them have not. Regardless if the injury is chronic or acute, I can usually tell who will succeed in recovering from their injury pretty soon after meeting them. Fortunately for me, I have the opportunity to work with lots of athletes and fitness enthusiasts who are dedicated to their health and who want to play an active role in both their fitness and their rehab. Unfortunately, I also see quite a few people who are full of excuses and who will use an injury as a crutch to remain inactive or take a break from the gym. People who blame everything under the sun for why they can’t train, why they are injured and have pain, and why they are not getting better.

You Have to Want To Get Better

Even though this week’s blog is covering a topic specifically related to injuries, what I’m going to speak of next can be applied to all areas of life. To losing fat, to nailing the perfect pull up, or to improving your sport performance. Essentially, it’s something that I believe is key to reaching whatever goals you may have. Something that isn’t revolutionary and that should be a given, but surprisingly something that often isn’t……

You have to want to get better!

Let me say that again. You have to want to get better and you have to realize you are the only one who holds all of the cards. Sure, as a health and fitness professional, I can help my clients achieve their target training goals and assist them by working through their injuries in a safe and effective manner. However at the end of the day, my clients are ultimately the ones who are responsible of if, how and when they will get better and reach those goals. No one else can make this happen for them. No one else can help fix them unless they are willing to fix themselves.

The Quick-Fix Mentality

Often people seek the quick fix with certain challenges in life. Whether it be through radical diets and weight loss plans, pills and/or injections. Everything and anything that will fix them without them having to do anything themselves. Some people who also frequent chiropractors and physical therapists will expect these healthcare professionals to provide the same quick fix without any input from the individual themselves. As someone who works closely with both chiropractors and physical therapists, I can tell you with 100% certainty that these professionals will tell you themselves, that you have to be willing to put in some time and effort on your own in order to heal and recover from an injury fully and more quickly. This means that you have to train to a level that might be slightly beyond comfort, you need to do your required exercises, perform your prescribed stretches, foam roll through the pain, and so on to help aid in the recovery and rehabilitation process.

Unfortunately many people who share this Quick-Fix Mentality will also be able to come up with multiply excuses as to why they are unable to be proactive on their own when dealing with an injury such as the common excuses we often hear such as:

– “I’m in too much pain.”
– “I don’t have enough time.”
– “My injury prevents me from training”

……and the list goes on.

The idea that everything is outside of a person’s control and external forces are making it impossible for him or her to reach his or her goals is taking on the role of the victim mentality.

And who wants to be labeled as a victim when it comes to fixing and repairing one’s self?

We Are What We Think

I truly believe that attitude is everything, and in order to get the best results you need much more then just a great physical therapist, reputable chiropractor and highly sought out personal trainer. You also need more then a beach vacation or fitness competition for motivation. You need the right attitude. You need to be mentally ready. You need to be eager. You need desire. You need to want it and be more then just willing. You need to want to get better.

If you are not doing the exercises and stretches that your trainer and physical therapist prescribed for you to do on your own, then you don’t want to improve bad enough.

If you are just hoping the surgeon will operate without rehabbing the injury yourself, then you don’t want to recover bad enough.

If you avoid training because you are injured, then you don’t want to strengthen both your health and your condition bad enough.

If you complain about your pain but don’t change anything or seek help, then quite simply, you don’t want to get better bad enough.

Yes, rehabbing an injury is hard work. It takes some serious commitment. Commitment to your exercises, to your therapy, and to making sure you incorporate good regeneration and recovery techniques into your life including getting enough sleep, eating well and reducing your stress. Being injured can be frustrating, depressing and overwhelming, but dwelling on it and letting it bring you down is not going to help you. You need to accept the fact you are injured and do something about it.

Anyone can be successful. The problem is that very few people actually choose to be. I understand that my words might sound harsh to some of you. But as all of my clients know, I always tell it like it is. You need to make the choice to be successful in your rehab, in your fitness, and in your life. You need to work hard.

Remember, this is your body we’re talking about. You are responsible for it. So treat it with respect and make sure to give it the utmost of care and attention that it deserves.

Yours in Good Health,

Nick Cosgrove
Forever Fit Performance