Day 246: What 6 Years Of Apathy Taught Me

G'day,

Yesterday I posted Part 1 of my Day 245 Video titled M3 Kick-Off And The Last 110 Days...

This was my first video cam since Day 169 when I had to postpone Mission 3 due to my wrist injury. I also layed out the "issues" that had transpired in my life since the end of Mission 2.

What I Didn't Discuss Yesterday

One thing I didn't discuss in that video was the "emotional let-down" I experienced after I finished M2. After trying and failing for 6 years to get in shape I felt like I had finally reached the "summit".

I felt like I could finally take a breather after 136 straight days of extreme training & diet discipline and enjoy my "redemption trip" to Phuket (after winning that gut-wrenching six-pack vote!) as a just reward for my effort.

Even though I continued training hard during my Phuket trip my heart just wasn't in it. Once I got back to Japan I started to "switch off" mentally and began to allow myself a lot of latitude in regards to training and nutrition.

My Biggest Error

On Day 146 I made my biggest error since I started this journey - I stopped taking daily pictures. Deep down I knew this would lead me down a path of apathy but I justified it internally by saying to myself, "Just take a short break man! You'll be back in no time."

Well, that short break turned into 84 days. It wasn't until Day 230 that I posted a "live" picture of myself. As you can see, pictures don't lie! I put on an extra 5 kg's of fat during my "time-out".

Learning The Hard Way

However, it's not all doom and gloom. I did continue to train quite hard during this 84 day break and my nutrition on the whole was very clean. I'm proud that I didn't "let myself totally go" and undo all that hard work.

So, what's the lesson here? In a word...balance.

I learnt this lesson the hard way after my Body For Life burnout 7 years ago. I went extremely hard for 10 months only following BFL. At the time I still knew practically nothing about fitness. Switching up my training and nutrition routine was something I'd never heard of.

I just went "hell for leather" for those 10 months on BFL and neglected everything else in my life. Then once I started to lose muscle and conditioning following only BFL week-in, week-out I went "hell for leather" in the opposite direction - as you can see below.


This is the biggest flaw in my character. I am either extremely focused and dedicated OR extremely apathetic and lazy. I'm sure I'm not the only one out there like this either! What I need more than anything in my life is balance.

Seeking Balance

Starting Mission 3, and putting up my Day 230 pictures (not easy to do) is my first real attempt to find balance in my life for an extended period of time. I made a conscious decision back around Day 200 to re-focus, re-charge and continue this journey.

I really just want to practice a healthy lifestyle day-in, day out for as long as I live. I don't want to keep having to dig myself out of a hole every few years and start all over again. I want to maintain a lean physique for as long as I can and achieve balance in my life.

In keeping with this approach, this is the reason I made Mission 3 as long as I did. I feel that once I complete this mission (120 days from now) I will not only attain my "dream body" but more importantly I will have proven to myself that I can follow this lifestyle for an extended period of time.

From there I will strive to maintain balance in my life by continuing to "live the fitness lifestyle" until my time here is done.

Peace,
Adam Waters, NESTA-CPT

P.S. I would like to thank Suzette for her insightful comment to yesterday's video that inspired this blog post. Keep training hard Suzette, I believe you have the dedication necessary to get the body of your dreams as evidenced by your Quest For Success Blog.

P.S.S. Below are Day 246 pics for July 12, 2007: Mission 3 Phase 1 - Day 17 of 60