One of the most challenging things for me to do at times is to self-assess and identify the areas where I am not as strong as I should be. Even though I know that it will benefit me to improve in those areas, it is still something that I do not want to do. You’re only as strong as your weakest link. No matter how gifted and talented I may be in one particular area, there are levels that I will not reach because I am lacking something that will allow me to thrive if I were to get there. The areas where I am strong, I will gladly focus my time and energy there because it’s easy and I know I will excel. The areas where I am strong will hide my faults. But there will come a time where my growth and development will stop because the areas where I am weak have held me back. Now comes part two of being able to self-assess, actually doing something with the information. Choosing to develop your weak points may mean that you will need to do things that you do not like doing for extended periods of time. Do these things until your weakness becomes a strength. This is another lesson I learned from the gym.
When it comes to my training, my weak points for the most part have been my legs. When I started lifting weights at the age of eighteen, I was just a one hundred and ten-pound kid who just wanted to have a big upper body so the girls would notice me (just being honest). I trained my upper body a lot those first few years, barely giving my legs the time and attention they needed. It just hurt too much to train legs. As time progressed, my upper body grew significantly while my legs made zero change. I was very disproportional. I looked in the mirror and really noticed that my chicken legs were my weak points. Over the years, a lot of people told me that I needed to train legs to help my overall development. Even if they do not tell you, the people who spend a lot of time with you can point out the areas that you are weak. You may not like the way the message is delivered to you at times, but be in a place where you can receive it and make the necessary changes.
I knew that I would now have to do the thing I didn’t like for longer than I wanted to do it, train legs. I had to find a way to make my legs the main focus two out of the five days I went to the gym in a week. I switched to a modified push, pull, legs routine. I could still train the areas where I was strong while giving my legs the extra attention they needed. The squat rack became my best friend. As the weeks became months, the thing that I hated became the thing that I loved to do. It is such a wonderful feeling when you can see your weakness becoming a strength and regular jeans are now turning into skinny jeans. This affected my overall development in a great way. Because my legs were getting bigger and stronger, the rest of my body continued to do the same. Today, I am thirty-three years old weighing one hundred eighty-five pounds solid. I am able to do things that I’ve never done in the gym before all because I chose to develop one of my weak points.
I take the principles that I learn from the gym and I apply them to my everyday life. Be willing to self-assess and identify the areas where you are weak. We all have blind spots. Be able to take constructive criticism from the people who are in the proper position to give it so that you can grow in the areas that you cannot see. Do what is necessary to turn that weakness into a strength. You may have to do things that you do not like to do, but these things are essential to the process. The reward for developing a weak point in your life is growth. Simply put, you just become better overall and that will help you reach a new level. Strive to become a better version of yourself daily. Those small wins on a daily basis will turn into something greater when they are compounded. Whatever you have to go through is worth it. Now the question is are you going to continue to make excuses or find ways to get it done?
Shawn's Blog 