Breaking Boards, Breaking Through Barriers

After a very busy and fun 11 days gone, and after driving 2,900 miles, it is great to be home again!

While I was at our conference, one of the training sessions I attended was taught by Brian Biro, a motivational speaker who challenged us to break through the things that were holding us back.  At the end of the session, we each had an opportunity to break through a one-inch board with our hand.  On the front of the board we wrote what was holding us back from getting where we wanted to go, then on the back of the board wrote what would be waiting for us if we could break through our self-imposed barriers.  We did this same exercise last year, and last year it took many tries and failures before I was able to break my board.  (I blogged about this last year, as it was a profound learning experience for me.)  When I had the opportunity break a board again this year, I couldn't help but wonder if I'd run into the same challenges again this year.  I approached the board with less trepidation than I'd done so a year ago, because I knew I'd finally broken the board and knew it could be done.  There was still some doubt, however, because I remembered how many times I failed last year and I didn't know if I'd be able to be successful this time. 

We were reminded of two key things that were required to break our boards:  1) don't look at the board, look beyond it and 2) keep our eyes locked on the trainer holding our board - stay focused.  I remembered from last year how many times I would avert my eyes at the last second from the trainer to the board, and every time I did that I hit the board hard but was not able to break it.  As I approached my board this year, I resolved to not look at it.  I positioned myself, allowed the trainer to correct my form a bit, locked eyes with him, and broke my board on the very first try!  I was elated!  I really HAD learned from last year, and I was able to put what I learned into practice.

So what does this have to do with being on Take Shape for Life/Medifast?  I think there are several applications!  First of all, we need to stay focused on what we want, not on the barriers that stand in our way.  There will always be barriers, and if we focus on them, we will tend to pull back just at the moment we need to push forward and through them.  Every time I glanced at my board last year, I instinctively pulled back, and without the follow through required, I hit the board and my hand sprang back.  If we stay focused on our problems and all of the barriers that stand in our way - and we all have barriers - most likely we'll hit the barriers every time.  We have to look beyond the barriers and focus on what we want.  When we do that, we will have the momentum we need to break through each and every barrier that stands between us and our goal.

Secondly, once we've broken through one barrier, it becomes a lot easier to break through others.  We may approach the next one with the same trepidation I had as I prepared to break my board this year, but knowing we've done it before provides the confidence we need to know we can do it again.  As we break through barriers, one at a time, we also gain knowledge about how to approach the next one and we may find that subsequent barriers are easier to overcome.  The secret, of course, is to keep our eyes on the prize, our focus on what's waiting for us on the other side of the barrier.

What are the potential barriers you're facing right now?  What are the things that could be standing between you and your goal of getting to a healthy weight?  Breaking through the barriers requires a series of deliberate choices: choosing to focus on where you want to go, not on the barriers.  Choosing to position yourself for success, choosing to be coachable and willing to make whatever adjustments are necessary to break through each and every barrier.  Lots of choices to make if you want to break some boards and want to break through some barriers.  Choose wisely :-)