I'm going to give you a perspective shift that will show you that you're doing way better than you think.

Things are never as good or as bad as they seem.

Especially when it comes to fitness and nutrition.

One great week never made someone slim, trim, and happy.

One bad week never made someone overweight or even obese.

But we often operate in this black and white thinking around progress where it feels like our week was either an A or an F.

I did a podcast interview with Forest Vance for the Ageless Warrior Summit and I mentioned an exercise that I do with my clients that offers a powerful perspective shift.

It's hard to see the picture when you're inside the frame, so being able to step back and see things from a 30,000 foot view is important.

Side note: I'll personally be offering my guidance and support through our upcoming challenge, another reason to mark your calendar for April 4th. 

Anyway, the exercise is this...

Write down what a perfect week looks like for you. If you were to give yourself a perfect score, a 10 out of 10 for the week with your health goals, what would that look like?

You may write down things like...

I did some exercise every day. I hit my water or protein targets. I got 8 hours of quality sleep each night. I did a good job managing my stress and not resorting to food to do it. I enjoyed my planned rewards without the guilt.

Maybe you've got some other things in there but actually take the time to think about it and write down the perfect week.

Now, I want you to write down what absolute failure and disaster looks like.

What does a 0 out of 10 week look like?

Write it down.

Here's where things get interesting.

Most people define failure as anything that's not the perfect week.

Failure = getting to the one time last week when I wanted to go three times.

Failure = over indulging on the weekend.

Failure = Going to bed late a couple of nights

Here's the problem...

That's not failure.

True failure.. a true 0 out of 10 week is probably more like...

I didn't train or move my body at all. I didn't eat any quality food. I binged every single day of the week. I drank no water and only had soda or alcohol. I let stress get to me each day. I slept poorly every night.

You see how our natural inclination is to assume that anything that isn't a perfect score is immediately an F?

There's progress and growth in the days you skip a workout. There's progress and growth in the days you overindulge. There's progress and growth when you choose poor coping mechanisms over positive ones.

The key is to keep things in perspective that it wasn't an utter failure and disaster.

It was a day or a moment and an opportunity to learn.

If you approach those days or those moments with self compassion, acceptance, and grace... you'll come out the other side in a much better place.

If you approach those days with judgement, shame, and a vow to be more perfect... you'll come out the other side in a deeper hole than before.

This isn't an all or nothing game.

This is a game with loads of gray.

Your progress will never be linear. Your days will never be linear. Your weeks will never be linear.

You're going to zig and zag and fall and get up and backtrack and move forward.

Try to remember the 30,000 foot view.

Or have someone else show you the picture that you can't see because you're inside the frame.

The other side of this coin is that perfection isn't always what we originally believe. For example, is perfection REALLY tracking and logging every morsel of food? Or does your perfect week actually include some freedom and flexibility?

Getting clear on what you truly desire can change everything.

We will be working on tools like this during our challenge.

The Velocity Renewal Challenge opens for registration Thursday.

You get results, we support a great cause.

Anyone who registers on Thursday will receive a ton of bonuses like...

• Entry into a drawing for an 8-week customized nutrition plan
   
• Entry into a drawing for 3 months to the No Fluff Club and app
   
• A copy of Thrive, my 12-week body recomposition training plan
   
• Access to my Avoiding Self-Sabotage Workshop
   
• Access to my Overcoming Stress & Emotional Eating Workshop
   
• Access to my Cravings Cheat Sheet (who I collaborated with a dietician on), which shows you what your body is REALLY telling you when you crave certain foods so you can crush your cravings once and for all

So... yeah... I'd be sure to have an alarm set for Thursday, April 4th.

Hope this gives you perspective,

Coach Mikey

PS - Once I have the recording from that podcast, I'll send you the link.