Fit for Life: Don’t Let Your “Inner Bitch” Win

Saturday, December 07, 2019

Matt Espeut, GoLocalWorcester Health +Lifestyle Contributor

Matt Espeut

Before you continue reading this article, I want you to understand that the terms I am using are not gender biased, just an analogy of our alter egos, and the power we all have within us.

We all have an inner beast and an inner bitch in our subconscious minds that will dictate or determine the way we conduct ourselves in our everyday lives.

I want you to use this article to determine which is the one that’s most prominent within you, and which one will decide your actions.

Are you a beast?

Someone that will do whatever it takes to get a task done or to reach a goal? Do you trudge through adversity, thrive in difficult situations, tolerate uncomfortable circumstances, and eliminate every excuse available to you in order to exceed expectations and improve?

Or are you a person that gives up at the first sign of struggle? Do you avoid uncomfortable situations, do things against your values to pacify others, and make excuses to justify the fact that you have a weak work ethic and are only willing to do the bare minimum to meet expectations?

Do you negotiate with your inner bitch in order to make life "easier"?

Do you justify why you didn’t do something you know you needed to do?

Do you make excuses to NOT do what makes you uncomfortable in order to grow?

I want to disclose that WE ALL have an inner "little" bitch inside us regardless of who we are, and it takes discipline to conquer it.

Watching a video from one of my Project instructors, a former SWAT Team Sniper, and he was saying that even he needs to tell himself to stop negotiating with his inner bitch, when doing something difficult and uncomfortable.

His particular instance was staying in the 120+ degree sauna for the full 20 minutes. In his video, he was discussing all the self-talk and negotiation with himself as to why it would be ok to fall off his routine and leave the sauna early. He caught himself doing this, and immediately changed his mindset, unleashed the beast, and got it done.

A perfect example of why the pain of discipline is far less than the pain of regret. If he would’ve given in, it would have ruined the rest of his day with regret, instead of suffering through the discipline and sweating out the toxins and feeling invigorated and energized for the rest of the day.

We all do it, and here are some things we find ourselves negotiating with the inner little bitch:

Getting up early:

This is tough to do when it’s dark and cold outside, however, when we activate the beast and do it, we realize that we are more likely to own the day if we get up and start being productive. When we negotiate and let the bitch win, we hit the snooze, start the day late and stressed out, miss our workout, and that sets a negative tone for the rest of the day.

Working out:

I must confess that the thought of working out isn’t appealing to most. Myself included. Who wants to get sweaty, make their muscles quiver, and pin their heart rate to the roof? Does that sound fun to you? Exactly, and that’s why only about 19% of the population will invest the time and effort into taking care of themselves. It takes a beast mindset to get up and put yourself under stress, discomfort, and pain in order to get stronger and healthier.

Work more:

To have what others don’t, you must do what others won’t and that includes hard work and effort on every level. It’s easy to do the bare minimum to “just get by”, however, to reach higher levels of success, it takes a beast mentality, and the drive to outwork and out-hustle everyone else. That is why we have such discrepancies with income brackets in this country. Only a select few are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to succeed at a higher level and that’s what separates the different classes of people based on income levels.

Eating correctly:

It’s actually not much more effort to eat clean, and it’s just as enjoyable eating quality, healthy food as it is to eat crap, yet most do because it’s the path of least resistance. Yes, it’s much easier to hit that drive thru than it is to prep, pack, and carry your lunch, however, the reward for doing the extra work and being the beast is overwhelming. You not only protect your health, but you actually save money when you eliminate all excuses and set yourself up for success.

In conclusion, this isn’t some macho bravado bullshit that encourages you to be in physical pain and uncomfortable all the time.

Unless you play in the NFL, I am not saying you should push yourself into or through a physical injury because I believe in rest and recovery and self-care on a physical level.

Do what’s uncomfortable only if it nets you a positive result.

Taking a hot sauna, getting in a challenging workout, working later when needed, cooking your meals for the week, going out in the cold to get in your run, taking an ice bath / shower, taking chances in business, are all things that will push us out of our comfort zone, yet will reward us when the suffering is over.

It’s the mental roadblocks that hold us back, and it’s the mind that will quit before the body. You think you are tired, or fatigued, however, when you program your mindset to beast mode, you will always find more fuel in the tank.

It’s when we justify mediocre actions is when we let the inner bitch win.

I made a pact with myself that I would never become complacent, and always take the harder route in order to grow and develop.

Win or lose, I will try to always improve on every level and gather feedback so I can avoid making the same mistake twice.

Complacency kills, so don’t let that inner bitch tell you that “you don’t need to”, or “things are good enough”.

Unleash that beast and push yourself out of the realm of mediocrity and be the best version of yourself that you can possibly be.

The only things holding you back are your thoughts and actions. In other words, only YOU can hold yourself back!!

Committed to your success,

Matt Espeut, GoLocal's Health & Lifestyle Contributor has been a personal trainer and health & fitness consultant for over 25 years. He is the owner of Fitness Profiles, a one on one, and small group personal training company, as well as Providence Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 1284 North Main St., on the Providence/Pawtucket line. You can reach Matt at (401) 453-3200; on Facebook at "Matt Espeut", and on Twitter at @MattEspeut. "We’re all in this life together – let’s make it a healthy one.

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Fit for Life: Don’t Let Your “Inner Bitch” Win

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