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Lifting… (pump it up, pump it up), and pain,

Sunshine… (keep it going, keep it going), and rain.

– Rob Base + DJ EZ Rock (probably)

If you wish, you can grab the N.W.A. Newsletter Playlist on Spotify here, all of the songs that have been featured in the newsletter are on the playlist.

Happy Friday, Coach J here from Anyman Fitness – and welcome to the latest edition of The N.W.A. Newsletter.

Each week with the N.W.A. Newsletter, I give you the best Nutrition, Weightlifting, and/or Attitude advice for you to start to use in your life today.

Tens of thousands of people have used this exact newsletter to gain muscle, lose fat, and become a better version of themselves…

Without any further ado, let’s get started..

N.W.A. Tip Of The Week

It’s painful to be out of shape.

Trust me… I know…

In my early 30’s, I was embarrassed by how far I had let myself go.

What was once an athletic, strapping physique had deteriorated into a huge gut, complete with lots of “diseases of the West”.

I popped Prilosec for heartburn like they were candy.

I had asthma.

I frequently suffered from migraine headaches.

My shins and lower back constantly hurt.

I would get intense, sharp pains in my traps for no reason while I was teaching.

I wasn’t happy with myself.

But I covered it up with a myriad of different strategies…

I made excuses for myself.

I told myself – and everyone around me – that I was “muscular under all the fat” (this was a lie).

I talked about how the BMI was a “scam” and it didn’t account for muscular people like me (another lie).

I drank alcohol too frequently.

I turned my health and physique into a joke saying things like, “I have a body by Budweiser”.

Perhaps this sounds familiar.

We all have coping mechanisms, and excuses.

Anything to hide – and mask – the pain that lingers deep down inside of us.

Shortly after my oldest daughter was born, I did something that changed everything for me.

I forced myself to feel the pain.

My daughter’s 1st birthday party was in July of 2011.

It was a scorcher outside – one of those days where the heat index was 90 degrees+ by 8 am.

I spent the entire morning setting up tables, chairs, and tents in the backyard.

I had to change my shirt 3 times due to excessive sweat.

By the time the party started, I was utterly exhausted.

I remember thinking to myself, “I’m so tired, I just want everyone to leave so I can take a nap.”

It was a painful experience to be so out of shape that doing some basic party prep wrecked me, and I couldn’t even enjoy my own daughter’s 1st birthday.

The next day, I emerged from the shower, and looked at my naked body in the mirror.

I forced myself to really take a look at who I was physically.

Was there anything I “liked”?

No, not really.

All I saw was fat.

The accumulating body fat of someone who had neglected themselves physically… and had eaten (and drank) themselves to obesity.

It was at that point I realized the pain of working out and eating right couldn’t be worse than the pain of looking and feeling like that.

That was the start of my fitness journey – in late July, 2011.

2 years later, I was down 85 pounds and in the best shape of my life, at the age of 32.

It never would have happened if I hadn’t forced myself to “feel the pain” of my current situation.

It’s hard to admit we don’t like what we see when we look at ourselves in the mirror.

Society tells us to love ourselves at all costs.

“You’re beautiful just the way you are” and all of that.

I agree with that somewhat – you ARE a beautiful person.

We all are.

But maybe it’s better to be real.

And maybe it’s okay to admit you don’t like what you see.

To actually feel the pain (without being self-loathing) and vowing to make a change in your life.

The good news is, if you’re in pain, and you’re ready to make a change, I know a guy who can help… 😉

August-9-2024

N.W.A. Tip Of The Week

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