Anyone who lived through the 80’s has to remember the sign-off line of every episode of the TV show, G.I. Joe, “Knowing is half the battle.” To end each show, Joe and his colleagues would have a message for the kids, and essentially reinforce that knowledge is power, which is certainly true. However, there is an inconvenient truth that goes along with this famous saying: knowing is only HALF the battle.
So what’s the point? There’s an interesting phenomena that has crept into our society over the last few years. Many people now seem to live in a world where they think that knowing what to do is all they need to accomplish something. Unfortunately, as many find out, knowing what to do is only useful if you actually DO IT! And nowhere is this more evident than when dealing with our fitness.
Everyone knows that they need to exercise. Everyone knows that they need to eat a healthy diet. And everyone certainly knows that french fries are not a food group. But is that knowledge going to get you anywhere with your fitness as you eat your burger and fries while sitting on the couch? Certainly not. And yet it seems many people feel that their “knowledge of health,” combined with a 20 percent effort, should produce results. Let me save you the suspense– it doesn’t! I can’t even begin to count how many conversations I’ve had with frustrated individuals that were failing in their fitness and couldn’t understand why, just to find out that they were never really putting any of their knowledge into action. And that, my friends, is a shining example of insanity.
To leave you with some perspective, here’s another quote from one of my favorite movies, The Matrix. “Sooner or later you’re going to realize, just as I did, that there’s a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.”
So, the next time you’re questioning the path that you’re on, first take a moment to make sure you’ve started walking it. Cheers!
