One year on from my toughest year.
Right, here it is, the blog I have been desperate to write for a while now but I had just a few things to finish off before I could write this.
It has now been exactly a year since the disaster of my second hip replacement.
I am not going to lie, I remember lying in my hospital bed this time a year ago, thinking how on earth am I going to get out of this one? How was my life ever going to be the same? What am I going to be able to do now? I pretty much have no chance of laying any kind of sport ever again. Was my leg going to ever be the same? The doctors told me that it wouldn't!
What on earth was I going to do now? I have a physical job, would I ever be able to go back to it? Would I have to sit in an office for the rest of my life?
A million and one thought were going through my head during those 10 days in hospital and I have never been so afraid of what the future held for me.
As Christmas approached, I was getting very bored of sitting at home not really doing a lot, I decided that I wasn't going to let this beat me, I just need some guidance to figure out how I was going to get started.
I bought myself a couple of books. I have never really been one for reading, especially self help books, but I wasn't doing a lot else so I gave it a go.
I read these books in 5 days! And after, I had never felt so revitalised and pumped to get myself back up to speed.
And to get me started, all I had to do was plan my year from Jan. At first I didn't have a scooby too (clue) :-), but I gave the pages a second going over to really try and understand what they were after.
The first stage for me was getting back to work. At this time I was teaching PE lessons for a friends company and where I was a supervisor, my role wasn't too physical. So the first port of call was to ask if I could do a couple of hours every day in January, even though I would still be on my crutches. They said of course and this is where it would all begin. Those 2 hours a day also helped my mental state, it got me out of the house, got me moving around for a couple of hours a day, and made me feel good.
Next was too get back to personal training. That was achieved by the first of February which I was very surprised about. I had moved gyms where I had no clients, I was determined to make it work at the new place, so I was converting shifts left right and centre to get myself known and also increase my confidence in the new environment.
I also had a holiday to Las Vegas booked in April for my 30th birthday which I new I had to save a lot of money for, so it was time to graft even though I was still in a lot of pain. But I had a goal to achieve and was ready to do whatever it takes to do it.
Vegas was amazing! I went with my dad as it was his 60th birthday and it was unreal. White water rafting through the grand canyon followed by a helicopter ride, going the see The Killers at the brand new T-Mobile arena, night time helicopter rides, cycling too the hoover damn! It made all the hard work worth it.
My goal for this year was to have 4 trips away as I didn't have any the year before for obvious reasons. My parents have a holiday home in Spain so I went out there a couple of time and also a small trip to benidorm for a friends birthday, these things just have to be down.
Another goal was to improve my education and earn more qualifications. I passed my GP exercise referral course and Level 4 personal trainer course. Both huge qualifications for the fitness industry as it allows me to help people on a different level.
Now, this big one! As I had started to build up my fitness, I joined the boxing gym that I used to train at. As I couldn't really use my lower body to get fit, I tried the boxing. I absolutely loved it and being part of a team. After a few sessions, I got asked if I would like to have a bout in November.
At first I thought NO CHANCE! But I gave it some thought at the fight night fell on the exact date of my second hip replacement. What a way to see how far I have come since in just a year!
So I was signed and committed. I devoted myself for 2 months to the training and dieting. It was the toughest training I have ever done! But the end result of winning a boxing match in front of all my friends and family, was bigger than the training and the dieting. For the first time in a long time, I felt like my old self, expect even better!
I had the fight on Saturday and I WON! The relief after was so much that I actually got ill hah, only a bit of man flu. But It had felt like a whole year of pushing myself, getting myself back on my feet, working towards these small targets, had finally all been achieved and my body just went into complete relaxation.
Find a purpose too your goal. I know I go on about setting yourself goals, but I hope you can see, from personal experience, how important these small goals are for improving your life and improving yourself!
Fitness isn't just about looking great on the beach, its about you, its about you feeling good, enjoying life and being ready for anything the world throws at you.
As 2017 approaches, get working on this goals for next year now, and throw yourself into the process of achieving them.
Next year is going to be your best year yet, I guarantee it!
LETS DO THIS!!!