[Gem]

Originally Posted by blackraven

I've got to say that I've never really broken it all down into a psychological profile of an athlete or non-athlete. Just never really thought of it, but to listen to it from another person's perspective, it makes sense. One can condition him or herself through routine and habits that are developed either early in life and carried throughout or later in life to turn things around.

Yes if someone has always been active and athletic they wouldn't know what is is like to turn things around and go through the psychological change that makes them turn into an athlete. I went through that change and I paid attention to the process along the way.

I admire those that work so hard to overcome inertia, especially when work outs like weight training are something entirely new to the body. No easy feat. It's always easier to go jump on a cardio machine than to hit the weights, to me anyway.

Now I train because I'm the kind of person who trains. So I think about tomorrows workout without second thoughts like , that's just what I do. It's part of who I am now.

Or when I see an obese person struggling outside in the cold to run in hopes of transforming their body. The effort put into it and the motivation, though very uniquely personal, feels universal and is motivating to others that tell themselves they can't do it.

True. I admire the really weak guys who join the gym and the huge overweight people who take on a personal trainer. I can remember being the weakest bloke at the gym myself just 18 months ago, but I stuck to the program, and it changed my life, as now I become qualified as a fitness professional.

Pushing the body physically and seeing the changes is not only rewarding, it's life changing, maybe even life saving.

Very true. My life is completely transformed since I started training.