If you’re a movie geek like me, you know exactly what the hero’s journey truly is.
It’s the outline to every epic tale. Star Wars, Matrix… You name it.
It’s a mythological storytelling script, designed around true triumph. It’s what creates the most exciting narratives and get us sucked into the screen or book, as if we’re right there with them.
But what else it is…. is realistic.
Which is why it’s something you should know and truly understand.
Do you think Luke Skywalker thought his journey would be easy when soldiers come to his home planet of Tatooine, burn down his home and kill aunt and uncle…?!?!
Probably not.
I don’t think Neo or Frodo Baggins imagined a walk through the park when setting out on their missions of being “The One” or “Destroying The Ring That Rules Them All”.…
But they did it.
What’s the point of this?
Why should you care?
How does any of this relate to losing a 100lbs or your own personal fitness goals?
It relates in every way possible.
Let me show you, this Hero’s Journey Outline.
There are 12 points in this timeline. 9-10 of them are uncomfortable or cause change/difficulty. There is only 1 single reward along the way and it’s 2/3’s of the way into the story…
This timeline is the exact process of losing weight or completely changing your body composition. This explains fat loss, muscle gain, competitive CrossFit, the path to the powerlifting platform, and every other physical journey.
This is a storyline for transformation.
In fact, let’s run through this timeline in the eyes of the transformer. Let’s step away from the mystical world of Luka Skywalker and onto the average life of Steve and Suzy, while they attempt to shed 20-50lbs and completely transform their bodies (and therefore, lives)…
Your life is ordinary. You’re living the average American life, but if you were completely honest… in a perfect world, it would be above average and then some. You want change. You want excitement. You want confidence. You want a new “shell” for this game of life.
You’re called to adventure (fitness journey). The chance to make changes has been calling your name for a long time and you’ve only thought about it, keeping it in the back of your mind. But now, you’re called to it. A fitness challenge, a comment someone made, a health issue, or moment of true clarity as you stared in the mirror and didn’t like what you saw (this is my personal story, more on that here).
You get refused, rejected, or just straight up fell off the wagon. You hit a little moment of failure. It’s a gut shot, but we all know nothing happens on the first shot.
So you swallow the ego and reach out for help, from a coach who is an expert in that world. It’s time for you to meet your mentor. This is an essential step in everyone’s journey because the truth is; nobody can or should try to do this on their own. Support, accountability, guidance, and experience are all valuable tools to help you make to through your adventure to triumphant success.
Once you join this mentor, you finally cross your own personal threshold – or better said, your plateau. Because we know… it’s never smooth sailing to your goals. There are roadblocks, hiccups, speed bumps… however you want to call it, you’ll catch onto something that tries to slow you down.
You’re tested time and time again, the universe is out to see if you’re going to stay motivated, disciplined, and ready to fight through the enemies you approach (donuts, beers, baseball games, kids birthdays….). But patience is massively important in this journey, so you lean on your allies and mentor for help to support you through all the tests of time… But then…
You approach your inmost cave, or what feels like the deepest point of your journey. You’re REALLY doing this and it’s a heavy weight to carry, but deep down in your gut, no matter how uncomfortable it’s all making you, you know this is what you truly have to do. So there is no stopping and you continue to trek.
Ordeal happens… Roadblock, plateau, doubt, fear… A.K.A. another social event, work trip, family drama… You know the deal, but that’s life and shit happens (that’s why real results come from a lifestyle oriented approach).
But all those ordeals don’t matter at this point, you’re too deep! So you push through and don’t let up… and because of that, you’re rewarded – the scale finally shows you some serious progress! And people are starting to notice!
But then, another big road block – your arch nemesis…. The Holiday Trifecta! (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas) You have to get through 3 full months where everyone in sight is trying to give you treats, food, drinks, and all kinds of things that do not help you on your path to success.
You take the hit, but realize it’s still not over and despite the little slip up… You continue and your results are resurrected! Because a roadblock just means you need to course correct to find a path around (A.K.A. Flexible Dieting).
Finally, your “ordinary world” is different. Not the place itself, but how you view it. Because you’ve gained your elixir (treasure) and now you return to your ordinary world with that elixir.
In your case, you’ve gained the result that you’ve only imagined because to you…
It was impossible. But you’ve proved that not to be true and now you stand in your once ordinary world, an extraordinary being.
Every amazing movie follows this storyline. And every amazing movie has an amazing hero…
Who at the very beginning was not so amazing.
In fact, they were ordinary. That’s the point.
The point is to create hope inside of you, letting you know that you too… can be amazing.
The time to start your hero’s journey was yesterday.
And by that I mean, there’s no reason to wait.
It’s a New Year, which means there’s a New Hope. (No Star Wars pun intended…)
If you’ve read this far… This is YOUR Call To Adventure.
I’m calling you to it. Because I know that’s what you actually want.
What you actually need. Now, go for it… Hero.
