Tough Love, Best Love

Hello people…

I don’t think I would be the man I am today without a bit of “tough love.”

You ever gotten any of this?

Like when a close friend calls you out on your bullshit or a parent gives you a quick reality check on life (that maybe you’ve been needing for a long time).

I’m a fan of tough love.

Why?

Because I got my shit together at a young age as a result.

As a kid, I was never the star athlete on the field or out on the court. I barely got by and was the laughingstock of my high school basketball team.

Sure, I could jump a little bit and was decently coordinated. But I was weak. I was soft. I was a feeble minded. I was hanging out with the wrong crowd. I was using substances that gave me no chance of advancing…

And one day…

A coach noticed this.

I was out at track practice, once again just going through the motions with no true intent to improve. Acting as though none of my actions mattered in the long run.

Then, probably one of the most hurtful things ever was said to me…”Jake you’re looking kinda fat. Like really soft. Like if I saw you at a meet I would be embarrassed for you.”

I wanted to cry. Next thing you know, another coach joined the banter.

“Yeah man that chest is flat as hell! Kind of embarrassing.”

The team laughed and joined in.

I felt alone, unwanted, and shamed.

…But I will forever be grateful to these coaches. Why?

Because the humiliation gave me a fast track to understanding what it truly takes to be successful.

From this point, I learned everything I could about losing weight and how to eat correctly, I learned how to train my body using the conjugate method to gain maximum strength and muscle mass, I studied track & field film like it was going out of style, and adopted habits that I knew would lead me to success.

Summer began and I started working at a boat dealership. I worked 7-8 hours a day for 6 days a week and then I trained for 3-4 hours after that. I would come home late and begin my health & fitness study.

Once school began, I was lifting at 5:30 AM before school, training during school hours, and coming out for track & field practice after school. And once again, my studies would begin when I got home.

Fast forward 1 year after stacking God knows how many focused hours of work…I was able to sign a scholarship to The University of Alabama. My dream school.

I write all of this to say…I’M NOT SPECIAL. I was never the kid everyone looked at and said, “Oh he’s going places,” or “Oh he is definitely going D1.”

No. I just stacked habits and gave an unreasonable amount of effort towards my goals. Which leads me to say that I believe we can all be massively high achievers…it may just take a bit of “tough love” and a shit load of focused hours…

What’s that thing you’ve been wanting to do that you don’t think you’re good enough for? Because I want to say, I KNOW you can get there with the right habits and actions…

Talk soon :)