
Doing nothing is easy. It requires no effort. It demands no self-talk. Lack of action is simple. Scrolling the phone and clicking the remote control are effortless. They ask nothing of you.
Doing something is difficult. Deciding is tough. Acting is demanding.
Let’s look at Newton’s First Law of Motion.
A body at rest will remain at rest and a body in motion in a straight line will remain in straight line motion until acted upon by an outside force.
That outside force is YOU. YOUR MIND is the impetus that decides how your life shall move forward. Your thoughts are the spark that determines action or inaction.
Self-discipline is not relegated to exercise, although it is normally expressed as such. Self-discipline is a dominant factor in every decision in your life. Self-discipline determines your life direction, the path of your life, your health and wellness, your happiness, your career, how your children are raised.
Self-discipline proves self-love and self-worth. Do you love yourself enough to do the hard things? Do you love yourself enough to refuse to do what’s easy?
Martial arts and exercise are the best examples of self-discipline. Martial arts demands that you practice the same basics over and over again. Every day, every class, at home. Black belt is not the end goal, it is the beginning. It means that you have proven to your instructors that you have the fortitude and self-discipline to continue to do what’s hard and boring until you become good at it. Once you have mastered the basics, you can test for black belt. Then you are ready to learn. So many study for a few years (if the school actually makes you practice that long – most will have you sign a contract to get your black belt in 18 months even if you suck at it, but that’s another blog post) only to get their black belt and then quit. “I’m done” they say. “I’ve finished.” But there’s still so much more to do. When I started martial arts training, I practiced my forms in my kitchen. It was the only space I had. It was far too small. I could only move one step at a time. I had to step, adjust, step, adjust, etc. I had no heavy bags at home. I practiced forms in my tiny kitchen and kicked until I couldn’t lift my legs. But I did it.
The same with exercise. You can lift weights or run the treadmill every day for years. If you stop, you will lose ground. You will sputter and stall. You must stay in motion.
Self-discipline begins with small things. Simple choices.
Decide to wake up early tomorrow. Not next week. To-freaking-morrow. Decide that you’ll wake up earlier than normal and do something. Stretching, meditation, journaling. Hell, just do 5 minutes of ANY yoga video on YouTube. Just five minutes. If you start too big, you’ll be too sore the next day and won’t want to continue.
Start small. If you wake up at 6am, wake up at 5am. That means you might have to give up watching the Kardashians the night before. Oh damn, how will you make it the next day if you don’t learn what happens in their scripted TV lives?
Now this is the hard part. You have to engage that chatter in your mind. The alarm will sound, and you’ll try to convince yourself that you’re comfy in your bed. It’s so cozy. Maybe you’ll start tomorrow. Yeah, that’s it, tomorrow.
But tomorrow you’ll have that same talk. And you’ll NEVER get started.
You have to outthink that voice. You must argue with your own mind. You must win. Tell that voice to STFU because you have some stuff to do. Put the phone across the room so when it tones you’ll have to get out of bed and go across the room to shut it down. NOW you’re up. Stay up. Get to it. Start stretching. Do one push up. Yes just one. Even if it looks like shit. Just get on your face and do it.
Then, you’ve conquered yourself. You’ve defeated the part of you that WANTS you to continue to be a quitter. You’ve beaten it. You did something. Now, spend some time meditating. I’ll write a blog about the best way to go about this in another article.
But since you’ve conquered yourself, conquering the rest of the day becomes a little easier. When you get to work, someone will bring donuts in. You’ve already gotten up early, got something done. You’ve won against yourself. You’ve shown self-discipline. Now it’s easier to show a little more self-discipline and NOT eat the donut. Small victories like this make huge differences over time. Like a snowball rolling downhill. Trust me.
One pushup today and one less donut will make you feel like King Kong, ready to take on any challenge.
Self-discipline is doing what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, when you’d rather be doing something else or nothing at all.
Self-discipline proves to yourself that you’re important enough to make tough choices for your betterment and improvement.
Now comes the really tough part. Do it again tomorrow. It’s not about deciding that you’re going to run 5 miles tomorrow. Or do 100 pushups. Hell, even I can’t do that right now. It’s tiny steps in the right direction. Each day. Every day.
If you think I don’t know about this, let me dispel that right now.
I started lifting weights at 13. In my mid thirties I started competing in powerlifting contests. Broke four state records. I reached my genetic potential. I did all my body would allow me to do without doing some really dangerous drugs. I had to stop working out with the guys I was training with due to an injury. I was lifting in a guy’s garage with some equipment you couldn’t find in any commercial gym. I started going to a commercial gym again. It just wasn’t the same. Plus, I was trying to get my business off the ground. I stopped boing to the gym. At that same time I also got promoted at work and started working in the office. On day shift. I started eating lunch at restaurants. I would get home from work and sit on the couch until it was time to go to bed… late. I stopped teaching karate. I just shut down. Within a year I weighed 320 pounds. I was a fat, disgusting blob. I was wearing 48 inch pants and was hanging over them.

That’s when I had to make a choice. Get healthy or have a heart attack and die young.
I made small decisions every day. Get up early, walk a bit. Do some calisthenics. Get back to martial arts training. Stop eating at restaurants. Stop eating garbage. Practice intermittent fasting. Within a couple of years, I was down to 245. I was that weight when I retired.
I got cancer.
It started with a soreness when doing ab exercises. Then the soreness lingered. By Thanksgiving I had surgery to remove part of my colon. In December I was told it was cancer. I also had diabetes.
This is when self-discipline became serious. Every decision mattered. I changed my diet - twice. I changed my fasting habits.
Now I am 190. I am cancer-free. I no longer have diabetes. I am not on meds for any of it.
I know what it’s like to make tough decisions. To deny yourself. To be consistent.
I got up this afternoon and ran 2.5 miles. I didn’t want to. I had to wake up earlier than that voice in my head that would’ve talked me out of it. I was on the road before that bastard voice could argue with me. “Already here” I thought. HAHA.
I’m not a ‘do as I say, not as I do’ kind of guy. I walk the walk. Every day. That means this Thanksgiving I had to make decisions about what I ate. What kind and how much.
Self-discipline is your way of loving yourself. Do you love yourself enough to make small adjustments to the way you live your life? To do the hard thing one day at a time? Can you win that battle of your mind? Because your mind wants to win. It wants you to stay on the couch, watch TV instead of read a book, stay up late instead of going to bed on time. It wants you to sleep in, wants you to eat Pop Tarts or Coco Pebbles instead of skipping breakfast. It wants you to eat the donuts at work or your coworkers amazing brownies. You must engage in self-talk all day long. You must defeat yourself. It means you love yourself.
Self-discipline means you have self-worth and value.
I have a series of Navy Seals Workout videos by Chris Caracci, former Navy Seal. . I haven't followed them for a while (my bastard voice). But he said something that has stuck with me over the years. He talked about when the body gets sore and tired. The body will want to tell your mind that things are really tough and it's time to stop. The body wants to quit. He said repeatedly over the course of four videos, "The mind controls the body, the body does not control the mind."
I watch a lot of videos on YouTube by David Goggins. He is a former Navy Seal that went from 300 pounds of blubber to a lean, mean, endurance athlete. In his story, he was sitting on the couch after his useless job spraying for cockroaches and watching a Discovery Channel documentary on Navy Seals. He wanted to do the things they were doing. But he was fat, had no self-esteem, and was no where near ready physically or mentally to embark on that kind of journey. He started small, making small adjustments to his day. Then the changes began to snowball. He lost 100 pounds in a few months and tried for the Navy. He says in his videos that he had to invent a guy in his mind that would endure any suffering, withstand any pain, and overcome any challenge. This has been his motto for years. At the end of every video he shouts, "Stay hard."

Let me be the one to tell you.
You are valuable. You are worthy. You are important. You deserve love. So love yourself. Do these things for yourself. Because you are worth it.
Do the pushup. Eat the banana or apple instead of the brownie. Read the book. Take the online course. Learn a language or a musical instrument.
You will then exemplify Newton’s First Law of Motion. Once you are in motion, making good decisions, seeing results, you will continue to make good decisions, stay in motion, see further results.
You CAN do this. I know you can. You can survive this battle in your mind over how you need to live your life. You can make the small changes necessary to change your life.
I believe in you.
This week, ALL Tai Chi classes are back in regular session. We will continue our work on our forms. Concentrate on your breath and keeping your posture upright and vertical.
Can't wait to see you all there. Let's have some fun.
Classes are as follows.
All classes are pay as you go. No contracts or commitments.
Jasper
Tuesday 6:30pm
Dubois County Museum
2704 Newton
Classes are $12.
Evansville
Wednesday 6:30pm
Tri State Holistic Wellness
500 Saint Phillips Rd 47712
Classes are $10 cash
Saturday 11:00 am
Unity of Evansville
4118 Pollack Ave 47714
Classes are $10 cash
I am in school for Therapeutic Massage and adding this modality to my repertoire. Massage, Reiki, and Acupressure are a potent combination. At the end of the session, I add crystal bowls and drumming for even deeper relaxation and healing.
I'm available by appointment throughout the week in Evansville for
Reiki / Acupressure / Massage
Herbalism / Nutrition
$60 cash
Message me by text, email, or Facebook Messenger to schedule an appointment.
In the Tao,
Sifu Weeg
Comments