Fortitudine Vincimus

 

I subscribed to a newsletter from The Daily Stoic a couple of years ago now.  They send out a daily email with a quote or an example of a stoics’ choices in life. Some things are great and some things I don’t always agree with. Anyway, I make it a daily routine to have a read whilst having a morning coffee.

I’m a big fan of latin quotes, mainly because they can be a couple of words but often mean so much more, they are also available to interpretation.

“Fortitudine Vincimus” was the subject title to one of The Daily Stoic emails a while back. I was intrigued…

Stoicism is a philosophy of application rather than just studying (which most philosophers are great at). The Latin phrase Fortitudine Vincimus means “by endurance, we conquer”. I love this quote and have been thinking about what it means to me and implementing it as much as possible.

Whatever it is that you have been trying to do, or trying to achieve, do not give in. If it is humanly possible you need to push on.

It was important enough for you to start so you have to see it through.

If you aren’t making progress then take a step back and evaluate why.

Change the plan and go again. Having this level of discipline will allow you to endure the setback and keep going.

In the fitness industry everyone wants a quick fix, “six weeks for 6-pack-abs” or “lose 50lbs in a day” – reality check, this does not happen! Just like you don’t become a CEO in 6 weeks, you don’t get a 6 pack in that time either (unless you’re already pretty close).

Six weeks is a start and every journey starts with a single step. The key to achieving your goals is to keep going, to conquer those feelings of self-pity, fear or blame and solve whatever obstacle it is that is stopping you.

When you have a goal, try to identify what may prevent you from completing it. For instance, if you want to lose body fat and gain muscle, you make a plan to attend the gym 5 days per week and follow a meal plan. Some possible obstacles could be travelling for work so you miss the gym or a meal out at the weekend with your friends which takes you off the meal plan.

Ok, now we’ve identified these – have a plan. When you travel you should already have 5 workouts (ask a coach for some ideas) that you can do in a hotel room or gym (100 burpees for time is always good). When you go out for a meal with friends, pick restaurants where you can get a good source of protein and vegetables (blog to come) and just eat a healthy meal. Also except that sometimes things go wrong, don’t let that put you off track.

I want to leave you with this thought…

If you were driving down the highway and you missed your turning, would you carry on straight or look for a way to get back on track?

Darren

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