My phone’s full of nudes…

Yeah, thought that might make you click ;-)

Now you’re here, let me explain.

Just over a year ago, I got my wife to take a picture of me in the bedroom wearing my nicest pair of pants. I’m sure this is how some people get their kicks (and each to their own) but this wasn’t my motive. 

I’d set myself the goal of getting fitter and stronger. And I wanted to track my progress. 

I should also say, right from the start of throwing myself into training, it was never about aesthetics. It was about feeling better - and stronger - both mentally and physically. It was about enjoying being active and learning to do new things. It was about challenging myself, pushing hard, and seeing what impact it would have on my life.

I’m not going to lie, the fact I’ve lost a lot of weight, put on a bit of muscle, and generally look about 10 years younger is a very nice bonus.

So back to the nudes. I took the same picture, in the same pants, stood in the same spot, every week. Why? To track progress, to see the impact training and nutrition were having on my body, and to hold myself accountable to the goals I’d set. When you’re right in the middle of something (training, work, life) and living it daily, it’s super easy to get caught up in the present and forget where you’ve come from. For me, the visual aid of pictures and actually being able to see progress served as extra motivation on days when I needed it.

Nudes weren’t the only measure. I tracked how much I could lift and how quickly I could complete certain workouts. And now, when I look back, I can see how far I’ve come. I’ve got some kind of benchmark to measure myself against. I can see the impact - and results - my actions are having. This helps keep me going, drives me on and reassures me that what I’m doing is making a difference.

Progress isn’t just something you should track if you’re training either. It’s the start of February and those resolutions you made probably feel like a long time ago. Maybe you wanted to launch a new website for your business, or make an effort to be kinder to yourself, or to not worry so much about what other people think, to run more, to laugh more, to spend more time with family, to cook more meals for yourself, to start yoga, to meditate, to be able to backflip on a skateboard...I could go on.

The point is, it doesn’t matter what goals you set for yourself. It’s much easier to let these goals slip if you don’t track them. So whether it’s keeping some kind of a diary, taking photos on your phone, starting a blog, using a calendar or anything else in between you can think of where you can easily monitor your progress, then do it. I promise it will help.

And about those results. Don’t worry about them. It’s one of the oldest cliches in the book but trust the process. Don’t just trust it. Love it. Love the little things, love the new habits, love the hard work. If you do this, the big picture will look after itself and before you know it you’ll be sailing past the bar you set for yourself. 

After all, like Al Pacino says in Any Given Sunday, life’s a game of inches. It’s when we add up all the inches we see the difference they make. Keep doing the right things, for the right reasons, and you might just surprise yourself.

PS - Nudes available on request ;-)