FEELING UNMOTIVATED ?

Look, I get it. It’s hard to stay focused, motivated, and keep that healthy and dedicated mindset, when things aren’t going as planned. ⁣
⁣No matter whether you are successful businessman/woman, working a secure job you love, pro athlete, or just got into this fitness and health thing a couple of days ago. We’ve all been negatively effected by the COVID - 19. That’s a fact. But before you will get all sad and negative about everything, try to use this energy and time towards something productive. ⁣
⁣On a bright side, we ALL have a lot more time on our hands to do the following: ⁣
⁣1. Focus on something you always wanted to do but just simply “didn’t have time”. ⁣
2. Learn a new skill. No matter what it is, just do it! ⁣
3. Get a new hobby. ⁣
4. Keep yourself occupied. ⁣
5. Create a daily routine in your lifestyle. ⁣
6. Learn more about self care and improvement (mental and physical). ⁣
7. Improve your mental and physical health. ⁣
8. Educate yourself more on healthy nutrition and physical activity. It’s a PERFECT time to do it NOW. It’s essential, especially NOW. A Strong immune system is a must for every single human being on this planet. ⁣
9. Stop complaining, and take actions instead. Having a bad day ? Feeling unmotivated ? It will pass by BUT giving up is not an option nor a solution to anything. Giving up is an easy solution to nothing. Instead, take actions, take it as slow as you need, BUT DO NOT GIVE UP. Actions = solutions = success = ultimate health and happiness. ⁣
10. Stay positive, keep that smile on, things will get better! ⁣

WHY I ALWAYS SAY “GOOD THINGS TAKE TIME” and why it’s so important to focus on YOU vs. YOU ?⁣

If you want to gain quality results, you need to invest in a proper strategy that will work the best for your already existent lifestyle and in order to do that, you will need to be realistic about your commitment levels to gradual lifestyle improvement and development of new daily healthy habits that will lead to permanent results (THAT’S EXACTLY WHY EACH AND EVERY transformation will be always different, because we ALL have different daily responsibilities, genetics, experience, tasks, lifestyles, preferences, expectations, occupation, goals, and there is nothing wrong with it, it’s life..so again, NEVER compare yourself to anybody, it’s YOU vs. YOU, and always should be that way. It will keep you healthier and more focused not just physically but also mentally). Simple. Realistic timeline to achieve your goals = quality performance = patience = quality results = PERMANENT LIFESTYLE CHANGE. ⁣

BENEFITS OF A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE ⁣?

First, what is a healthy lifestyle ? ⁣
⁣In my eyes it’s a combination of a couple of things:⁣
⁣1. Nutrition - healthy, flexible, filling, nutritious, enjoyable, tasty, nutrient dense (rich in macronutrients and micronutrients), high in volume, and well balanced food intake with lots of variety. ⁣
2. Physical activity - and I am not talking about “just working out”. I’m talking about EVERYTHING, based on a personal preference, that involves being physically active: walking, running, getting involved in activities with your family and friends, playing sports, biking, Zumba, dancing, calisthenics, yoga..YOU NAME IT! ⁣
3. Proper sleep/rest - proper sleep and rest. Stop using your phone/looking at any type of screens, 2-3 hours prior to your sleep. Got to sleep early and wake up early! Take extra rest days, when need it. Listen to your body and mind. ⁣
4. Having a daily routine - this one is essential for me personally! Without a specific daily routine, my life would literally fall apart. I like to have everything scheduled, written down, and planned ahead of time. ⁣
⁣Now, BENEFITS: ⁣
⁣1. Mental Health - you will be happier, more confident, less stressed out, and just more optimistic about EVERYTHING in your life. ⁣
2. Physical health - improved muscle mass and strength. Increased metabolism. Better cardiovascular system/endurance = healthy heart. Stronger bones. Improved sleep. Improved overall energy levels in your daily life activities/tasks. ⁣
3. Overall health - reducing chances of chronic diseases, stronger immune system, healthy blood glucose and insulin levels, healthy ranges of blood pressure and cholesterol, healthy digestive system and absorption of essential nutrients. ⁣
⁣Invest in your health, ladies and gentlemen. You have a full control of it. Stop making excuses, and start taking actual actions. No body is telling you to be perfect. Take one step at a time. Can’t exercise ? Not a problem, go for a walk instead and start working on points 1, 3, and 4 from a “HEALTHY LIFESTYLE” section. Your health should always be a priority, but nowadays it’s even more important due to a global virus! ⁣#jackedhamster

HOW TO STAY HEALTHY DURING A QUARANTINE ?

1. I Prioritize a healthy nutrition like I’ve never done before for 2 main reasons: to keep my body and immune system strong and due to a lower total daily energy output, I am sticking to a more specific daily caloric intake (before quarantine my total daily caloric intake was varying between 2500-3000, but now it’s 2500 on the dot for most days). Hence, I am still working out at home and staying fairly active, just not AS active as I usually am, which takes me to a next point.⁣
2. I exercise at home. It helps me to stay in a good shape, improve my overall health, and it’s a very therapeutic process that is essential for my own wellbeing and lifestyle. ⁣
3. I keep my mind occupied. I started putting extra focus on some future projects that I had in mind, and now since we all have more time, why not use this opportunity and take some more actions towards further improvements. ⁣
4. Jacked Hamster Familia is a huge support right now, so thank you so much, to all of you, ladies and gentlemen, for your continues support and trust in my guidance! We will get through these tough times, together as a team! Your work ethic and dedication motivates me to continue giving my all as I always do and setting a good example for people around us, how essential it is to say healthy, especially, right now! ⁣
5. I spend more quality time with my family. In modern world, we are all so busy, that sometimes we don’t realize how quickly the time flies, so this quarantine, was a bit of a reality check for me, when it comes to creating more balance between work and family. ⁣
6. I sleep A LOT more, because why not! It will only improve my health!⁣
7. I still have a daily routine that I follow, which helps me to stay accountable, focused, productive, healthy, and positive. ⁣
8. I am being optimistic. Positivity is just as contagious as negativity, so I choose to spread positive vibes ONLY!

If you are currently panicking or about to give up, read this! ⁣

Stay calm. ⁣
⁣Relax. ⁣
⁣You are not the only one who is going currently through some tough times. ⁣
⁣Observe. ⁣
⁣Plan. ⁣
⁣Avoid overthinking. ⁣
⁣Learn from your own mistakes.⁣
⁣Adapt to current circumstances. ⁣
⁣Take actions after actions. ⁣
⁣Stop making excuses. ⁣
⁣Stop feeling sorry for yourself. ⁣
⁣Overcome. ⁣
⁣Don’t give up after each and every failure and obstacle. ⁣
⁣Lift YOURSELF UP. ⁣
⁣Succeed and get a reward from it. ⁣
⁣Be a machine of adaptation!⁣
⁣MAKE A CHANGE in YOUR LIFE. ⁣
⁣TAKE a FULL CONTROL of your current daily habits, decisions, and lifestyle. ⁣
⁣Don’t tell yourself “I can’t, I don’t know how and what to do”. Human brain is a master at adaptation and coding, so whatever you tell yourself, will eventually happen, so might as well tell yourself “I WILL. I CAN. I AM A BADASS. NOTHING CAN STOP ME FROM ACHIEVING MY GOALS”. ⁣
⁣Focus on positives > negatives, because both energy sources are just as contagious. ⁣
⁣Smile. Things WILL get better 

Your gym got closed = no results ?

First, take a deep breath. Your health and safety should be ALWAYS on the first place. So, we should and MUST support this decision for health and virus spread prevention purposes. ⁣
⁣Second, I know - I know, world is going crazy, right now, literally, but panicking won’t solve anything, so instead, just take one step at a time. ⁣
⁣If anything, lots of individuals forget, that GYM is only ONE tool out of a FULL ARSENAL of what health and fitness are all actually about. ⁣⁣
Keep in mind, gym/any type of training is only 30 min - 1 hour long out of your whole day, so if you are relying on it completely and thinking it’s the only thing that will allow you to achieve your goals...then..sadly you are on a wrong track and approaching your health and fitness goals with a wrong mindset. ⁣
⁣Instead, that’s what you should do to prevent the loss of your progression, stay healthy/safe, and continue on improving:⁣⁣
1. Eat healthy, drink tones of water, and continue following your nutrition plan. It will strengthen your immune system and allow you to still improve/maintain your progress. ⁣
2. Remain active: MOVE, walk, run, spend time with your family, walk your dog, do home workouts/full body circuits (there are so many things that you can do without any equipment required), stay on your feet longer during the day..and this list can go on and on. JUST BE creative about it. ⁣
3. Sleep/rest MORE. With current situation in the world, you will have more time to simply rest and heal, so take a full advantage of it. It will only benefit your body and mind. ⁣
4. Stay positive. Things will get better. This is not the end of the world. It won’t be always like this. ⁣
5. Stay accountable. Stay focused. Continue working hard and smart. If you being coached by someone, then keep that essential communication with your coach. Teamwork and proper communication are the most powerful tools to success. ⁣

Attack your weak points. ⁣

Attack your weak points. ⁣
⁣Why you may ask ? ⁣
⁣Because this is exactly what will allow you to break through that wall of obstacles.⁣
⁣This is EXACTLY what will allow you to get closer and closer to your ultimate goal.⁣
⁣But HEY, I get it. It’s much easier to say then do it..but did I say it’s an easy task ? ⁣
⁣You’ve probably heard this billion of times BUT IF IT WAS EASY to LEAVE your comfort zone, then everybody would do it. ⁣
⁣Attack your fears. Attack that comfort zone. Attack attack attack, until you will get out of your bubble. ⁣
⁣For me, as silly as it might sound, training lower body was always a struggle, after I broke 10 bones in my right leg. And the funny part is, I’m not afraid of actual training, I’m just frustrated about the fact that my right leg will never be the same as it used to be before the accident. Knowing that I will have some sort of a muscle atrophy in that region no matter what I will do for the rest of my life, is absolutely frustrating mentally and physically...but you know what ? ⁣
⁣I turned my weakness into my strength. ⁣
⁣How I did it ? ⁣
⁣1. I started focusing on ME vs. ME.⁣
⁣2. I stopped looking at visual changes as the only factor of progression. ⁣
⁣3. I started applying this negative energy towards creating and pursuing NEW goals. ⁣
⁣4. I started learning more about how to work around my injury. ⁣
⁣Maybe my legs will never be the same, maybe I will never reach my true potential if I would never break my leg in the past..BUT I USED all of these negatives productively, which made the man I am today. Instead of giving up, I used all of these tools to build Jacked Hamster Family, Community, Family, and the NEW lifestyle approach, that has been guiding many amazing individuals towards better, healthier, and happier way of LIVING. ⁣
⁣YOU ARE NOT allowed to give up. Take essential breaks if needed for self rejuvenation, but NEVER give up on your goals. ⁣
Giving up is never an option nor a solution to anything in life. ⁣
⁣Attack your weak points. ⁣

ENJOY THE PROCESS.

Keep your eyes on the prize but do not neglect the enjoyment of a process. ⁣
⁣Want permanent results?⁣
⁣Want to stay consistent? ⁣
⁣Want to continue succeeding ? ⁣
⁣You gotta start really focusing on the process itself. ⁣
⁣I know - I know, we all want to see results as soon as possible, and there is nothing wrong with it. In fact, the whole point of this “eating healthy and training/remaining physically active” thing IS to achieve your end goals. ⁣⁣But the truth is..if you sacrificing your happiness, just to get to your goal, you are asking for a sweet but very very VEEeeRy short term success. ⁣
⁣Don’t get me wrong, you definitely MUST and NEED to make some “sacrifices” in your current lifestyle in order to achieve your goals but I call it “positive changes” that will actually improve your mental and physical health, and quality of living. ⁣
⁣4 STEPS of How to achieve permanent results: ⁣
⁣1. Making small changes everyday > one time drastic and aggressive change. ⁣
⁣2. Consistency > perfection. ⁣
⁣3. Enjoyment of the process > goals goals goals. ⁣
⁣4. Learning from your mistakes > punishing yourself for making mistakes. 

DISCIPLINE vs. ⁣Over-restriction.

Those are 2 completely different animals. Let me explain.⁣
⁣DISCIPLINE - being dedicated to your goals and focusing on one step at a time that will allow you to achieve your short and long term goals, while enjoying the process and staying healthy. Focusing on daily small wins, that will add up to a big success. Not letting one bad day, distract you from your goals. Prioritizing consistency > perfection and balance between your work, training, and personal life. Listening to your body and mind, knowing when you need that “extra rest day” or “diet break” to heal mentally and physically, recover, and come back better and stronger then ever. Looking at the bigger picture and focusing on an actual health improvement and development of healthier habits and relationships with food and training. Knowing when to say “no”, when any sudden temptation comes to your mind. Learning how to manage your cravings properly without guilt and 0 damage to your progress. Modifying your lifestyle and achieving permanent results. Discipline is a skill that is developed through many errors and trial. Discipline TAKES TIME, it requires patience, however, once you got it, new qualities of your living will allow you to reach your true potential and happy place. ⁣
⁣Over-restriction - often being seen as “discipline”, however, it’s actually a complete opposite, because you are ignoring the fact of a true balance. You are cutting out most of the things from your life that you truly enjoy, with a purpose to achieve your goals, using unrealistic, unsustainable, and “less then enjoyable” approach. You are going to achieve your goals most likely pretty fast, but 99.9 % of it will be temporary. Lastly, overall health is also neglected in most cases (mental and physical). ⁣
⁣Conclusion: ⁣
⁣Focus on discipline > over-restriction. ⁣
⁣Bigger picture > quick fix. ⁣
⁣Consistency > perfection. ⁣
⁣Permanent results > temporary results.⁣
⁣Balance = Jacked Hamster Lifestyle Approach. ⁣