Inspo From the Pros to Jumpstart Your Goals

If you’re a little behind on your goals or your strong start is losing steam, you’re not alone. 24Life asked the pros and experts what gets them going and inspires them to stick with it, whatever “it” might be. Here’s what what they told us.

Family…

Tom Banicky, Fitness Manager, 24 Hour Fitness: My family back home. I grew up on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania. Whenever I think I’m working hard, I know they’re working harder still.

Trish Ignacio, #FitSquad24 influencer: My sisters. I am the oldest of five children. My parents divorced when I was 18. I was left to take care of my siblings. … I’ve always had to be strong for my sisters and I see how well they’re doing. They inspire me.

Erica Johnson, Master Trainer, 24 Hour Fitness: Definitely my family. My dad was a natural bodybuilder. He suffered from lung cancer. When you see someone’s full potential and what life does to them … that changed my whole perspective and outlook on life, on how I should be living, [and whether I’m] being good to myself and good to others.

Adam Bramski, Les Mills International Celebrity Instructor: My mom. She’s on her own fitness journey and hearing about her small victories throughout the day keeps me dialed in.

… And “family,” including total strangers

Jules Fultz, Program Director, POP Pilates: My go-to source for inspiration is watching a masterfully taught group fitness class. Seeing a group of individuals sharing the journey toward wellness as a team lights my soul on fire! And being able to help instructors, through training, discover their abilities to coach others inspires me beyond words.
Patrick Laurent, Personal Trainer, 24 Hour Fitness: My most inspired moment as a trainer is seeing a client actually reach their goals, when in the beginning they really doubted themselves.

Jane McGonigal, New York Times best-selling author (“Superbetter,” Penguin Press, 2015) and game designer: The efforts of people all around me to be kind to others. The biggest inspiration I’ve experienced in recent years is the extraordinary compassion and tireless efforts of NICU (neo-natal infant care unit) nurses [who took care of my twins]. They are my heroes.

Vinh Duong, Fitness Manager, 24 Hour Fitness: I meet at least one individual a day blows my mind away with what they’re going through. For example, yesterday I met a member who uses crutches [for mobility] and … she comes in when most people would normally say they can’t come in. … Moments like that make me take a step back and really appreciate the field I’m in, because I would not meet people like her on a daily basis if I wasn’t in it.

Outside the box

Bo Eason, seven-time best-selling author (“There’s No Plan B for Your A-Game,” St. Martin’s Press, 2019), NFL legend: Anytime I feel like I need to create something new, I go to one of two places—a grass field or a dark theater. Inspiration comes from taking bold action. I like to work out or play out my ideas in practice and rehearsal.

Petra Kolber, author (“The Perfection Detox,” Da Capo Lifelong Press, 2018), happiness expert: We need to constantly feed our brain with new ideas and inspiration. This creates a space for awe and wonder to thrive. Find a new class, read a new genre of books, watch TED talks, listen to new podcasts or read poems.

Jim Kwik, learning expert and host, “Kwik Brain With Jim Kwik” podcast: When it came to originally improving my mind and memory, my inspiration was really my desperation. Growing up with learning challenges, I was always seeking solutions. The best techniques I discovered are now what we teach. From life’s struggles can emerge new strengths.
Today I get inspiration for new ideas daily. They are everywhere. One of my favorites is from the people we meet. I believe we can learn something from everybody. And another is from books – many of our students read a book (or more) each and every week. That’s a lot of inspiration.

Photo credit: adamkaz, Getty Images