From an early age most of us have been taught or programmed to think that comfort equals happiness and that we should take the path of least resistance. While comfort can help with unwinding after a long day and may give temporary relief, it can do more harm than good if comfort is the only thing you seek. Comfort is like a drug, and once you have it, it is extremely difficult to change that habit. What can tend to happen is that we bleed our dopamine system dry of happiness through constant scrolling, drugs, alcohol, binge watching tv or gambling because it gives us that temporary comfort or happiness. We stop doing the things that we used to do and instead focus on getting our dopamine fix to feel somewhat happy for a very brief period of time. This then creates a habit that prevents us from growing professionally, spiritually, or socially. This lack of growth, whether we realize it intrinsically or not, creates the real root of our unhappiness. We realize we are not pursuing the best version of ourselves and this makes us restart the never ending cycle of getting our dopamine fix to only wake up the next day with bitterness. We repeat this constant cycle over and over again to the point where we can become bitter, depressed, or discontent with life. However, in saying all of this above, the good thing is that this can all be prevented! From my own opinion, the pursuit of something bigger that makes us uncomfortable is actually what makes us happy. Basically, forcing ourselves to be uncomfortable and doing extremely difficult tasks makes us feel better about ourselves because we are growing in some type of manner. This gives us a sense of purpose, confidence, some control of our lives and ultimately allows us to create our own happiness. So after reading all of this, I challenge you all to be more disciplined, to set goals, to be your true self, and strive for growth rather than comfort. It is 100% okay to unwind here and there with whatever makes you feel comfortable but just don’t make it a habit that consumes your life. The people that choose an easy life tend to have a hard or unhappy life but the people who choose a hard life tend to have an easier or happy life. The same way that dogs need physical activity to be happy, humans also need mental stimulation and problem solving to be happy. Get comfortable being uncomfortable and always strive for growth UF fam!

Gainz out!!

Hello everyone,

With Christmas and New Years right around the corner, I took the time to reflect on this past year on my own accomplishments. I got hired full time at Union Fitness as the head personal trainer, I finished my master’s degree in clinical exercise physiology, I have lost over 20 lbs this year, and I also found my passion and love for fitness again. After appreciating my own self growth, it also made it abundantly clear how important some people have been in my life over the past few years. Without them, I can honestly say that some of my success would not have been capable. So, in saying all of this, I wanted to give a brief story of some of these awesome people and highlight the importance of mentorship.

The first person I want to bring up is Dr. Sally Sherman. If you do not know her, she is a professor at the University of Pittsburgh, an academic advisor at Pitt, a mother, a wife, and an ultra-endurance athlete. She was also my professor, my academic advisor during my bachelor’s degree in exercise science, and one of the professors who spoke on my behalf to get me into the Masters of Clinical Exercise Physiology program at Pitt. During my time in undergrad, I was at a point where I thought I may not graduate on time due to a lack of credits needed to graduate. As most people would understand, I immediately began to panic at the thought of not graduating with my peers. I instantly emailed Dr. Sherman to explain the situation and to see if she was available later in the week to discuss the issue at hand. Dr Sherman at the drop of a dime, emailed me back and told me to call her asap. Keep in mind that this was at 8pm after she was done with work and she was at home with her family. I called her at that instant and she helped me devise a plan to graduate on time. In that moment, I had a huge sense of relief and without her I would not have known what to do. I also realized after that phone call, that Dr Sherman was one of the kindest and best people I have ever met. She goes above and beyond in all her duties as a professor, as an academic advisor, a mother, a wife, and an ultra-endurance athlete. I am extremely thankful to have had the opportunity to engage and learn from her. I cannot emphasize how great of a person she is. Thank you Dr Sherman!!!!

The next person I want to talk about is Curtis Miller. Almost everyone knows who Curt is at Union Fitness. He was the previous head personal trainer at Union Fitness and I had to fill his giant shoes after he moved on to bigger and better things. He is a world class powerlifter, a great trainer, an awesome coach, extremely smart in all things fitness or car related, and a pretty cool guy as well (emphasis on pretty). All jokes aside, one of the best memories I have with him is when I was on the Pitt Powerlifting Club. As most people often experience, I was kind of nervous beginning my training in the strength lab at Union. There were a lot of extremely strong people and for some reason even though most of the people training in the back are the nicest people on the planet, I thought they would bite my head off because of how strong they were. I knew that in order for me to grow I had to be in that environment and try to learn from the strongest in Pittsburgh. The first person I asked for advice from was Curt. I asked him to take a look at my deadlift to see if there was anywhere I could improve to get stronger. One thing lead to another and he ended up spending 30+ minutes of his own time to help me. He did not get paid any extra for helping me but decided to teach me something anyway. I will never forget that and I think it truly exemplifies his character. He is willing to help anyone and everyone, he is willing to listen when you need someone to talk to, and he often puts other people before himself. He has taught me so much since I trained, interned, and worked at Union. I am extremely grateful for his guidance, knowledge, and wisdom. I can honestly say that has helped me become a better trainer, a better leader, and ultimately a better person. Thank you Curtis!!!

These are just two people over the past few years that have helped me. There are numerous others and if I left you out, then please don’t take an insult to it. These two were just the ones who stuck out most as of late.

I have always hated the term “self-made.” In my own opinion, not a single person on this planet is “self-made.” We all go through adversity or hard times and sometimes we rely on others to help us out. So, if you have time today, go thank someone who you have looked at as a mentor, find someone that can mentor you, or be a mentor to someone else. The act of each of us helping one another will make the world a better place for the next generations. You certainly will not regret mentorship when you find a good person to aid you or when you get to step in the mentorship role to help someone else. I think mentorship is pivotal to growth and success. If we are not seeking growth then what is the point?

Just some food for thought! If you read the whole blog then cheers to you!

Zain Trainz

Three weeks ago, I made a Motivation Monday post about challenging you all to push outside of your comfort zone and to strive for something you have always wanted to achieve.

After I made that post, I decided to go ahead and do something way outside of my comfort zone. I spent the evening browsing different local recreational sports teams and things to do to keep me busy during this upcoming Winter season. I decided that I wanted to sign up for something that I have always wanted to do, but never got around to trying it, which was to play hockey. Originally, I was going to sign up for a local Dek Hockey team, but there weren’t any with open sign ups currently. I was bummed, but then I decided to why not go even further out of my comfort zone? And as a result, I signed up to play Ice Hockey instead. I knew how to skate but had no idea how to properly stop and skate backwards and I had no protective gear that I needed to wear as well. So that weekend I went out and got everything that I needed and have been practicing my skating skills a few times a week. I’m proud to say that I finally learned how to stop (without just running into the boards) and am looking forward to my future in playing recreational Ice Hockey.

A cool addition to this story is that I inspired two of my friends to join me on this journey as well. My advice is to go out and try something new, push outside of your comfort zone, and maybe you will inspire someone else to do the same!

Toria