Embrace the Suck - Why Struggle Leads to Success In Fitness
I’d like you to picture this scene.
I’m 14 years old, completely obsessed with football. When I’m not playing, I’m watching games, memorizing stats, or meticulously organizing my football cards. My world revolves around the sport, and I’d do anything to get better at it.
But there was one problem—I was scrawny. To compete, I had to start lifting weights, and I hated it. It hurt, it was uncomfortable, and I struggled to stay motivated. Then, one day, I stumbled across this video:
How Bad Do You Want It? (Success) HD.
The video had one powerful message: “When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you’ll be successful.”
Dramatic? Sure. Effective? Absolutely.
So, on days I didn’t feel like training, I’d fire up that video, crank the heat in the garage, and grind through push-ups and lunges.
It was during those grueling sessions that I learned a lesson I still carry with me today:
If you avoid suffering, you avoid success.
If you’ve ever wondered why your fitness journey feels so hard—or why it’s so easy to give up—you’re not alone. But the truth is, that difficulty is exactly what makes your progress valuable.
The most common reasons people fail when trying to improve their health are:
They set unrealistic expectations and give up when results don’t come as fast as they want.
They don’t stay consistent because they let temporary discomfort outweigh their long-term goals.
They focus only on the end result instead of finding meaning in the process.
The real secret to success? Learning to embrace the suck. Here’s why.
1. The Struggle Makes It Worth It
If something comes easy, is it really special?
Imagine if everyone could take a pill to get their dream body—no workouts, no effort. It might sound great at first, but would it feel rewarding? Probably not.
The things we value most—like a career, family, or personal growth—take hard work. Fitness is the same. Building strength, losing fat, or getting healthier takes effort. That effort is what makes it meaningful!
You don’t just grow stronger physically. You become better at handling challenges in every part of your life.
2. Strength Builds Perspective
Hard workouts put things in perspective.
When your lungs burn or your arms shake, everyday stresses feel smaller. Work pressure, family challenges, and frustrations don’t seem as overwhelming after you’ve pushed through something hard.
Exercise also sets the tone for how you handle life’s obstacles. A hard workout teaches you to face discomfort head-on instead of running from it. That mindset carries over into everything you do. Each time you push through a tough set or finish a workout you didn’t feel like starting, you’re teaching yourself to show up and keep going, no matter what life throws at you.
You start to see challenges as opportunities to grow, not as reasons to quit.
3. Pain is Temporary, Growth is Permanent
The pain sucks, but it’s temporary.
Hunger pangs, burning muscles, or the strain of a tough workout don’t last forever. What stays with you is the progress and the lessons you learn along the way.
Fitness teaches you this powerful truth: everything is temporary. Struggles come and go, but how you respond to them defines who you are. When you embrace the temporary discomfort of a workout, you’re building resilience for everything else in life.
Instead of dreading hard moments, you can learn to accept them, knowing they won’t last.
Wrap Up
The struggle, the discomfort, the moments when you think you can’t go any further—those are the things that make your fitness journey worth it!
By embracing the hard work, you not only transform your body, but you also strengthen your mind and perspective.
Remember:
Struggle adds value—it’s the effort that makes the results meaningful.
Hard workouts put life’s challenges in perspective, helping you face anything with a stronger mindset.
The pain is temporary—what you gain in strength and resilience lasts long after the discomfort fades.
If you’re ready to embrace the challenge and get in the best shape of your life, let’s talk.
You can learn more about my online fitness coaching below:
Best,
John
P.S. Shoutout to my sister, who learned that pet ducks are, in fact, allowed in Planet Fitness. In this case, “What the duck??” was not a typo 😂
3 Steps You Can Take
Apply for coaching - If you’re ready to start, you can fill out a coaching application here (it takes 90 seconds or less). Best case, you change your life. Worst case, I’ll help you draw up a road map to get closer to your goals.
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Keep learning - You can check out my other articles here. Nobody asked me to, but I’ve spent a ton of time researching everything from artificial sweeteners to saturated fat to testosterone and more, so you don’t have to.
