Who Is Calling You Out

I will never forget sitting in the kitchen with a good friend and his soon-to-be wife.  We were having a good time talking and my friend casually reached for a platter on the counter covered with delicious brownies.  He grabbed one of the smaller ones and popped the tasty treat into his mouth.  Out of no-where, his fiancée came up behind him and reminded him of the commitment he had made to get healthy for their wedding day.  She stuck out her hand and he actually spit the brownie out into her palm. 

Looking back on that moment I can see the weirdness, love, and accountability displayed in what happened.  My friend had given his fiancée permission to call him out if he strayed from his plan to be as healthy. She took her calling seriously.

When we decide to get in shape, we often think about WHEN we are going to do it, HOW we are going to get to our goals, and WHAT kind of exercise we will use.  Often, we forget that we also need to figure out WHO is going to help us stay accountable.  When there is no WHO calling you to a higher standard of personal fitness it can become easy to slip out of pursuing your goal.  Here are a few guidelines when choosing your WHO and allowing them to call you out…

Choose someone who is persistent.  There will be moments that you regret choosing a persistent accountability partner, especially when you want to get away with something.  However, choosing someone who is persistent means that they are not going to back down even when you want to quit.  They will do their best to keep you from failing.

Don’t give them grief.  Unless you are paying a personal trainer, your accountability person is a volunteer.  That means if you keep giving them grief for calling you out they will quit trying to help you.  They signed up to help you, not fight you.  Do your best to listen and be kind when they hold you accountable.

You need someone to encourage you as you chase your health goals.  Give someone in your life permission to call you out.  It helps the path to personal fitness seem a little less lonely.