AWAKEN THE

FITNESS
GIANT
WITHIN
Tap into the power you have
inside you to reach your health
and fitness goals. By Maria Kang

Beliefs have the power to create and the power to

destroy. Human beings have the awesome ability
to take any experience of their lives and create a
meaning that dis-empowers them or one that can
literally save their lives. – Tony Robbins

Photo by James Patrick

www.portfoliopatrick.com
24 WWW.MAXMUSCLE.COM ı APRIL 2011
E
very fitness model you admire,
every athlete you revere and every
MaxFormation winner you marvel
at have one thing in common:
they made a decision to be in incredible
shape. At one point, they were average
people, who may have lived a mediocre
life and a semi-sedentary lifestyle. They
weren’t published figures, nor did they
have award-winning physiques. They
were just like you and me…regular
people.
The power of decision is one of the
main principles Tony Robbins lectures
in his best-selling book, “Awaken the
Giant Within.” If you don’t like something
about yourself, Robbins states that you
J.M. Manion, she made it a point to
seize any opportunity in the industry.
“I’ve been driven ever since.”
In accordance to Robbins’ success
module, Safiya used controlled laser-
beam focus to create and shape
a masterful destiny for herself. By
deciding to be an extraordinary fitness
woman, she brought both commitment
and clarity into her life.
When you know what you want to
become, small daily decisions become
clearer and easier. If your goal is to lose
weight, it’s easier to choose what to eat,
what to do with your time and when to
take supplements. By becoming more
aware of what you want, you begin
drinking, smoking and/or overeating.
By not creating a sustainable goal, you
are not preparing for a difficult mental
and physical journey ahead. Robbins
states, “It’s all the small decisions along
the way that cause people to fail. It’s
failure to follow up. It’s failure to take
action. It’s failure to persist. Conversely,
success is the result of making small
decisions: deciding to hold yourself to a
higher standard, deciding to contribute,
deciding to feed your mind rather than
allowing the environment to control
you.”
Marcus Wheeler, 29, of Max Muscle
Elk Grove, Calif., advises all customers to
create personal goals. “It is detrimental

It is in your moments of
decision that your destiny
is shaped. – Tony Robbins
should simply change it! If you want to
lose weight, gain more energy, become
stronger or live healthier, then your first
steps to creating change is taking a
decisive action and committing yourself
to that change.
The Power of Decision
While making a decision to be in great
shape seems like an easy decision,
it’s a decision many people have a
hard time executing. It’s hard to want
change because it means you must be
unsatisfied with where you are today.
Being unsatisfied with oneself requires
a deep level of critical reflection. The
depth of your dissatisfaction will equal
the depth of your desire and decision to
commit yourself to change.
Fitness model and competitor Safiya
Johnson began competing at age 16.
While she had participated in track
and cheer leading in high school, she
never thought her talents would exceed
to see helpful information
everywhere, such as reading
an educational article or
meeting a motivating person.
By piecing goal-directed
information, you are able to
pave a brighter path towards
a future you’re creating. It’s
not enough to know to eat
six meals a day, take daily
supplements and exercise
regularly, because as Robbins
often notes, “Information
is power when it’s acted
upon.” Making a decision
to complete a goal provides
clarity in your actions and
consistent motivation to be
who you envision yourself to
become in the future.
The Importance of
Goal Setting
You’ve heard about “setting

the high school field. However, as she
watched her older sister excel in the
fitness industry, she made a decision
to test her body, mind and spirit in the
quest to creating an award winning
physique. Safiya won her first national
title at 17. “At that point, I didn’t think
there was anything I couldn’t do,” says
Safiya. “No dream was too big for
me.” After winning Teen Nationals and
shooting with popular photographer,
Safiya Johnson,
goals” a thousand times, but
what you don’t often hear is
why it’s so important. Having
focus towards a long-term
goal is vital when you make
day-to-day decisions that
ultimately lead up to that Photo by Ozon Wilson
defining end-point. When
life gets exciting, stressful or lonely, that goals be set when deciding to
many people are quick to indulge become in better shape no matter what
in short-term satisfactions such as fitness level you are at. If no goals are

APRIL 2011 ı WWW.MAXMUSCLE.COM 25

 set then you end up wandering around performance products. Setting both
aimlessly without any true purpose long- and short-term goals was vital
for working out,” encourages Marcus. in his transformation. “I set new goals
Setting goals, revising goals and on a monthly basis,” he says.  “The
completing goals are all part of the body is so adequate at adapting to the
process that helped Marcus transform stress and fatigue that you put it under
his 160-pound physique at 8 percent that I believe it is necessary to always
body fat to a solid 230 pounds at 10 have a new game plan each and every
percent body fat in just a year and a month.  In addition, it also helps keep
half. my mind stay focused on training and
Marcus was never a “big guy,” achieving new goals, which keeps
averaging 145 pounds when he played training fun.”
soccer at Indiana University. However,
in August 2009, he made a decision What is your Belief System?
and created goals to become stronger There’s a popular saying, “You become
and heavier. He began training six what you think about all day.” So
days a week and consuming an array what are you telling yourself? Are you
of supplements including MaxPro and
True decisions are the
catalyst for turning our
dreams into reality.”
– Tony Robbins
saying, you’re fat, lazy,
tired or stressed? Are
you telling yourself that
you will never amount to
anything or complete a
real fitness goal? Many
people already believe
they are going to “fail”
a workout/diet program
before they even begin.
So what usually happens
to these negative beliefs?
They usually come true.
Many people are
overweight, unsatisfied
and stressed because
they don’t set a higher
standard for themselves.
Mona Liza Reyes
They cannot envision
future success because
they focus on past and
present failures. They
are limited by what they
find possible. If you want
to be someone you’ve
never been, then you
Photo by Jason Mathas must do things you’ve
never done. If you think
IsoExtreme for protein, Pro BCAA and becoming fit, strong and healthy is
Amino Max for essential fats, Max possible, then you’ve achieved the
Creatine for growth, Max Glutamine for essential requirement in manifesting
recovery, 2Tx for testosterone boosting the Fitness Giant inside of you.
and Max LiquiCarn for optimizing Former Max Sports & Fitness
26 WWW.MAXMUSCLE.COM ı APRIL 2011
magazine cover model, Mona Liza
Reyes, overcame many negative
thoughts, including attributing her
weight gain to her failing metabolism
due to her increasing age. Her excuses
were coupled with low self-esteem, a
mental ailment that prevented her from
playing high school sports because
she never felt “good enough.” At
5-foot-2 and 150 pounds, Mona made
a commitment to run her first marathon
in 2002. While the preparation was
hard and the criticism from peers
even harder, Mona completed her first
marathon in 7 hours, 19 minutes and
22 seconds.
In that moment Mona experienced
an emotional, life-changing feeling.
She asked herself, “If I can do this,
what else can I do?” She went on to
compete in 15 figure competitions in
just three years. In 2006 she won the
coveted title of Miss California with the
National Physique Committee.
By changing her belief system and
building her confidence through goal
setting, Mona transformed herself
from an average sedentary person to a
fitness role model. “Mental confidence
boils down to acknowledging your
value,” she says. “There is something
to be said about someone who makes
the time to take care of oneself. When
you value yourself enough to take
care of your body, it demands respect
from the people around you. You can’t
expect others to value you, if you don’t
value you.”
We all have a fitness giant within
us ready to transform our body into
a strong, fit and healthy machine.
However, if we seek transformation, we
must first make a decision to awaken
the giant inside of us. We must be willing
to commit, set goals and change our
belief system. We all have the ability to
strive beyond mediocrity and become
a person of greatness. Awaken the
fitness giant within you – and be who
you know you can become. MS&F