Catchup with Coach M - Edition 38 - Support, Patience, and Small Wins Fuel Your Journey
- Active Living Active Living
- Apr 27
- 7 min read
This Week's Highlights
The Power of Your Circle 👫
How the people you surround yourself with impact your fitness journey.
Accountability, motivation, and energy — why your circle is key to success.
SPORTS SA Race Report: HOTT 10km in Paarl 🔥(CLICK TO READ)
Overview of the race: heat, humidity, and 2,000+ participants.
Challenges: new socks, blistering feet, and crowded race conditions.
The outcome: Missed goal pace by 3 seconds, but happy with the result!
Patience & Time: Your Muscle-Building Secret Weapons ⏳💪
Why patience is essential for seeing results.
Strength training, proper nutrition, and rest are the foundation of muscle growth.
Building muscle takes time, don’t expect instant results — progress takes consistency.
Coach Training Diaries: Real Talk 📝
The importance of mindset and incremental progress in your fitness journey.
Every small step counts: stay the course and celebrate small victories.
The journey is long, but every rep, step, and effort adds up.
The Power of Your Circle: How the People You Associate With Shape Your Fitness Journey and Personal Growth
There’s a popular saying: "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." It’s a simple idea, but incredibly powerful — and true. The people you surround yourself with have a profound influence on your mindset, habits, success, and even your fitness progress.
Energy Is Contagious ⚡️
If you spend enough time around motivated, fit, and goal-driven individuals, it’s only a matter of time before you catch that same energy. You’ll find yourself pushing harder in your workouts, eating cleaner, and making healthier choices. But on the flip side, if you’re always around people who don’t prioritize fitness or have a negative outlook on personal growth, it becomes harder to stay on track. Negativity can creep in and affect your goals — whether you realize it or not.
Your circle can either lift you up or quietly hold you back.
Standards Are Set By Your Circle 🏋️♂️
The people closest to you set an invisible standard for what’s “normal” — how hard you work at the gym, how well you treat your body, and how much you prioritize self-care. If your group encourages pushing through plateaus, hitting new personal records, and treating your body as a temple, you’ll rise to those standards. But if your circle is okay with skipping workouts, indulging in unhealthy habits, and letting progress slide, you might find yourself doing the same.
Ask yourself:
Are the people around me challenging me to grow in my fitness journey?
Are they celebrating my wins and pushing me to be stronger, faster, healthier?
Or are they comfortable staying stuck — and unintentionally dragging me down with them?
Growth Requires Intentional Choices 🌱
You don’t need to cut people off coldly or judge others harshly, but you do need to be intentional about who you let influence your health, mindset, and growth. Look for people who:
Inspire you to hit your fitness goals, whether it’s running a marathon or lifting heavier weights. 🏃♀️💪
Support your goals, whether they’re there for your first 5k or cheering you on as you work toward a new PR.
Push you to be better, reminding you of your potential when you want to skip the gym or settle for less.
Believe in growth, positivity, and possibility — people who encourage you to keep improving and don’t limit themselves, or you, with excuses.
And, just as importantly, be that person for others too. Don’t just wait for others to challenge you — challenge them, too. Lead by example and motivate the people around you to be the best version of themselves, both physically and mentally.
You can’t always control every influence in your life, but you can choose who you spend your time with, especially when it comes to your fitness journey and personal growth. The people you surround yourself with will either accelerate your growth or keep you stagnant. Choose wisely. Surround yourself with individuals who encourage you to push harder, lift heavier, run farther, and always believe in your potential — even when you’re still figuring it out.
Your future self will thank you for the growth, strength, and mindset that your circle helped you build..
Saturday evening had us stepping (or should I say sweating?) into a different kind of race — a “nice little” 10km event in Paarl. And by “little,” I mean absolutely nothing about this was little — not the heat, not the humidity, and definitely not the over 2,000 participants crammed onto those roads! 😅
This wasn’t just a race — it was a full-on survival experience.
Building Strength Takes Time: Why Patience (and Proper Fuel) Is Your Secret Weapon - Another Elephant in the room!
When you first start your fitness journey, it’s tempting to believe you’ll look like a bodybuilder or bikini athlete in just a few weeks. But the truth is: those incredible physiques are the result of years — not days — of consistent training, smart nutrition, and dedication.
If you’re just starting out with strength training, the most important things you’ll need are patience — and the right fuel to support your body’s growth.
Real Muscle Growth Is a Slow (but Powerful) Process
Muscle doesn’t just appear because you lifted a few weights. Your body needs time to adapt, build new tissue, and recover stronger than before. Those athletes you admire?
They’ve spent years developing their strength.
They’ve been disciplined with their nutrition just as much as their training.
They’ve stuck with the basics even when results took time.
It’s completely normal for beginners to take months (even years) to see major visible changes. But the exciting part? You’ll start feeling stronger and more powerful long before you see the full visual results.
Nutrition: Your Muscle-Building Foundation
Training is only half the equation. Without the right nutrition, your body simply can't build new muscle effectively. Here's what matters most:
🔹 Protein - Protein provides the building blocks (amino acids) your muscles need to repair and grow. Aim to include a source of protein at every meal — think chicken, fish, eggs, yogurt, lentils, tofu, and protein shakes if needed. General guide: 1.6 to 2.2 grams of protein per kg of body weight is a good starting point if you’re serious about building muscle.
🔹 Carbohydrates - Carbs are your main fuel source for workouts and recovery. They help refill your muscles' energy stores and prevent your body from breaking down protein for fuel. Good choices include rice, oats, sweet potatoes, fruit, and whole grains.
🔹 Fats -Healthy fats (like avocado, olive oil, nuts, and seeds) are essential for hormone balance, especially testosterone — which plays a big role in muscle growth.
🔹 Calories Matter - If you want to build muscle, you’ll likely need a small calorie surplus — eating slightly more calories than you burn. This gives your body the extra resources it needs to build new tissue.
🔹 Hydration - Water is critical for recovery, digestion, and performance. Don't underestimate it!
Recovery Is Where the Magic Happens
Lifting weights creates the "damage" — but recovery is where the actual growth happens.
Get 7–9 hours of good sleep per night.
Take rest days seriously — your muscles need time to rebuild.
Manage stress — chronic stress can interfere with muscle growth.
Think of it this way: You don't grow during the workout. You grow when you're resting, refuelling, and repairing.
Focus on What You Can Control
Instead of rushing results, put your energy into building solid habits:
Master your technique.
Stay consistent with your workouts.
Eat to fuel and recover properly.
Celebrate small wins.
Every rep, every meal, every night's sleep — it’s all adding up, even when you can’t see it yet.
Transforming your body isn't a sprint — it’s a long game. Those epic physiques you see? They are a reflection of years of patience, proper nutrition, smart training, and resilience.
If you give yourself time, fuel your body well, and stay the course, your strength will come — and your results will be something you can be proud of for life.
Remember: Good things take time, and great things take consistent effort.
Coach Training Diaries: Real Talk 📝
The Power of Mindset 🧠
Fitness is about more than just physical strength. Sure, lifting heavier weights, running faster, or completing longer workouts are all tangible goals we strive for. But what really gets you through those hard days — the days when you feel like skipping or when your body is screaming at you — is your mindset.
It’s easy to get caught up in the idea that results should be immediate or that every workout should be an all-out effort. But the truth is, mindset is what keeps you going in the long term. Here’s the kicker: consistency beats intensity.
As we often say in training: Progress isn’t always linear, but it’s always happening. Just because you can’t see it or feel it, doesn’t mean your efforts aren’t adding up. Last Nights Race Result and Pace is a true testament of it. Celebrating Incremental Progress ⏳
This is where small victories come into play. We often measure success by big milestones — that first 5k finish, a new PR in the gym, or hitting a major weight goal. But what about the little victories that pave the way to those big moments? The extra 5 minutes you added to your run, the fact that you got out of bed and showed up at the gym even though you didn’t feel like it, or the day you stuck to your nutrition plan despite the temptations around you.
Those small victories matter. They add up over time and eventually build the foundation for those larger successes. Every rep, every set, every step forward counts — even if it feels insignificant in the moment.
This Week’s Sessions: Lower Load, But Basic Goals Checked ✅
Speaking of small victories, this week’s training sessions were a bit more recovery-focused. I’m still working through an SI joint injury rehab, so the load was lower, but the basic goals were still ticked off.
Wrapping It Up: Keep Pushing Forward 💪
As we’ve explored today, the people you surround yourself with — your circle — are more powerful than you might think. They set the tone for your journey, offering accountability, motivation, and energy when things get tough. Whether it’s a tough race like the SPORTS SA 10km or a long-term commitment to building muscle, having the right support can make all the difference.
Remember, patience and consistency are your secret weapons when it comes to muscle growth. Whether you’re lifting weights, running in challenging conditions, or recovering from an injury, small steps always lead to progress. It’s about trusting the process, celebrating your wins, and staying the course — because every effort adds up in the long run.
Keep building that strong mindset, celebrate the small victories, and stay focused on the bigger picture. Your future self is waiting at the finish line, and you’re one step closer every day.
Thank you for reading and joining me this week! see you all Next week!
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