Shifting Your Momentum From Negative to Positive

When Ellen Latham was laid off in 1996, she lost her dream job. She spent most of her working life striving for this professional moment, and in one brief meeting, she was looking for her next employment opportunity.  Out of work and a single mother to her nine-year-old son, she would have to get divergent in thought. Ellen's background was working in spa and fitness centers. She held a master degree in exercise physiology from the University of Buffalo and was the daughter of a physical education teacher and football coach. Almost every day she would host kickball games in the family's front lawn. Ellen understood hard work and how to teach. Her father always advised her about "momentum shifting." Momentum shifting is the act of focusing on what you have rather than what you don't. 

While Latham went through this period of transition, she decided to teach pilates in her spare bedroom while going on to develop "Ellen's Ultimate Workout." In a few short years, with the help of partners, Orangetheory Fitness was born. Orangetheory has taken the fitness world by storm. It is a science-backed, technology-tracked, coach-inspired group workout based on high-intensity interval training that blends cardiovascular and strength exercises. Ellen Latham losing her dream job, forced her to cultivate another one.  

Besides "momentum shifting," Latham focused only on what she could control and never allowed her negative inner voice to take control of her life. She blocked out those negative thoughts that could have set her back.  Our inner voice becomes the leading competitor in our life, often preventing us from achieving the results we want and the life we desire. That internal dialogue might say, “You cannot do this," or "You had enough; it's time to quit." The constant negativity that enters our life, from the morning until night, affect us subliminally. To counteract the streams of adverse distractions and messages that flow from our reading, observing, and listening habits, we all need to follow David Goggins advice.      

Goggins, the retired United States Navy SEAL, turned ultra-marathon runner, lost one hundred pounds to qualify into the Seals program. He adopted the forty percent rule to counteract negative thoughts. When your mind thinks about giving up, know there is forty percent more you can achieve. According to Curosity.com, "The 40 percent rule is mostly backed by anecdote, there is some scientific research to support it. A number of studies have found that the placebo effect has a big impact on sports performance. That is, if you think something will improve your performance, it probably will. That suggests that a good portion of your strength and toughness is mental, not physical. For example, a 2008 study published in the European Journal of Neuroscience found that when you give people a sugar pill and tell them it's caffeine, then have them lift weights, they can work significantly harder."  

Each day you can craft the conversation you have with yourself. Our minds control what we can and cannot do. It's a powerful tool—one that has made Ellen Latham and David Goggins successful. It will work for you as well.   

The thoughts we spend our days on becomes how we spend our lives. Follow the words of Samuel Beckett above today, “Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” We can always do 40% more!

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