Excuses, Excuses, Excuses

[BB-archeologist]

By Caine L. Daugherty

November, 2013

I’m pretty fired up today so a rant is about to ensue. My tangent is on excuses and the extreme overabundance of them in the universe. Whether it’s in the office, the gym, the courtroom, the schoolhouse, or any other societal arena, excuses dominate the conversation about why most folks consistently under achieve, thrive on mediocrity, and are more than happy carry to on with the lackluster existence that they call their lives. Everywhere I look, there is someone feeding me an excuse for why they are once again copping out of their responsibilities or seeking the easy way out. It’s almost as if accountability and follow-through have become disposable, undervalued traits that have completely fallen out of style in modern culture. Effort and hard work have been completely replaced with alibis and outright laziness. People love to talk a big game about this and that but then, when it comes down to it, they conjure up elaborate excuses as to why their empty rhetoric floated off into space yet again.

It has gotten to the point where not only do I expect to hear someone’s excuse at every turn of the day, but I almost look forward to the conviction with which they attempt to sell it to me and the rest of the populace. They look deep into my eyes and douse me with some stinking, heap-of-garbage excuse that is about as transparent as window glass. On and on they go with their sob stories and tall tales that attempt to justify their inaction, apathy, and procrastination. What’s sad, though, is how the excuse-giver almost believes his falsehoods and fabrications are somehow actually true. In their mind, the world is once again coming down on them and they have become a victim of the whole mess.

In such a sue-happy society, it can pay (literally) to become a victim, or at least play the part. Your fat, fumbling fingers spilled hot coffee in your crotch, but obviously the restaurant is at fault. You chose to illegally jaywalk across a busy intersection at rush hour, but it’s the driver’s legal responsibility that you ended up becoming part of the pavement. It’s certainly not your fault that your 10 year old child weighs in at 200 lbs. and is experiencing the wonderful side-effects of early onset diabetes. No, it’s the schools, the teachers, the marketing industry, the government, and anyone else you can dish the blame on, except for yourself, of course.

The truth is this: lazy, undedicated, and undisciplined people summon ostentatious excuses to hide the fact that they are, indeed, lazy, undedicated, and undisciplined people. They blame others for their non-existent work ethic, point fingers elsewhere to cover up their lack of ambition, and routinely squirm out from underneath their responsibilities. It’s always someone else that has done something to them. Again, victimization has taken place and an excuse is in order.

Why do people insist on force-feeding excuse-riddled cover stories? Because it is so much easier to seek a cop-out than to handle your business the way a full-grown adult should. Pointing out what’s wrong with everyone else is simply less painful than looking in the mirror and asking oneself the tough questions. It’s more convenient to dish out another gobbledygook story than to stand up, take responsibility for your actions, and do the things that
need to be done.

What’s funny about the whole thing is that the people who love to make excuses are typically the first to piss and moan about how hard life is, but the last ones to take any action. They would rather spend their time and energy weaving a web of excuses to mask their indolence and ineptitude, as opposed to just buckling down and doing the work necessary to find success. In most cases, it would have been much easier to just put forth the effort on the task at hand, rather than trying to hold steady under the weight of their excuses.

Excuse-makers talk the talk, if you will, but routinely fail to walk the walk. As a general rule in life, you are not allowed to bitch and complain about circumstances if you refuse to do anything to modify them. It is not permissible to harp on what needs to change with everyone and everything else if you are too afraid to start with yourself.

These people bring an aura of negativity with them everywhere they go, which tends to rub off on everyone else with whom they come in contact. Their excuse-making syndrome becomes contagious and before you know it the whole room is infected. If one person sees someone yield yet another excuse for their lack of effectiveness, and that person gets away with it or, worse, is rewarded for it, the observer is more likely to figure out their own excuse, and so the cycle continues. Soon enough, there is a pandemic of apathy and excuses run wild.

What these people fail to realize, however, is that there is a direct correlation between the number of excuses they devise and the lack of success they experience. Not coincidently, these are also the same folks that never follow through on anything, nor do they understand the fact that achieving greatness and standing out in a crowd requires sacrifices that are not necessarily comfortable or desirable.
Successful people, on the other hand, make sacrifices instead of excuses, and handle their business, plain and simple. They attack their life’s pursuits with vigor and aggression, as opposed to sitting back and hoping things go their way, then whining and blathering on about how tough they have it when the ball bounces in the other direction. When they fall short, successful individuals look within, rather than pointing fingers elsewhere. Winners take action, even when they don’t really want to or feel like it, and follow through on their promises, rather than making empty ones that nobody believes.

And this, my friend, illuminates perhaps the most unfortunate of life’s unfortunate truths: the difference between winners and losers, between heightened success and routine failure, is understanding and embracing the simple fact that you have to do things in life that you don’t necessarily want to do. Successful people understand that sacrifices must be made and that tradeoffs between stuff they like and things they hate are not only unavoidable, but also required. They find a way to get the job done, even if they don’t particularly care for the means necessary to accomplish their end.

As a person waist deep in the health and fitness industry, I interact with both ends of the spectrum on a routine basis; from highly motivated athletes that cower at nothing in pursuit of their goals, to those that concoct excuses as part of the daily fabric of their lives. Ambitious, driven people make my life easier than it needs to be. They stop at nothing to achieve what they set their mind to and are not only willing to do the work, but excited to get the ball rolling. These types of folks impress me to the core and I always marvel at their dedication.

Unfortunately, though, it is the opposite end of the spectrum that I am dealing with more often than not. I hear one sob story after another about why this person refused to stick with the program or why that person fell off their meal plan yet again. Indeed, society itself is littered with people who have tried the latest fad diet and failed, been there and done that with exercise gimmicks, wasted their hard earned cash on the newest miracle supplement, and impulsively purchased the cheesy DVD sets from late-night infomercials that guarantee to get you ‘ripped’ in X number of days. Rarely, however, do any of them make any real, tangible progress and they usually give up entirely whenever the going gets tough. They then point to their genetics, blame external circumstances, play the “I don’t have time” card, and project their own laziness outward on anyone or anything within a 10 mile radius.

Often times, the excuse for not sticking with the accomplishment of their goals has absolutely nothing to do with their actual goals or the means by which to attain them. Not going to the gym and skipping out on leg day again because you were in the midst of a ******** posting war is not a valid excuse. Social media and squats have absolutely nothing to do with one another. My guess is that you don’t like to do squats because they are hard and the ongoing ******** battle seemed like the most convenient excuse available at the time.

Likewise, falling off your diet and devouring a case of triple cheeseburgers for lunch because you are not mature enough to prepare and pack your meals accordingly is also a garbage excuse that I am not buying. Oh, you didn’t have time? But you did, however, have ample time to go sit in the drive-thru and wait for your gourmet mess in a bag. Let’s get this straight right now: you and only you are responsible for what you put in your mouth and what you don’t. I do not care that it was the office Christmas party or So-and-So’s birthday. I don’t give a hoot if you were busy. Everyone is busy and there are a lot of folks out there that can stick to their meal plan because they are dedicated to their goals. Grow up and eat like an adult. Stop blaming this or that or the other thing because you simply cannot handle it.

[BB-archeologist]

Perhaps my favorite excuse of them all, though, is when someone insists that a nutritious diet and regular exercise just do not work for them; like they are the one anomaly in the human genome that diet and exercise doesn’t affect. My problem with this excuse is that it is outright false, and I’m certainly not buying what you are trying sell me. Everybody may be unique and special and one-of-a-kind, but every body is the same (read that again). We are all anatomically similar, constructed of the same muscle, bone, and tissue, with matching bodily processes and relatively analogous reactions to certain stressors, like diet and exercise. Why do you think that whenever a patient has an ailment, any type of ailment from large to small, the first thing the doctor orders is regular exercise and a balanced diet? Because calorie control and rigorous physical training works every time for every human being. There is no way around it. It is a matter of science not opinion.

My issue with these folks’ logic is that you are not allowed to later blame the program or its developer for lack of results if you refused to follow the program. The bottom line is this: it does not matter one iota if you hire a personal trainer or seek professional guidance if you don’t do the work, make the sacrifices, and cut out the excuses for good. You can pay me one million dollars to come up with the perfect workout plan that incorporates the most up to date and cutting edge training techniques with the shiniest new equipment that money can buy. You can toss money at me hand over fist to come up with the perfect meal plan with a perfect macronutrient ratio that is custom tailored specifically for your body and your goals. Likewise, it does not make a difference if you purchase the freshest gear, the latest pill, or the greatest powder. None of it matters if you don’t make the commitment to follow the damn program. None of it means squat if you don’t, at some point, shut up and squat. Buying stuff does not replace putting in the work. Stop blowing your money, cut the crap, and get your act together. Make the commitment and follow through on it.

It’s not the plan’s fault; it’s your fault for not sticking with the plan. Perhaps the most important, yet somehow overlooked part of planning is abiding by the plan. The program works if you do. You have to believe in the program and dedicate yourself to it. Just for clarity, not following the program is not following the program. Adding, subtracting, or exchanging exercises is not following the program. No, you can’t swap out deadlifts for curls. Likewise, eating things not on the meal plan is not following the meal plan. You can’t add a “cheat day” because you are busy or you failed (yet again) to prepare accordingly or simply because you felt like it. Sticking to the program means sticking to the damn program, no matter how much you do not want to.
Does it suck getting up early and going to the gym? Without a doubt. Is squatting and dead lifting heavy barbells hard work? Obviously. Are you going to sweat and be sore? Of course you are. These are all inconveniences that come along with exercising.

Is it fun to eat healthy all the time and cut back on the greasy, sugary deliciousness that you’ve become accustomed to enjoying on regular basis? Absolutely not. Is it a good time focusing on getting a well-rounded, nutrient dense meal every few hours throughout the day? No. But, again, these are the sacrifices required to live a long healthy life and they are better than the alternative.

You know what sucks more than taking a little time and effort out of your busy schedule to care for your body right now? The quadruple bypass surgery needed to keep you alive because you’ve chosen to neglect yourself entirely for the past couple of decades. Amputating limbs due to your self-inflicted diabetic lifestyle is also pretty inconvenient. Spending your golden years pissing in a bag and not being able to wipe your own ass is not that much fun either. Dying before your time and leaving your loved ones high and dry can be a real drag, too. That excuse of yours doesn’t sound so clever now, does it? If you ask me, I’ll take the diet and exercise now instead of the obstacles that lie in wait down the road.

Eating right and engaging in regular exercise are not optional, despite whatever your piss-poor excuse says. You have to take care of yourself now if you want to enjoy longevity and experience satisfaction in this tiny sliver of time that you have been given here on God’s green planet. You can’t choose to live like a fat lazy slob and not expect to endure the consequences of living like a fat lazy slob. You don’t get to have it both ways. You cannot have your cake and eat it too (this is a terrible pun, I know). It’s one or the other, excuses or sacrifices. If you do choose the route of ease and convenience, you are not allowed to bellyache and gripe later on when your excuses run their course and your physique turns to mush.

Further, if you say you are going to do something and go out of your way to tell everyone within earshot that you are going to do something then, by God, do it. You flapping your jaws at me again about how you will accomplish this or that and how you are going to stick with it this time means very little to me. There’s nothing worse than listening to the same characters drone on and on about what significant steps they are about to take, while never following through on them. Show me action and prove it to me with what you do, instead of what you say. Your hollow rhetoric impresses me very little and, quite frankly, I’m sick to death of hearing it. Show some resolve, stop making excuses, and put some sweat into it. Either nut up or shut up, as they say.
Also, stop using how you used to be or what you used to do as a cover-up for you current excuse-ridden approach to life. Stop leaning on your past accolades to mask your present-day laziness. What great things you have done in the past do not constitute a valid excuse as to why you have transformed into the unaccountable, lazy, and apathetic train wreck you are today. If anything, talking about how great you used to be only highlights how far you’ve tumbled as of late.

Whenever a casual conversation turns to fitness or sports, people love to talk about how strong or ripped or great they used to be. “When I was your age I benched X number of pounds and ran a sub-four 40, hit 9,000 homeruns, and had 18 sacks in one football game.” The old saying that the older you get the better you were must hold true. They go on to tell me about all the pro opportunities they passed up and how things should have been different. All the while, I’m looking at their belly spewing out from beneath their XXL t-shirt as they struggle to breath and thinking to myself “geesh, what the heck happened to you?”

On and on they go divulging how awesome they were with a steady pinch of outrageous excuses sprinkled throughout their discourse as to why they are the way they are these days. See, who you used to be does very little to impress me about who you are now. We know that we live in a “what have you done for me lately” world, so I expect a better explanation. Let’s face the facts, you didn’t get old, you got lazy. You stopped caring and it shows. If it somehow makes you feel better to try and enamor me with the tall tales of your youth or bragging about how strong, good, and handsome the old version of you was, then so be it; but it doesn’t do a whole lot to change my opinion and it certainly doesn’t excuse the mess you’ve become, so stop acting like it.

And one more thing while we are on the topic of your past and the excuses connected to it that you are clinging so tightly to: everyone has had it rough in life. Everyone, not just you. If we talked to 100 people, I would hear about 100 distinct tragedies that took place in their lives. Pretty much everyone has been through death, divorce, abuse, bankruptcy, bullying, legal trouble, religious conundrums, existential funks, or some unique combination of the above. At some point you have to let it go and move on. You can’t let the hardships you have been through drag you down for life. By no means am I saying to forget about these things completely. Actually, I am saying quite the opposite. Remember the terrible things that have gone on, but use them for strength in what lies ahead, instead of as excuses for never doing anything with yourself. Learn from the past, but don’t dwell on it to the point that you never do anything productive with the minute snapshot in time that is your life. Just because your parents got divorced when you were a kid does not justify committing mass murder as an adult. Having your father pass away when you were 9 years old is not an excuse to spend your time wallowing in drugs and alcohol for the rest of your days.

Use the adversities of your past to enrich your future. Reflect on the shortcomings and privations of your life to develop thankfulness for the gifts you have been given. Extract courage and motivation from your failures, instead of harboring them as excuses for the voids you’ll never fill.

And most importantly, be a responsible and accountable individual, instead of falling in line with the status quo and shoving your due diligence off on whatever you can find to absorb the blow. These are the types of people that make a difference in the world. Admit when you are wrong, suck up your pride, and move on with your life. Follow through on what you say and don’t let your mouth write a check that your butt can’t cash. No one likes a complainer, but the world loves a hero. Step up to the plate, handle your business like a man (or woman), and refuse to pout when things don’t go your way. Learn from your mistakes, stop dwelling on the past, and use adversity to guide your future endeavors. You owe it to yourself and everyone around you to stop using lame excuses and taking the easy way out.

[CaraG73]

Excuses are like castles everyone has one and they all stink! Sorry I just had to do that ha ha

[curvingedge22]

Hey BB-Arch,

I have read and re-read your article and you are 100% correct. I actually joined the forum just to reply. I was one of the many people you write about. Your article was a wake up call for me and it's not what you may think. I also have stories of who I 'used' to be and will not groan on about that at all. I am here to start new triumphs and be a leader.

Last Dec-2013 I weighed in 218 lbs at 5 foot 4. I was a wreck, obese, and lazy as hell. Weighed in today at 162 lbs and busting tail ever since Jan 1. I have continued to work out, but lately fallen off my path to weight loss. I have not gained weight but have plateaued for the last month. Saying to myself, "you deserve that slice of pizza" or "hey, no work outs today".

Total BS right? This past week, I was gearing up to 'bulk' up and had no one to look to. With loss of motivation and being depressed, I tried looking to what helped me in the past... food and alcohol. - "Stupid..." "pity me..." Is what I thought. - So, looking for for information and maybe a body building 101, today found this thread.

I found great critical criticism and saw who I was described to me in every sentence. I don't want that for myself. I have come this far and want to be BETTER than I used to be. I want new stories to tell not old. All in all, thanks for your post. You have given me motivation to keep kicking those push ups and to lay off the extra slice of pizza.

Major thread man,

-Curv

[beastpaul]

The extra mile is a lonely path :-)

[Profion9k]

Heard that

[tahir590]

It is alright . keep it continue

[cirion0000]

Love this article. I have been hard on the path for almost two years, only time missing workouts in all this time was due to illness or injury.

#NOEXCUSESCREW

However, just because I seem like I got my stuff on the outside, I definitely do battle struggles now and then and topics like this remind me why I work so hard, because almost no one else seems to.

Less thinking, more doing. Which is funny coming from me if you know me in real life, since I'm actually an engineer (am definitely surrounded by people who are content where they are and make excuses in many areas fitness especially).

Fitness is actually a battle of the mind more than the body. IMHO. So it definitely separates the weak (mentally) from the strong. This is why now, I know, if I see someone strong/in shape, I immediately know this person is going to be a stronger person inside not just out.

[gymchickxoxo]

I'm pretty sure the only time I've ever missed a workout is because I was in the hospital.. I'm pretty sure that's a good enough excuse XD.

[Drekko]

The gym was closed when i got there

[Vagus01]

Step one in problem solving is to blame someone. Frequently, there is no step two.

[LovinLife2014]

Old thread is old.

I like working out. It's the highlight of my day.

I only miss it when I can't make it because of some other obligation or **** happening.

And then I am annoyed if I do, and often can't sleep that night because of the pent up energy.

Working out makes everything better.

[DGMan99]

Perhaps my favorite excuse of them all, though, is when someone insists that a nutritious diet and regular exercise just do not work for them; like they are the one anomaly in the human genome that diet and exercise doesn’t affect. My problem with this excuse is that it is outright false, and I’m certainly not buying what you are trying sell me. Everybody may be unique and special and one-of-a-kind, but every body is the same (read that again). We are all anatomically similar, constructed of the same muscle, bone, and tissue, with matching bodily processes and relatively analogous reactions to certain stressors, like diet and exercise. Why do you think that whenever a patient has an ailment, any type of ailment from large to small, the first thing the doctor orders is regular exercise and a balanced diet? Because calorie control and rigorous physical training works every time for every human being. There is no way around it. It is a matter of science not opinion.

My issue with these folks’ logic is that you are not allowed to later blame the program or its developer for lack of results if you refused to follow the program. The bottom line is this: it does not matter one iota if you hire a personal trainer or seek professional guidance if you don’t do the work, make the sacrifices, and cut out the excuses for good. You can pay me one million dollars to come up with the perfect workout plan that incorporates the most up to date and cutting edge training techniques with the shiniest new equipment that money can buy. You can toss money at me hand over fist to come up with the perfect meal plan with a perfect macronutrient ratio that is custom tailored specifically for your body and your goals. Likewise, it does not make a difference if you purchase the freshest gear, the latest pill, or the greatest powder. None of it matters if you don’t make the commitment to follow the damn program. None of it means squat if you don’t, at some point, shut up and squat. Buying stuff does not replace putting in the work. Stop blowing your money, cut the crap, and get your act together. Make the commitment and follow through on it.

It’s not the plan’s fault; it’s your fault for not sticking with the plan. Perhaps the most important, yet somehow overlooked part of planning is abiding by the plan. The program works if you do. You have to believe in the program and dedicate yourself to it. Just for clarity, not following the program is not following the program. Adding, subtracting, or exchanging exercises is not following the program. No, you can’t swap out deadlifts for curls. Likewise, eating things not on the meal plan is not following the meal plan. You can’t add a “cheat day” because you are busy or you failed (yet again) to prepare accordingly or simply because you felt like it. Sticking to the program means sticking to the damn program, no matter how much you do not want to.
Does it suck getting up early and going to the gym? Without a doubt. Is squatting and dead lifting heavy barbells hard work? Obviously. Are you going to sweat and be sore? Of course you are. These are all inconveniences that come along with exercising.

Is it fun to eat healthy all the time and cut back on the greasy, sugary deliciousness that you’ve become accustomed to enjoying on regular basis? Absolutely not. Is it a good time focusing on getting a well-rounded, nutrient dense meal every few hours throughout the day? No. But, again, these are the sacrifices required to live a long healthy life and they are better than the alternative.

You know what sucks more than taking a little time and effort out of your busy schedule to care for your body right now? The quadruple bypass surgery needed to keep you alive because you’ve chosen to neglect yourself entirely for the past couple of decades. Amputating limbs due to your self-inflicted diabetic lifestyle is also pretty inconvenient. Spending your golden years pissing in a bag and not being able to wipe your own ass is not that much fun either. Dying before your time and leaving your loved ones high and dry can be a real drag, too. That excuse of yours doesn’t sound so clever now, does it? If you ask me, I’ll take the diet and exercise now instead of the obstacles that lie in wait down the road.

Eating right and engaging in regular exercise are not optional, despite whatever your piss-poor excuse says. You have to take care of yourself now if you want to enjoy longevity and experience satisfaction in this tiny sliver of time that you have been given here on God’s green planet. You can’t choose to live like a fat lazy slob and not expect to endure the consequences of living like a fat lazy slob. You don’t get to have it both ways. You cannot have your cake and eat it too (this is a terrible pun, I know). It’s one or the other, excuses or sacrifices. If you do choose the route of ease and convenience, you are not allowed to bellyache and gripe later on when your excuses run their course and your physique turns to mush.

Further, if you say you are going to do something and go out of your way to tell everyone within earshot that you are going to do something then, by God, do it. You flapping your jaws at me again about how you will accomplish this or that and how you are going to stick with it this time means very little to me. There’s nothing worse than listening to the same characters drone on and on about what significant steps they are about to take, while never following through on them. Show me action and prove it to me with what you do, instead of what you say. Your hollow rhetoric impresses me very little and, quite frankly, I’m sick to death of hearing it. Show some resolve, stop making excuses, and put some sweat into it. Either nut up or shut up, as they say.
Also, stop using how you used to be or what you used to do as a cover-up for you current excuse-ridden approach to life. Stop leaning on your past accolades to mask your present-day laziness. What great things you have done in the past do not constitute a valid excuse as to why you have transformed into the unaccountable, lazy, and apathetic train wreck you are today. If anything, talking about how great you used to be only highlights how far you’ve tumbled as of late.

Whenever a casual conversation turns to fitness or sports, people love to talk about how strong or ripped or great they used to be. “When I was your age I benched X number of pounds and ran a sub-four 40, hit 9,000 homeruns, and had 18 sacks in one football game.” The old saying that the older you get the better you were must hold true. They go on to tell me about all the pro opportunities they passed up and how things should have been different. All the while, I’m looking at their belly spewing out from beneath their XXL t-shirt as they struggle to breath and thinking to myself “geesh, what the heck happened to you?”

On and on they go divulging how awesome they were with a steady pinch of outrageous excuses sprinkled throughout their discourse as to why they are the way they are these days. See, who you used to be does very little to impress me about who you are now. We know that we live in a “what have you done for me lately” world, so I expect a better explanation. Let’s face the facts, you didn’t get old, you got lazy. You stopped caring and it shows. If it somehow makes you feel better to try and enamor me with the tall tales of your youth or bragging about how strong, good, and handsome the old version of you was, then so be it; but it doesn’t do a whole lot to change my opinion and it certainly doesn’t excuse the mess you’ve become, so stop acting like it.

And one more thing while we are on the topic of your past and the excuses connected to it that you are clinging so tightly to: everyone has had it rough in life. Everyone, not just you. If we talked to 100 people, I would hear about 100 distinct tragedies that took place in their lives. Pretty much everyone has been through death, divorce, abuse, bankruptcy, bullying, legal trouble, religious conundrums, existential funks, or some unique combination of the above. At some point you have to let it go and move on. You can’t let the hardships you have been through drag you down for life. By no means am I saying to forget about these things completely. Actually, I am saying quite the opposite. Remember the terrible things that have gone on, but use them for strength in what lies ahead, instead of as excuses for never doing anything with yourself. Learn from the past, but don’t dwell on it to the point that you never do anything productive with the minute snapshot in time that is your life. Just because your parents got divorced when you were a kid does not justify committing mass murder as an adult. Having your father pass away when you were 9 years old is not an excuse to spend your time wallowing in drugs and alcohol for the rest of your days.

Use the adversities of your past to enrich your future. Reflect on the shortcomings and privations of your life to develop thankfulness for the gifts you have been given. Extract courage and motivation from your failures, instead of harboring them as excuses for the voids you’ll never fill.

And most importantly, be a responsible and accountable individual, instead of falling in line with the status quo and shoving your due diligence off on whatever you can find to absorb the blow. These are the types of people that make a difference in the world. Admit when you are wrong, suck up your pride, and move on with your life. Follow through on what you say and don’t let your mouth write a check that your butt can’t cash. No one likes a complainer, but the world loves a hero. Step up to the plate, handle your business like a man (or woman), and refuse to pout when things don’t go your way. Learn from your mistakes, stop dwelling on the past, and use adversity to guide your future endeavors. You owe it to yourself and everyone around you to stop using lame excuses and taking the easy way out.

I have never read a better article In this forum goddamn. I am on my knees op. How long did it take to write this ??? Amazing

[leviat]

People like to make excuses because it makes them feel better. It seemingly 'justifies' their shortcomings.
I have a friend who, if I evaluate his current situation, is not doing very well at all. He is without a doubt going through a rough time, with several things happening to him over the past couple of years. However, I dont think I have heard him once accept any responsibility for any of it. Every time something happens, he will have an excuse, and everytime something happens hes made no progress since the last. He chooses to sulk at his misfortune rather than pick himself up, accept that he is to blame for a lot of it and make a change for the better.

You may very well have a valid excuse, but at the end of the day, that doesn't matter. What matters is what you do about it.

Back when I was in highschool and played basketball, if you turned up late to training my coach didnt want to hear why and didnt want any excuses. If we ever rocked up late, it was quick and simple 'sorry im late' and then off to run a few suicides to make up for it. Because really, it didn't matter why you were late, and an excuse wont change that.

But, those who like to make excuses about every little thing and complain about everything will always fall behind. Your excuses wont make you successful, and they never will.

[Ahmedmilton]

I have not gained weight but have plateaued for the last month.Reflect on the shortcomings and privations of your life to develop thankfulness for the gifts you have been given.

[DrKenRussell]

Excuses?

Don`t have any, I just experiment for a few years.

I started eating pizza, burgers and fries and washing it down with chips and beer. I just wanted to see what it was like to be fat and out of shape. And then see how hard it would be to lose the weight and get back in shape again. And I don`t think that I ever want to try that again!

[michaelmendyka]

excuses? Never heard of that

[opeleroy1980]

Love this post.

Everyone seems to think that they are the exception. "Oh, that won't work for me," even though they haven't tried it. I get that regimens, workouts and all that should be tailored to the individual, but rejected something out of hand because you think you are somehow special or better than is the worst kind of excuse to make.

[mabooz]

thank you guys