Unmasking Greatness
Join Fitness/LifeStyle Expert & Mentor Chris Kakouras talk about maximizing your health, business, mindset, and overall life! Let's get better together as I bring on amazing guest to interview and learn from!
Unmasking Greatness
Strategic Thinking Beyond Fitness: 6 Rules To Live By
What if life were a game of chess, where mastering the rules and thinking several moves ahead could unlock your true potential? I'm Chris Kakouras, and I recently had the chance to speak at the Upstate Health and Fitness Seminar in Greenville, South Carolina, where I shared insights from teaching my son chess on a giant board. Instead of sticking to the usual fitness narratives, I ventured into the realm of strategic thinking and mindset, showing how these lessons can transcend the gym and optimize success in all walks of life.
Have you ever considered that boundaries might actually grant you more freedom? In the "Keys to Success" chapter, I unpack this intriguing notion by recounting my own leap from a stable job to pursuing my fitness passion—a risky move that taught me the art of living in the moment and embracing relentless effort. Through personal stories and practical advice, I underscore the importance of resilience, continuous learning, and the idea that balance might not always be the holy grail for those driven to excel. Tune in to explore how the integration of life and work, combined with hard-earned lessons, can lead you down the path of greatness.
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Welcome to Unmasking Greatness. I'm your host, chris Kikoris, a lifestyle fitness coach and mentor. This podcast is about unmasking your greatest potential, finding your purpose and crafting a life worth living. Health and fitness has been the gateway drug to all of my success. My continuous drive to keep learning and surround myself with other high achievers forces me to level up, which has developed my mind to something I never thought was possible. This podcast is here to share what I've learned and continue to learn with all of you. This is your sign to take back control of your health, mindset and personal environment. Strap in as we are recharged and always find value in the show. Please subscribe and share, as we can all get better together. Let's go. What's up, guys? Welcome to another episode of Unmasking Greatness. I'm your host, chris Koukouris, and I am recording this Sunday and episodes come out on every Monday.
Speaker 1:I was not planning on recording this, but I'll tell you why. So this past weekend we had an event it was called the Upstate Health and Fitness Seminar at a gym in Greenville, south Carolina, called Carolina Iron, and this event was put on to collectively bring a lot of the local health, fitness, nutrition businesses all together. So there was everything from physical therapists, chiropractic meal prep coaches like myself, nutrition supplementation, like everything in between that you can imagine was all in this place and it was just to provide value to the community. This was the first one ever thrown on and the turnout was pretty good. I would say there was around 30 people that attended, around 30, 30 people that attended. We had a lot more register, but you know life happens, people. You know they can't show up when they want to sometimes. So you know it was live streamed. I do know that I think I'm not sure what platform again, I didn't put on this event. I was just one of the speakers up there and my goal was to record what I was talking about and just upload it on here for the podcast. So I could, you know, save some time, double down on my work and wouldn't have to do this. But unfortunately I didn't want to put it up because I like to have a nice flow on the podcast for you guys.
Speaker 1:And when we were putting and organizing this whole event, at the last moment, probably a week out, there was a talk about having a projector and if we wanted to present, you know, powerpoint, slides, pictures, whatever, we could do that. So I sat down and I put together a whole presentation, more for key points and visuals. I don't really like to read off of my PowerPoint, but there was a lot of stalls, nothing crazy long, but enough to where it would. You know, I didn't want to put it on here because the projector wasn't really test ran and you know I don't want to get into all the details, it just the flow wasn't there. So I'm going to come on here and I'm going to talk about what I was talking about because I think it's some value.
Speaker 1:It's some good stuff, because a lot of individuals you know when they think of, like trainers, online coaches I'm sure they were expecting me to talk about. You know nutrition when it comes to calories, your macros, your workouts, different cycles, maybe even bodybuilding prep. You know something along those lines and I just wanted to come from a whole different angle. I just wanted to come at a different perspective, a different lens, and ultimately shape them in a way and start to mold their mind to be successful, because fitness has been the gateway drug to all of my success. It has built insane amount of commitment, consistency, discipline, and it all started with me just getting in the gym, because before that. I feel like I was a lost soul, to be completely honest with you. So that's what I want to share with you guys today.
Speaker 1:So, going into the topics, I had a picture there's two pictures and it was of myself and my son playing chess. And it's pretty cool because one of the chess boards was actually at a venue that was in Georgia that we stayed at, and it was one of those big live chess boards. You know, each piece, each pawn, is probably up to your knees, they're just big pieces. And my son saw it and he was intrigued. You know it's something different. He hasn't seen it, he doesn't know what chess is and he's like Dad, I want to go play, I want to go play with that, what is that? And I was like, oh cool, it's chess.
Speaker 1:And by no means am I a pro chess player, but I do know how to play. I know how the pieces move, I understand the goal of the game. So we get down there, we set up the board and I started explaining to him what each piece does and I'm like certain ones move certain directions, certain spaces. The objective of the game is to take out the king. There's one piece on the board. If you take that person out, the game is over and you win. And so we slowly start to implement the moves. I'm kind of showing him you know to do this, to do that, and I let him make his choices too and I tell him I'm like, listen, this game is a strategic game. You have to think, like, what happens if you move this piece there? What am I going to do? Think, what am I going to do? Am I going to take your person, or are you safe? And you're going to do that multiple times. And I could see the like wheels in his mind cooking and it was fun to him because it was just something a little more challenging. And so, you know, I let him take a couple of my pieces, build some confidence up. But the point was it was a strategic game.
Speaker 1:You got to know how what pieces move and you got to know what the objective is. And that is where I transitioned. Everything into life is a game. Everything into life is a game. You got to learn to play and if you learn how to play, you can win. But there are, in my experience working with you know, coaches and high level mentors. There's a lot of basic fundamentals that I started to implement. That's really started to get me some good momentum forward, and I got to know what my goal is. I got to know what the objective is and what. You know what pieces in my life I need to move around to optimize that, and so I shared what I called the six fundamental principles that I live with. That really can change everything for you, and so I want to go through those with you.
Speaker 1:Okay, so my first rule is you got to have clarity of your destination. Where is it that you are trying to go? What is the objective and why is it important to you? How is this going to change your life? If you do not know this, you were. The best example I can give you is trying to shoot a target with a blindfold on, and they nobody even told you what direction that that target is in. You are just mindlessly, just shooting off rounds. There's, there's, no, no target, no goal, no direction, and you got it. You got to know why your why is so important?
Speaker 1:I have so many people come to me. I mean, the majority of our clients want to lose weight for the most part, and I ask them why. You know, why do you want to lose it. You could tell me. You know, my doctor says that I'm, you know, pre-diabetic. Or the doctor says my BMI is a little high. Or, you know, I just want to get my weight down. But I have to dig a little deeper. I have to dig a little deeper and ask what is going to change your life if you were to lose this 40, 50, 60 pounds. And some of the most impactful clients that we've helped are the ones that tell me stories like I need to drop this 60, 80 pounds, 100 pounds, because my son wants to go to Disney World and I can't physically walk the park with him and now I'm losing memories that I can never get back.
Speaker 1:That is a hard tug. If you got, I mean, you're really pulling at someone's heartstrings with something like that, and I know someone that has that sort of why will be successful because everything is so exciting in the beginning, everything's so new when you start, and that motivation will fade. Unfortunately, it will die out. I tell people more than not I don't really want to go to the gym, but I have built a process, a system. It is what I do, it is part of my lifestyle. I have built a process, a system. It is what I do, it is part of my lifestyle. So when I actually get there, oh, I'm good, I'm happy, it was just getting there. That's the struggle for myself.
Speaker 1:So you're not alone if you feel like there's days that you just don't want to do things and you can't rely on motivation. So you've got to have your why. And then, when you have your why, again you don't rely on motivation and you start to have purpose over pleasure. You have to put off the distraction and desires of life that are pulling you away from your goals. And maybe that's scrolling on social media, maybe it's comfort food. Some people don't know the difference between they're hungry and they're bored. You know? Or are you going out drinking every single weekend? Again, this is a problem and you are spending time and money that's actually pulling you away from the goal that you originally wanted. So having that why is really going to lock you in.
Speaker 1:Rule number two you have to know your character. How you do anything is how you do everything. I use the example at this talk, saying that you need to live your life like it's a movie, like you are recording a masterpiece that you are going to leave for your friends, your family, your co-workers, your grandkids, their grandkids and the movie that you are filming. Are you proud to share that you know? Are you lying to people on a regular? Are you stealing? Are you drinking every weekend? Are you addicted to porn? I'm pretty sure you would definitely not want that tape to escape your grasp. You wouldn't want anybody to see that. Or are you the person that holds the door for someone, opens the door for your significant other? Are you giving back to the community? Are you making an impact with those around you? Are you proud? And I think when you start to live your life like that, it really shapes how you do everything. So if you are an upstanding citizen, you take care of yourself, you're healthy, you start to portray those vibrations and that energy to those around you.
Speaker 1:So I tell people, when you're doing things, don't cut corners, be the best you can be at everything you do. I joke about this back when I used to work in the restaurant and when I was there, sometimes the dishwasher would call out Well, the dishes won't wash themselves. And if I was the only one there, I had to wash them and I would, and I would never complain about it and I would be the. I would never complain about it and I would. I would be the fastest dishwasher you can imagine, and it's so funny because I almost took pride in how fast I could do it. So if anybody ever came in and they were dragging their ass, I came in and I would like I would show them I like boom, boom, boom, boom, like knock, this is how you're going to do it. And I think they would look at me like I was crazy or I just pounded down an energy drink. But that was my mentality. I was like I don't want to half-ass anything that I'm doing because I know that I'm going to get half-ass results. You want to just do everything in your power to do it the way and put it at a standard that you're not going to be disappointed with. Rule number three non-negotiables. You need to stop negotiating with yourself when times get hard. You're creating habits without even realizing it, and this is really easy to do when you're not clear with your goals.
Speaker 1:We're rolling into the new year. I'm recording this on November 10th. We have this month in December before we hit January 1st. And what does everybody do? January 1st, new Year's resolution. So in our coaching program, we offered an incentive to help those get started before the new year's Cause. I know everybody in their mind wants to wait. But we're like, hey, we're going to offer a special deal for you guys to take action now, because if you are already building that mindset of, I'm going to offer a special deal for you guys to take action now Because if you are already building that mindset of, I'm going to start January 1st. Well, we know the statistics that those that wait are not going to be successful. Typically, by week two, three, they've already fallen off. And the research has shown those that begin early, one, they're already ahead of the game. It's built their confidence and they are more likely, significantly more likely, to stick with whatever they're doing post January. So we really want to incentivize, but what you're doing is you're building up habits of procrastination.
Speaker 1:Same thing Think about when you're, you know, starting your health and fitness journey, when you have goals of, let's say, simple goals, drinking water in the morning. You know, I said that I'm going to drink 16 ounces of water this morning. You wake up, you get your glass, you start drinking. Maybe you did 12 ounces and you said, well, not that thirsty. Well, I drank my water this morning. That's good enough, and then you go on with your day. Next, you got to go to the gym. I have five sets to do here. Well, I'll do three sets, that's good enough. I did come to the gym today and you see what you're doing. You're building this pattern of not finishing, not completing what you said that you were going to do for yourself. And this is where your confidence comes from. It's really sticking with the commitments that you told yourself. When you start to self-negotiate and start to lower the standard, you start to realize that your confidence is not very high anymore because you can't follow through with anything that you have said that you will do, and a lot of that comes down to.
Speaker 1:You need to have systems put in place. You need to have standards and boundaries. Boundaries are one of the. I feel like it's a taboo word for some people, because boundaries feel like it's a constraint, it's a prison, and it is not. If you've heard me use the example of having a dog, if you have a dog, a lot of people like to have a fence in their backyard and they let their dog out. Why? The fence is not designed to be a prison for the dog. It is designed to protect the dog. One, we don't want that dog to run in the street and get hit by a car, okay. Two, we don't want other animals coming in and harming our dog. And three, it gives them freedom to exercise and run around and be an animal like it's supposed to be. It's happy, it's enjoying life, it's enjoying the sun. So those boundaries really start to open up your experience and keep you safe. So when you start to apply those into your lifestyle, you will start to see the freedom start to unfold. And if you're focusing on your willpower and motivation, it's just not enough. We got to have those systems put in place.
Speaker 1:Rule number four action beats anxiety. If you ever heard, I heard this, you know. Actually, I heard this from a monk and I don't know where I saw it. Might've been on social media, but he said anxiety is anticipation of future. Pain Depression is regret of the past. The only thing you have is in the current moment. That is the only thing that matters. And I really started thinking about that. I was like man, damn, that's kind of true. You know, people get so caught up with what's next, what's next, and you start to create stories in your mind of what is going to happen, what should happen. Same thing when you think about your past, you know you think about what if I would have made a different decision? What if I would have changed this? Where would I be now? It doesn't matter, it doesn't change anything. The only thing that matters is right now, because that is the only thing you can control. Control what you can control, cope with what you can't. And when I say action beats anxiety, I say messy action is better than no action. Just move, just do something. I have on the slide.
Speaker 1:I have a picture of myself in an office at the gym when I started back in 2020. And I told them back in 2020 when I started my business, I left a full-time job that paid very comfortably steady paycheck every month, didn't have to worry about anything, and I took a leap of faith to pursue my passion. I had no idea what I was doing. Did I know how to train? Yes, did I know how to do nutrition plans? Yes, I could get people results. But when it came to like the business, I knew nothing, and so when I was going to the gym, I was trying to find ways to get clients. I was at the gym so I'd work out too, and every day that I would be there doing cardio I'd have my phone out and I'd be on YouTube and shout out to Badgers Cooley. And because I watched every single one of his videos and back in the day he was putting up videos like how to get clients selling, you know re, -signing, how to get people in the gym, you know just basic details, but I tell you what that helped me significantly get my clientele up, where I had a very successful first year of literally watching free YouTube videos, and this is what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1:There's so much value out there it can be overwhelming. But if you find something good that really just resonates with you, soak it in. Not everything I did or everything he said I did. I would pull the nuggets, and so I hope you guys pull some nuggets from me doing this podcast too. I'm not saying you have to listen to everything that I say, but hopefully maybe one or two things can make a shift in your lifestyle for the better. And so without me taking that action of a chance to try to better my lifestyle or pursue my passion, I'd still be in the same place, that I was getting that same paycheck and my life would not change. There was times I would sit there and I'd be like is this it? I mean, at that time I was 28,. I think I was like are we done? Is this over? Is this what the rest of my life looks like? I couldn't accept that and that's another reason why I took that leap.
Speaker 1:Rule number five work harder. You cannot be allergic to hard work. Stop thinking. Life needs to be balanced. If you want to be the best, when you want to be the top of the food chain, the best at whatever you can do, there's no more balance in that equation, right? And I think this really comes down back to what is your goal. You got to integrate your lifestyle with everything that you're doing. I want to be the best coach, the best trainer, have the best you know, online coaching, business period. So I cannot have a balance with my work. I'm all in and I have to integrate my lifestyle in that meaning that when I am working, I have to structure my day, I need to plan, I need to time block and I have to make specific days and times for certain topics. But I also do that with my home life, with my friends, with my family. I have to organize things, to integrate with each other or it could be a really big mess.
Speaker 1:So we are resilient creatures at nature and I think when we think we're working hard, just know you can go harder. And I say that the same way in the gym, you know. When I tell a client to do 10 reps of you know, whatever exercise I tell them, you know you'll do two reps, three reps, six reps, eight reps. Hit the 10th rep, okay. Well, where, where along those lines, is the muscle really growing? It's not in the eighth or the ninth or the 10th, is the 11th, the 12th, pushing past the threshold, putting yourself in hard situations, is where the growth comes. So push yourself, don't be scared. Rule number six one bad day does not equal a bad life.
Speaker 1:Life consists of phases of winning and losing, and many people take this for granted, because I think we all have stress in our life. I have stress every single day. You know there's there's a lot of things that happen in my life that I'm grateful for, and then there's things I just don't understand. Why it's happening, why me? And if you are in a winning phase right now, congratulations. A losing phase will be coming. And if you're in a losing phase, be resilient, push harder, it will pass, I promise, and many people you know you think about suicide. It's a sensitive topic, but people make permanent decisions on temporary feelings and and I think that is that's a hard grasp for people to understand. You know, when you lose all hope, when there's nothing left for you to keep working, for this is when people they just give up, and so you have to be resilient in whatever you do.
Speaker 1:We did an episode back geez, this is one probably easily a year ago. Geez, this is one probably easily a year ago. We did an episode, myself and Dr Preston Gregory, about the buffalo be a buffalo. And I use that example because and I'm going to bring it up again here what is the difference between a buffalo and a cow? If you are in a pasture and you see that a storm is coming right Thunderstorm is coming over the mountain, coming over the pasture, and you got the buffaloes and the cows out there, a buffalo will run towards the storm and a cow will run away from the storm. It's very interesting, but why? Because the buffalo knows it's going to be hard, it's going to suck. I'm going to run through this storm, but it's going to pass and I'm going to get through it faster, because if the buffalo is going the opposite way of the storm, you know not congruent, it will push through as the storm crosses over. Now the cow, it doesn't want it, don't want nothing hard, wants the easy life, wants to avoid any kind of trouble or hardships, so it tries to run away. But the storm will catch up and what happens is, as the storm is over it now the cow is running with the storm he actually stays in the storm longer.
Speaker 1:So you need to be a buffalo, be resilient, don't be scared of hard work, because that is where the growth is. Don't be scared of hard work, because that is where the growth is. And so those are my six rules that I like to say are my fundamentals to live by. They all apply to everything in your life, but again, one being clarity of purpose. Two is your character. Three, non-negotiables. Four action beats anxiety. Five work harder. And six a bad day does not equal a bad life. Be a buffalo.
Speaker 1:So I hope you guys got some value from this episode. I wanted to post the real live clip, but again things happen, nobody to blame. But again. I wanted to provide this value and I hope you guys resonate with it again. If you guys are listening to this and you enjoy it, make sure to share it with a friend, a family member. Leave me a good review. That's all I ask. And if you're interested about getting some online coaching with myself, shoot me a DM.
Speaker 1:This whole month of November, we have a insane Black Friday special. You sign up for four months, you get four weeks free. Six months you get six weeks free and I'm tossing you a massage gun. And if you commit to 12 months, I'll give you 12 weeks free and I'm going to buy you a walking pad man. I mean, what else is a better incentive, right? We're going to guarantee you get the results that you want. I'm not going to have you sign up and buy you a bunch of donuts. All right, I hope you guys have a good rest of the week. I'll talk to you all later. Peace.