Parker Liang

My Success Story is through the persistence of hard work and accountability, working with my trainer, Miguel. “Success comes from those who choose to be consistently disciplined in their lives, in return they will achieve the freedom that they always desired”- Jocko Willink. Now that I have achieved my outcome and by popular request, I have written my journey down, and hopefully, it will be an inspirational tale to many.

There is no shortcut to losing weight, nor there is such thing as a magic pill or a surgery that will quickly change your life. Why, then, do most people still look for ways to change their life with quick and easy solutions? Do you wish to be identified as someone who took the easy way out? Yes, as some of you may already do, for we are creatures of our comfortable habits. When we stay in our comfort zone, we often regain what we have once brought with our short-term, one-time fix solutions. Why can’t your success journey be slow, painful, and monotonous? Life is about living through our struggles. It is about keeping your spirit up even when the times are hard and keep on grinding. You will soon realise, it is after completing a difficult task that you have set for yourself, you will have exceeded your ceiling of self-imposed limitations and arrived at a whole new profound perspective on your capabilities.

When it comes to physical health, we make excuses to prioritise other commitments over them. Truthfully, our delusion is exposed when we attend any social event, seeing our work colleagues, friends, or family members succumb to their comfort and busyness of life with their clothing ill-fitted around their waistline. Now and then, you will find someone there who portrays themselves as a ray of self-confidence and looking at their very best. Deep down, you know they have worked hard to achieve that success. So, to be respected, you must first respect your own health. To accomplish that best version of yourself, identify yourself as the fittest version of yourself from two or five years down the line, then plan backwards with a series of steps to actively thrive for that goal.

My journey at Vision Gladesville began during the mid-2021 COVID lockdown, where I re-evaluated my life to treat myself seriously to becoming the fittest version of myself. Feeling inspired after attending an online running-related seminar by my trainer Miguel, I signed up to run a 100km ultra-marathon in May 2022. As a couch potato that has done zero cardio up till this point in my life, this decision to attend to run 100km was a massive shock to my friends and family members. You could say it was a zero to a hundred moment, when I told them I had already paid to participate in the ultra-marathon. For the following months, Miguel and I have worked tirelessly to achieve that goal. From the weekly running plans, running with me during his lunchtime and the occasional morning coffee debrief has boosted my confidence to believe that I have what it takes to run 100km. For the early part of 2022, poor weather conditions due to high precipitation have caused parts of the course to be heavily damaged, prompting the race organisers to call for a five-month setback due to safety concerns. Wasting no time, I have used this setback to build up my race experience by competing in numerous running events.

I completed my first 100km ultra-marathon in under 16 hours and 26 minutes in the Blue Mountains in October. Looking for more, I have signed up for my second 100km ultra-marathon in just under six weeks’ time, finishing in under 17 hours 38 minutes at Mt Kosciuszko.

For most young adults like me, having the proper mentorship is what it takes to have a massive difference in the rest of our lives. With Miguel at Vision Gladesville, he has helped me redirect myself to become a healthier, active, and disciplined side I could never imagine I would become.