Practice Makes Permanent

I sometimes wonder why the heck my locust pose doesn't improve. My body despises this posture, and I groan to myself every time we get to this point in yoga class.Ugh, I think, I don't want to do this one.So I often don't.And then the next class, I think the same thing, and frequently marvel at how annoying it is that I'm still stuck in the same place in this darn Locust Pose. I mean sheesh, I've been practicing Bikram Yoga since 2006, you'd think one silly little pose would have improved by now.It hit me the other day after I half-heartedly attempted the second set of Locust Pose that I've got to actually do the posture in order to get better at it. Like really give it an honest effort. Thinking about it, meditating on it, complaining about it, despising it, envisioning it, hating it, loving it, and everything in between is not actually going to make too much of a difference. Sure, some sort of visualization might nudge things in one direction or another, but when push comes to shove, I've got to actually do the work.Practice does not make perfect. Practice makes permanent. My high school cross-country coach lectured my team about this statement one practice. I remember cutting a run short by about three minutes. For no reason! I mean, maybe the reason was we were tired (please note that I am rolling my exhausted mom-of-three eyes so hard at my high school self). My running buddy and I just decided we'd had enough and started walking with three minutes left to go.When we turned a corner, meandering along the way only two too-cool teenage girls could do - shoulders slumped, feet dragging, hair twirling - there was our coach, running straight toward us.We picked up the pace immediately, but it was too late. He saw what he needed to see which inspired his post-practice lecture.In hindsight, I actually remember this instance fondly, because what he told us completely shaped the way I look at situations, especially the challenging ones."Girls," he started in. "It's not about physically needing the last three minutes of the workout. You've done the physical work at this point. It's about practicing following through until the end. If you practice finishing every run, you will. If you practicing letting up three minutes early, you will. Practice how you want to finish the race. Practice doesn't make perfect. Practice makes permanent."So good, right?!You can apply this to anything, and trust me, I've tried!Want to do a better locus post? Practice locust pose.Want to be a better writer? Practice writing.Want to be a morning person? Wake up every morning with your alarm.Want to be able to run fast? Practice running fast.Ever wonder why I can't do push ups? Because I never practice push ups.Why is my house messy? Because I rarely practice picking up.Want to eat healthy? Eat healthy.Nike is really on to something ... Just do it.You'll get really good at what you practice - we all will - so practicing what we want to achieve should be what we focus on.It's so simple. It's just not necessarily easy.More than ten years in to my yoga practice, I clearly still have to remind myself these things.Practice Makes Permanent is one of those mantras that I always try to keep in mind. Whether in business or yoga or motherhood or in my personal relationships, it gets me back on the right track if I've wandered off a bit.Do you have anything you hope to improve but aren't practicing? Would practice help you reach your goals?