Things People Don’t Want to Hear About Being Consistent — In or Out of the Gym
A plan not put into action is just a daydream.
This article was originally published on my personal Medium account.
A plan not put into action is just a daydream.
Intelligent training or nutritional program design is, by no means, a menial feat. It can become a daunting ordeal to keep track of all of the variables that comprise an excellent regimen. It becomes increasingly difficult when you have to scale that program to a diverse audience. Exercise selection, workout scheduling, meal planning, nutritional calculating . . . getting fit can become a time-consuming endeavor. Becoming too caught up in the details can derail your entire prerogative.
Ultimately, the biggest pitfall people face is being too focused on the long-term vision, yet not invested enough into their short-term obligations. As a result, consistency is their missing ingredient for success. In order to realize the dream, you must sacrifice something else in turn. Results are cumulative and compound over time, but they are not linear. What you must pursue is a positive, consistent trend, which could take days, weeks, or potentially months of work depending on the pursuit and the pursuer. To stick with these processes through all of the lows and highs they can offer, whether that be in exercise or all of life’s other journeys, consider the following unsavory ideals.
1. Grit Your Teeth and Suck It Up
At a surface level, most people equate the concept of “stress” to negative sentiment. Remember that emotional pain is largely psychological in nature. Scientifically classifying stress in and of itself is a wasteful endeavor, as there are various stimuli and and perceptions that one could consider “stress”. (1) Thus, it is obviously unproductive to let one’s self be subsumed by the notion that stress is killing you. In fact, a negative outlook on “stress” can be detrimental, as a whole, to both mental and physical health, and has been correlated even to increased mortality (2). Stress brings about wear and tear, but it’s your perception that really kills you.
Absolving one’s self from “stress” requires a mindset shift. Such a paradigm change could take days, months, or years depending on your ability to self-affirm. Think of stress analogously to training. In exercise and training, the aim is to stimulate physiological components beyond previous thresholds in order to accelerate involuntary growth. Pressure and stress in life can parallel this growth with the right mindset. Take on stress with open arms; you don’t have to (and definitely will not) enjoy every obstacle that comes your way, but consider it the stimulus for your character that you are now voluntarily adapting to. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Take this euphemism to heart and attack every obstacle with vigor.
The process of building a better body, building a better self, will not always be picturesque. Life is not a Coca Cola commercial. Outcomes will not always reflect what you originally envision. No matter what, adapt and overcome, do the dirty work that no one else wants to do, and you will turn plight to flight.
2. You Need Structure to Succeed
Flexibility has its place in every process, including those instantiated in the gym. However, without structure and regimen, it can become easy to lose sight of the finish line. You don’t have to be religiously strict to produce results in the gym. Meal and workout timing, for example, can be a little excessive. Instead, create guidelines and boundaries for yourself to ensure that you will put forth a minimum required output week-after-week. For example:
Require yourself to show up to the gym at least three times a week.
If you are starting a new training program, see it through to at least a full cycle or one or two months before passing judgement on its efficacy.
Schedule time blocks for the gym (ex: before school, after work, etc.) that you are certain you can fulfill.
“Different strokes for different folks.” Some people can be more productive with a lot of rigidity, and others excel with flexibility. It’s wise to experiment with different techniques, but give them some true testing time before you can ascertain their fit for you.
3. Learn to Let Go
Become too caught up with too many goals, dreams, or ambitions, and eventually you will spread yourself thin. You can say that you have certain priorities all day long, but what you produce and how you act are true indicators of your priorities.
Passion is not the driver of action; rather, they act on symbiotic terms. Passion drives action, action drives accomplishment, and those accomplishments drive passion, but we all start from virtually zero. If you want to make a change in your life, whether that be in terms of fitness or otherwise, you will always have to sacrifice something. Lazy afternoons on the couch, Friday night drinking, buffets with friends, or whatever else it may be, you will have to allocate a meaningful amount of time, resources, and commitment away from these existing obligations and unto whatever else it is you wish to see through.
Ask yourself, “how important is this to me–truly? Am I really willing to give up x so that I can put time into y and one day have z?” The idea that “z” reflects may evolve, but it will always take some level of “y” to get there. Use your 657,000 hours on this planet wisely, and always think about where you want to be tomorrow.