Yesterday I read a great line—applicable in a variety of training, nutrition, and “real world” situations—while reviewing the rough draft of an upcoming book about an uncommon kettlebell training methodology.
The author was describing options for adjusting the program upon reaching certain milestones. Here is the relevant section (emphasis mine):
You might ask: Is it better to manipulate the weight or the rest?Both have benefits and should be practiced over your A+A training career. But if you need help choosing, listen to your gut. Whatever it tells you, do the opposite. Fighters and runners are biased towards less rest, lifters towards more weight. Chances are good that the opposite of what you want is exactly what you need.
I’m sure you can think of numerous situations where this would be terrible advice. But I’m equally sure you can think of a few instances in your life where it probably does apply. I certainly can in mine!
The key, it seems, at least based on my own experiences and implied in the quote above, is being aware of and examining our biases in a given situation.
In the world of fitness, those biases could be toward:
- Conditioning work (i.e. less rest) vs. weight training (i.e. more weight)
- Specific tools or modalities (e.g. kettlebells, barbells, yoga, running, CrossFit)
- Intensity & volume (i.e. must… lift… more/more often) vs. easy or off days for rest & recovery
In the world of nutrition, they might look like:
- Specific foods we think are “good” or “bad” (e.g. diary, eggs, gluten, carbs, red meat)
- Number of calories needed on a daily basis
- Timing of eating (e.g. immediately after training, nothing after 7 PM, intermittent fasting, multiple small meals per day)
And, of course, in everyday life we have:
- Burning the midnight oil vs. getting some extra sleep
- Making independent decisions vs. hiring and taking the advice of a coach (e.g. financial, fitness, business, relationship)
- Being constantly connected via email, text, etc. vs. unplugging for a complete day (or longer)
Our biases in these and many other situations exist for any number of reasons, the most likely being enjoyment and past results. Still, that doesn’t necessarily mean the option we chose was or still is the best choice. Sometimes (often?) we need to get out of our comfort zones to continue making progress.
Putting it into practice
The calendar currently says October, meaning that fewer than 90 days remain until the start of 2023. So, it’s a perfect time to review some of the goals that you hopefully set earlier in the year.
If you’ve already achieved some of them or feel like you’re making solid progress, that’s excellent! Keep doing what you’re doing or set some more. No need to wait for the new year in that case.
If you’ve been struggling, consider taking some time now to evaluate what might not be working as expected. What biases related to the goal or process do you have? Do other options that might help you progress exist? Are you willing and able to implement some of them even though—or particularly because—you don’t exactly want to do so? If yes, then try them! They might turn out to be exactly what you need.