Fitness Opinion: Unfortunately, Haste Does Make Waste
Last modified 8 months ago.
Commonly, health & fitness books, programs, and services promise that in four to eight weeks you will be transformed.
I don’t believe this is true.
Even books by top fitness professionals promise to turn things around for you in a month or two. (They know better, though).
I do not want to bash fitness professionals, nor am I mentioning any books or authors specifically. Fitness is a tough business to be in. It’s not like being a doctor or nurse. There is no barrier to entry–anyone can be a coach or trainer. It’s hard to know if someone really knows what they are talking about. Furthermore, there isn’t a system that guarantees adequate payment, like the social payment system (insurance) that medical professionals use. Nor am I arguing that that should be the case. Lastly, fitness professionals aren't just competing with each other for a customer's dollar. They are competing with anything and everything that is paid for with a person's discretionary budget.
A coach may deserve $200 per hour. But a client still has to decide whether they should pay that coach, another coach, or instead, forget coaching altogether, and buy a new car, go to a nice restaurant, or finally travel to that country they've been dying to visit.
Not an easy business to be in!
These books, programs, and services are trying to get your attention in a very-crowded market. And they do that by telling you there’s a quick and easy way to get what you want.
They’re making a buck–I’m not mad at them. But I believe the reality diverges strongly from the common advertising and self-promotional strategies.
Relax, though. I am not saying that no results are possible in a few months.
What I am saying is that it is overestimated what can be done in a few months, while it is highly underestimated what can be done in a few years.
Let’s exercise a little practical sense here to help clarify the point.
Pretend that I am a soccer coach. I’m not, but humor me. So, yes, pretend I’m Coach Daniel, a former champion soccer player, who has coached championship soccer teams, and with my handy-dandy high-speed coaching system, you, too, can be transformed into a competent soccer player… and in just eight little weeks.
Would you buy that? I mean that both literally and metaphorically.
You know that high competence in a skilled area, like soccer, isn’t going to happen in eight weeks. You couldn’t learn a language from scratch that quick. It’s not going to happen with your health & fitness, either. Things take time–it’s going to take however long it takes.
That doesn’t mean you couldn’t make meaningful strides in your progress in two months. Taking the soccer example, for sure, you could understand the rules and be kicking a ball pretty well after a few months. But the average person is not going to be playing like a professional, or even, a really-good high school player that quickly, either.
And that would be with strong dedication, consistency, attitude, and enthusiasm. It’s hard to have high levels of all of that right off the bat.
Likewise, if you are new to health & fitness, why put the pressure on yourself to achieve mastery so quickly?
Give it time. You’re in it for the long haul anyway, right? In five, ten, or thirty years, you want to be looking and feeling good, right? Does it make sense to get in shape for a few months, only to fall off the rails again?
Instead of being duped by programs that promise to put a rush on your results, pace yourself and play the long game. The longer you stay in the game, the more you’ll have a chance to reap the benefits of what you’re learning and solidify it.
You’ll be able to achieve mastery in your own time and along your own path.
Because otherwise, unfortunately, haste does make waste.