Get Into the Mess, Because Many of the Best Results Cannot Be Seen
1 week, 6 days ago
There’s no way to plan your fitness journey perfectly at the beginning.
There just isn’t a way.
So, as one great coach has said to me, ‘Get into the mess.’
Perhaps you picked up Body By Science by Dr. Doug McGuff, the The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson, or another gem (there are wayyy too many to even keep track of anymore), and started reading. Or maybe you skip the books, but found some great videos from a coach you trust, and you’re starting to absorb the information.
Great!
But don’t wait to start applying, well… something… anything.
Get into the mess.
And once you’re there, give it time. Eight-week transformations, ironically, are (largely) a waste of time.. Eight weeks is enough time to start getting the hang of things, but for the changes to really sink in, give it time. Think about where you could be in a year. I’m biased–I’m terrible at 8-week challenges, transformations, or whatever. But give me a few years, and I can be light years ahead of where I was before, and sometimes, even the pack.
(I've personally known fitness competitors who could get themselves looking amazing, but their health was a mess. Yes, it's awesome to look awesome, but it can be misleading to casual observers).
Antifragile by Nassim Taleb explains that in order to engineer something perfectly from the beginning, it would take a super IQ. Instead, us human beings, we tinker (aggressively). Yes, use trial and error. Do it in an informed way. Don’t take needless risks, of course. But take a stab at it, observe carefully, reassess, and take action again. Taleb’s perspective is that human beings are better at doing than knowing. So, go with our natural strength as people, and get to the doing.
You might not be able to get very far in a month or two.
Heck, taking a quick-fix approach may even leave you worse off than you were before. (That’s happened to someone I know a few times… uh, well… not me, of course).
And remember this…
Many of the most important results cannot be seen. Before-and-after photos do not show your sense of confidence, your peace of mind, and energy levels. They do not show what you’ve learned as you reflected back on your fitness log and the notes you took throughout the year.
So, yes, get informed. But get into the mess, tinker wisely, and stick with it for the long-term, because . . .
Many of the best results cannot be seen.
