Resolutions are for Suckers

Just Take the First Step (and keep on taking them)

This is an edit of an article that originally appeared on our website.

In the real world, when you want to move up a level, you take the stairs.

You don’t stop to consider the various construction techniques that could be employed. You don’t call a friend over to debate the merits of materials and dimensions.

You just take the first damn step.

And then, you take the next one.

And the next.

And you just keep on taking steps until you get to the top.

Simple as that.

People in the fitness world like to argue about how to build the best staircase, which isn’t a total waste of time.

• After all, if the steps are too tall, you’ll have a hard time making progress.
• And if the steps are too short, you have to take so many that you it’s hard to tell if you’re making progress or not.
• Overly narrow steps make it tough to keep your balance.
• And if the staircase is poorly made, it will absolutely fall apart when you begin to put weight on it in the real world.

We could take this metaphor to the limits of absurdity, but the point is:

There’s no perfect way to build a staircase — just like there’s no perfect way to train or eat.

Most of the time, the steps we take simply need to be good enough.

Taking Consistent Action Can Make Almost Any Plan Successful

If your training program gets you where you want to go, then it’s doing its job. Sure, some details may not be optimal. Like stairs, certain details can make it easy or difficult to progress.

But those differences only tend to make a big difference at the extreme ranges. We don’t notice when one set of stairs is a half inch off from another. And we can walk up wooden ones just as easily as metal or concrete. In fact, we only notice stair construction at all when they’re spaced oddly or look dangerous.

Most “good” programs are the same way. They may not be perfect, but they’ll get you there.

In this age of hype, where everyone is selling their own distinct product that is “radically unique” and “unlike anything else out there,” it’s crazy to say that most programs are interchangeable, and the only difference is how much a person is willing to stick with it.

But it’s true.

P90X, Crossfit, Kettlebells, Barbells, Zumba (well maybe not Zumba…), and yes our own GMB Programs all provide a certain appeal, with different details and approaches to teaching strength and conditioning. We could certainly debate each and every one of those details to no end, though actually I’m sure you could do a quick Google search and find those discussions already exist!

The point is not to say that all programs and regimens are equal — that’s clearly not the case. Some programs really are better for gaining strength, or developing endurance, etc., however, it is fair to say that those details don’t matter as much when you are just starting to do something.

When you start to build the habit of success, the important part is to keep moving forward, one step after another turns into great leaps forward.

If you stick with it, that is.

Be Prepared to Make Adjustments as Needed

Yes, you should stick with a plan and work it as well as possible to get the most out of it as you can. But this doesn’t mean you are beholden to that regimen forever!

You don’t get bonus points for beating a dead horse.

There are certain dead on cues for knowing when to move on to the next routine and there are a couple of common downfalls to keeping regular in your training.

Dreading your workouts

More than just that little devil on your shoulder telling you that it’d be better to stay on your couch and finish up that bag of chips, it’s a genuine gut ache of a lack of motivation. The kind of motivation that hasn’t just waned, but dropped off the edge of a cliff.

If you have to scream at yourself and do a self motivational speech that would put college football coaches to shame before every workout, it’s likely time to look into changing things up.

Consistently poor performance

We all have bad days, they just happen, especially when you’ve been training long enough, but it’s when those bad days string together and turn into a bad week or two that you may be right to worry.

Good programs have you working towards a particular objective, whether it’s primarily strength, endurance, or fat loss.

And whether you are aiming for it or not, somewhere in the process there will be peak moment — a spot in the program where everything clicks and you’ve hit a high point.

Some plans actively move toward it, and some just get you there from sheer consistency and effort. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

However, it is very hard to maintain peak condition, and it’s a losing battle to try to keep it as long as you can. In fact, you fight this too much, it will be hard to recover from the fall off that peak.

If you notice a few great days of training are followed by a steep drop off in performance despite maintaining a good eating plan and sleep pattern, you’ll probably benefit from moving to another training cycle.

Learn How to Track Your Progress

Continued progress is the name of the game for both meeting your goals, and for keeping motivated.

You don’t want to feel that your efforts are being wasted and that you are showing up to train just to spin your wheels and not get anywhere for your trouble.

There may be some solid reasons why you aren’t progressing, but sometimes you’ll have gone through those tweaks and gotten the most out of them. Is this another indication of the need to switch your training around again?

Maybe, and maybe not.

As you move past the beginner stages of training (let’s say after four months or so), progress often has to be measured on a longer time scale.

Weeks may go by with less than noticeable gains, and that can be frustrating to say the least.

But the change is occurring, just at a pace that is difficult to notice.

In the book, Mastery, George Leonard talks of “loving the plateau,” which is the ability to keep training and working even when progress seems to have stalled. He notes that being able to love the plateaus and maintaining regular practice during these times is the key to mastery.

So how do you know if you are on one of these “plateaus” or if you genuinely do need to mix things up?

As we’ve talked about above, the major indicators are a genuine dread of your workouts and consistent poor performances. These are distinct from sessions where you are able to maintain your ability, no drop offs in skill or strength, you just don’t see steady daily or weekly gains.

It’s easy to keep going when you see improvement, it’s much harder when when there’s no such immediate feedback.

Yet this is exactly what needs to be done.

When you approach your training as a lifelong deal, and not just a series of New Years’ resolutions, or goals you may or may not reach, then that’s when the magic happens.

You treat the lulls in progress the same as the highs and lows, as just part of living your life.

Exercise becomes a habit. You brush your teeth, wash your face, grab a cup of coffee, and you train. No screaming in the mirror to pump yourself up to go to the gym every day, and no beating yourself up about it if you miss a session.

This is the key to lifelong success.

Aim for Results, Not Resolutions

The start of a new year is always a convenient start date to make resolutions of change, unfortunately, the “best laid schemes of mice and men oft go awry.” So how do you make this year different from the rest?

Choose a program, any program really, and keep walking up those stairs. Get started and keep going. The first few weeks are the hardest, but then you’ll start to make a habit of it.

Once the habit forms and you get past those immediate improvements, it’s then you can begin to analyze if you need to move on. Apply these steps if you need to start up another set of stairs.

Lastly, keep in mind that true progress can still be happening even when changes are harder to see.

Expect the plateaus, anticipate those periods where you are just plugging along and doing the work but nothing seems to be happening. Seemingly no gains, but also no losses. These periods of time are a good way to readjust your expectations and continue to cultivate the habit of exercise without external goals.

You’re doing it because you want to, not because you have to.

That’s when you know the resolutions are finally here to stay.