“What should I do on the days I’m not here?”
– Everyone we’ve ever trained, people who’ve thought about training—even you
Not a week goes by that we don’t answer this question—be it for a current member or a prospective one. But, contrary to what many people want to hear, our typical answer is:
It depends.
But don’t get your panties all in a bunch, I can expand on that…
What are you trying to accomplish?
What are the five most impactful things that you could do, right now, that would take you closer to achieving your goal? List those suckers out. Seriously—right now—do it!
If you were doing this for fat loss, it might look something like this:
- Improve my diet, starting with a food journal for the next 2 weeks to create some self-awareness
- Take a 20-minute brisk walk on my lunch break Monday-Friday
- Reduce my stress levels by meditating 10 minutes with the Headspace app, first thing in the morning as my coffee brews every day
- Get to bed a half-hour earlier every night by staying off of Facebook
- Replace my lunchtime Coca-Cola with Coke Zero
Take note of a few things here
Notice that the 5 things listed above are pretty descriptive. They say what you’ll do, how you’ll do it, when you’ll do it, and/or how long you’ll do it. If you simply said, “improve my diet,” that’s pretty vague, and probably wouldn’t lead to action.
No two people will have exactly the same list, hence our “it depends” answer. Sure I could tell you what to do. But if we work together on a drill like this, we’ll know that we’re on the same page.
You might feel like you could list 20 things, or struggle to come up with 5. Regardless of where you’re at, take some time and come up with your 5.
Ready, willing and able?
Of those five, what three are you most ready, willing and able to start with?
Maybe, of those five for fat loss, you decide on:
- Take a 20-minute brisk walk on my lunch break Monday-Friday
- Replace my lunchtime Coca-Cola with Coke Zero
- Improve my diet, starting with a food journal for the next 2 weeks to create some self-awareness
There’s no right or wrong
Only you can say what YOU are ready, willing, and able to do—right now.
Start with 1
Of those three, where do you want to start? Make sure that whatever you pick, you are 100% confident that you can knock it out of the park.
- Improve my diet, starting with a food journal for the next 2 weeks to create some self-awareness
Hooray! You’ve just committed to the one things you’re going to begin right away to help with fat loss outside of the gym. And don’t fret—those other 4 aren’t going away. They’re just on the back burner for now.
Start with your 1, see what happens, and then revisit your visit and pick the next one.
Why not start with more?
Well, have you ever tried to go all in on a goal in the past, and failed? Don’t lie—we all have! And most of the time it’s because we simply tried to do too much. So, we start small. We get consistency on our side. That consistency builds momentum. And that momentum makes it easier to add one small thing here and there over the long-haul.
If you’re still applying your efforts, every day, to whatever you’re trying to do, one year from now—you’re going to like the outcome.
But, start too big? Well, I think you know the rest…
It’s your turn now
What are you trying to accomplish?
What are the five most impactful things that you could do, right now, that would take you closer to achieving your goal?
Of those five, what three are you most ready, willing and able to start with?
Of those three, where do you want to start?
