Balancing Goals
I recently Replied to a Reddit post that I want to share; I’m sure many of you will find it relatable:
I struggle with balance all the time; I’m 46 with a busy family, I own my own business (I’m a Personal Trainer with my own studio), I’m a martial artist, and I’m trying to get back to running more this calendar year, which was further complicated when I busted my foot on Feb 2. Also, the Irony of working with PT clients is that my work schedule makes timing my own workouts a LOT harder.
For your activity balance, it’s really a matter of priority and tolerance. People often try to accomplish too many extremes, but most of us should pursue an above average balance. My advice is to determine first the most important things and make those non-negotiable. You’ve heard about the jar and putting the big rocks in first? If, not look it up. You should also decide whether building muscle, reaching a run goal, or being a great ball player really matters. If you spend time balling and running you’re not going to reach your FULLEST potential for muscle mass, but how much is enough? Do you need to reach the extreme?
IF you have a serious goal for one of these, it’s ok to give up on the others temporarily; think of it as periodization. Let’s say you want to get HUGE: spend 10-12 weeks (preferably during the cold season😉) focusing most effort getting huge. Workout 6-7 days a week, but one or two of your workouts are light runs or ball games, while the other five are smashing plates on the bar. When you finish those 12 weeks, transition to 3-4 days lifting and add either more running or balling, based on what you want to do more for the next several weeks. You can adjust your lifting down again (2 days minimum) as the seasons change and you re-focus on another goal. The upshot here is that doing more balling and running will basically create a built-in leaning out phase. Always emphasize that you’re looking for more rather than the most. If you want to be like peak-Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger (or peak record-setting Usain Bolt), you need to be all-in, all-day, all the time focused on one goal. But if you just want to grow better than where you are now, you can balance the other things and make long term progress across the spectrum.
The last word here is back to “Tolerance”. Will your external commitments, your values and other priorities (work, family, etc) tolerate the time you need to spend on all of these activities? Also, will your body tolerate the level of exertion you’re committing to? If you can’t tolerate 5-6 days of lifting then don’t. If having an hour or more workout everyday isn’t tolerable, reduce. This is directly tied to your priorities also. The endgame is that all of these activities should enhance your life and make you better. Decide your priorities and if something gets cut, at least you’ll have done the first things first.