Updated 01/16/23
“A habit must be established before it can be improved.” - James Clear
How do you know how much fitness is ENOUGH fitness?
The Street Parking Members ask us this question all of the time, and we get it. A 12-minute workout doesn’t FEEL like it’s enough for YOU to reach YOUR goals. You feel like you’ve got a lot of work to do, and you want to get to your destination as quickly as possible. Certainly you should be doing MORE, right?
This feeling of “more is better” is a staple within the fitness industry. This idea has been popularized over decades by clever marketing and get-fit-quick schemes from fitness gurus for as long as we can remember.
The same mindset has been attached to nutrition and eating LESS or taking MORE supplements to somehow bypass the need for patience while reaching for our health and fitness holy grail.
Even a quick glance around the Street Parking platform might give the impression that you should be doing ALL of the things, ALL of the time. With four versions of the Daily Workout and over 40 Extra Programs available, if MORE wasn’t BETTER, why would we have so many options?
Let’s just stop you right there.
Take a seat, my friend, because this message is the MOST important one you will hear no matter where your journey in health and fitness takes you.
In fact, WRITE THIS DOWN:
What most people need isn’t MORE. At first it isn’t even to train HARDER. What people need is to build ROCK SOLID systems — habits — CONSISTENCY.
So the very first question to ask yourself before you start considering adding extra sessions to your current plan:
HOW LONG HAVE I BEEN CONSISTENT?
For how many weeks, months, (years?) have you been consistently working out 4-6 days per week without a more than week-long lapse for something like an illness or vacation?
Be honest with yourself.
If your answer is ANY less than 6 months, we encourage you to start there.
The REAL reason we offer the number of Extra Programs we do is because we know that fitness isn’t one-size-fits-all. You are unique. You have a unique schedule, challenges, even past injuries. Some members have access to a lot of equipment, some hardly any. Some Street Parkers have a strong athletic or fitness background, others are just starting out. And, of course, we all have our own preferences and tastes
Consistency is much easier to achieve when the parameters aren’t so rigid. So, pick what you like. Pick what appeals to you. Develop consistency in training using all of the resources available to you. But at first, don’t try to stack workouts. Pick ONE thing to focus on each day. The most simple approach AND the one that we love the most: just follow the Daily Workouts. Do this 4-6 days per week, and make that your goal for 6 months.
Consistency isn’t sexy, but it IS far more difficult than a short/intense program or challenge. We have ALL successfully completed challenges, cleanses, or made short-term dramatic commitments. These short — and often over the top — programs are always popular for what they promise to deliver in the short term. The problem lies in the long term. It’s the people who have been consistent for YEARS that have the results and sustainability we are looking for.
Do you want to lose 10 pounds in one month? Sure! But my guess is you’d rather allow it to take two months and maintain that change for years to come.
Consistency is what is necessary for long term success. Without consistency, any results you DO find will be gone as quickly as they came.
Join the Street Parking Community for the tools, resources, and support that can help you build consistency at any stage in life.
And finally, another favorite quote fromAtomic Habits Author James Clear:“Intensity makes for a good story. Consistency makes progress.”
Extra Credit Homework: Read “Atomic Habits” author James Clear - If you want to add anything extra at first, add that.
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