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Quality over quantity
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Posted on Oct 31 2022
Sitting at the corner end of my kitchen is a Keurig. And every weekend I look forward to waking up bright and early to take that first sip of fresh brewed coffee, listen to country music, and sit with my thoughts.
In my current juncture, it’s a simple pleasure I enjoy very much. Interestingly enough, lately, I’ve been trying to wrap my mind around how simple concepts always seemingly get swept under the rug. It’s as if we’re all naturally inclined to make things more complicated than it needs to be. I’ve written about the repercussions of attempting to expedite progress quite a few times, so I hope this nugget comes as no surprise—attaining visible, meaningful results isn’t going to happen in such a short period of time.
Haphazardly adding more workout days thinking that’s going to somehow bolster results is delusional. Beside the obvious burnout that would ensue, in my observations, that leads to compensatory behaviors which have been shown to build friction in your pursuit. Namely, binge eating episodes due to growing hunger cues, and a dramatic subconscious drop in non-exercise activity. The latter accounts for about 15-20% of your total daily energy expenditure, which is pretty significant.
Sadly, this is an accurate representation of what most people go through. The intent is clearly there—and granted, to be able to sustain a relatively high exercise output should be commended. But with respect to improving your body composition and progressively getting stronger, it doesn’t offer up anything more out of what you can get by being a little more methodical.
It’s worth noting that the challenges mentioned above commonly take place as you progress in your diet and training. Although, the magnitude at which it occurs can be mitigated with proper programming and the appropriate adjustments. Needless to say, we need to be more aware that a heavy reliance on training when your activity is already high is not a good move. The easiest way to determine if you’re, more or less, heading in the right direction is if you’re still getting stronger in your lifts or maintaining them. If there’s a marked decline, then you need to assess your game plan because your approach is broken.
