Any Given Day

Measuring results is key to progress. There’s no doubt about that. After all, one can’t improve what one can’t measure, right?

We, too, measure our progress with key benchmark lifts, conditioning efforts, as well as gymnastic and running events. A key observation, however, is that we aren’t always measuring. Most of the time, in fact, we are just training. We do this for good reason.

On any given day, you might show up and perform along side a plethora of variables like stress, fatigue, nutrition, etc. On any given day, you might have access to any amount of your full potential. One day you feel great and can do it all, for example, while another day you might be 80% of your best self.

The point is if you are the kind of person that let’s your entire self-worth hang in the balance on a daily basis, you are setting yourself up for two things:

1. An inaccurate depiction of your true abilities, and
2. a great deal of frustration.

 

One of my favorite thinkers, Nassim Taleb, outlines this well in my mind in the context of stock trading. Take a winner stock like Apple (APPL). In part of 2008 it was valued near $89. Today it trades for over $500 per share.

If you owned this stock in 2008 and stuck your head in the sand for the past six years only to check its value today, you’re experience of its progress would be exhilarating. “It’s up 595%! I made a zillion dollars!”

The experience would be nearly as exhilarating if you checked its position only once per year. “It’s up 59%. What a winner stock!” But, imagine, owning this stock and checking its value every minute on the minute:

“Dammit! Down half a percent.”

“Crap. Nothing..”

“Sweet! It’s up a tick..”

The  experience of this sure fire winner stock would include nearly 49% losses and 51% success. And, that’s no way to recognize a 595% improvement on your investment, is it?

The frequency one’s valuation can directly affect the perceived experience of progress. Don’t fall victim to this common fault in fitness. If you make a PR in the power clean on Monday but can’t do it again on Tuesday, you may be missing the bigger picture if you’re judging yourself with this information. Evaluation is critical to performance gains, but if you want a real picture of your progress don’t put yourself on trial too frequently.

 

Logan Gelbrich

@functionalcoach