Intensity vs Consistency

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I. Intensity Vs Consistency

Running a marathon is intense; however, going for a couple of runs each week sounds easy. Going on a meditation retreat might well be enlightening; yet, making the time to sit down and just breathe is often overlooked. Going 30 days without sugar will probably shift a few pounds, but making a few food swaps is not exciting enough.

Intensity is really cool and trendy, and it's often what gets us all pumped up. However, focusing solely on "Intensity" can lead to a cycle of boom and bust. We start off bursting with enthusiasm and motivation, but it soon fades away along with our effort and results...

Now, I understand the appeal of wanting to sign up for something big and challenging and diving in headfirst. We want to "jump-start" our progress and catapult ourselves into consistency. However, in reality, it's like starting a marathon at a full sprint; sure, you may get ahead for a moment, but by mile one, you might regret your life choices.

I won't sugar coat it either; consistency is not a shortcut. In order to truly be consistent, we need to choose something that requires a moderate and manageable effort and gradually increase the intensity. This means that after a few weeks, you may not have much to show for your efforts. Thus the appeal to switching to “intense mode”.

This doesn't mean that we shouldn't run marathons, go on retreats, or set big, scary goals; we definitely should. However, our approach should be more balanced. If we want to be more consistent, we need to choose a pace that we can maintain even during a chaotic week.

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II. Office Chair Stretch

Is it just me or have a I got "moody" face is this screen shot? That aside this is a great stretch to help release those hips without leaving your desk.

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II. Quote to Ponder

"Intensity makes a good story. Consistency makes progress." James Clear

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P.S. If you enjoyed this week's Thursday Three, please share it with a friend.

Thanks,

Jamie