When Life Gets Busy, Your Fitness Should Shrink…Not Disappear! | Mind Pump 2757

One of the biggest challenges when it comes to fitness is uh when your life gets busy, when things start piling on, what do you do? How do you stay consistent? Are you going to lose your gains? We're going to break it down for you. We're going to give you the answer because when life gets busy, your fitness, it just shrinks, not disappears. >> I like this conversation. Uh especially at this time of year. I think that um and we're probably all somewhat uh maybe not just s Justin and I Doug maybe more likely guilty of uh of this right at some at some point in our lives where >> you know the holidays come around or a season of your life just is is comes around and you just you're off the wagon completely and I mean I know I I have admitted that >> this has been me for most of my 20s um and into my early 30s where it was just on and off on and either I'm all the way on or I'm all the way off. And I I'd say one of the best things that's happened in my 40s is I I'm I'm never fully off. You know, even when I even if I comm communicate I'm off, there's like I'm still making better food choices. You know what I'm saying? Like because of the fact that I might not be as consistent inside the gym, I'm finding I'm walking more and I'm making different food choices where it was not like that for me. It used to be, and I don't know if you guys were like this, it used to be like I'm on the diet, I'm training, and then when I'm off, it's like eating terrible and all or nothing. >> Yeah. All or nothing. And so I think this happens to a lot of our clients, especially around this time. >> Yeah. There's uh the percept the all or nothing mentality is a very difficult one. Um it's responsible for a lot of people losing their consistency. And I think it stems from the belief that if I'm not doing um if I'm not following my normal routine, let's say, >> then what's the point? >> Uh I'm not going to, you know, I'm barely doing anything. Does that even make a difference? And so I think it's it's important to understand that something is definitely better than nothing. Number one. Uh number two, uh and we'll get to this in this episode. In order to maintain the progress that you've made when it comes to strength training in particular, very little is required. So in order to progress, there's a certain amount of training volume uh you know, sets, reps, intensity that's required to cause to get your body to progress, which it's less than people think there as well. Nonetheless, there's a certain amount, right? In order to maintain what you've built, it's a remarkably small number. The data on this is is pretty uh amazing. So, so that's something to consider. The other thing to consider is momentum. This is a real thing, right? We've all experienced this that that when you keep the ball rolling, it's easier to maintain, but when you stop completely, it's like really hard to get back into uh the swing of things. Um, in fact, I'm using verbiage that people use to communicate this all the time. We all know what that's like. So, when you look at the the biggest challenges that people run into when it comes to their fitness, it really is consistency above and beyond anything else. It's uh it's a it's a lack of consistency. And so understanding that something's better than nothing, that very little is required to maintain and we'll get to that. The data shows that quite clearly and that momentum is a very important thing to consider. Then you can start to piece together what this would look like when life gets busy. And I'll add this. When you do this right, it's actually a paradigm shattering uh moment for you because you start to realize, wow, I actually might have been doing more than I needed to to get great results or I can't believe how great a shape I'm maintaining by doing so little. This blows people's minds. >> Yeah. I think back in the day, like Adam, I I would uh go, you know, with that mentality where it was like I had to get the craziest workout and be consistent with that. Otherwise, there's nothing there for me to show up for. And so, I just don't think it was communicated that like you you could go in and you could actually like lift weights, but you don't have to do this elaborate long workout that was super high intense. Um it was just like that was the the overall thought process was like either you're training for some kind of um uh event activity sport. You're trying to get like in incredible shape or there was nothing really just about like maintaining a level of consistency and a good lifestyle, good habits and making it a healthy practice. And so I think like, you know, this shift and this mindset shift of like just being able to show up and like make sure my muscles are getting attention and keeping my metabolism, you know, where it's in a good place and then, you know, receiving a lot of the benefits and maintaining what I have is is huge. I'm curious if you guys over the years have like if if you can distill it down to just a couple or handful of things that have really changed in regards to this conversation for you. Like I I could think of like two things that were like like life life-changing for me in regards to the the topic that we're talking about right now. Uh one of those is kind of to the point that Justin's making right now. It was giving myself the permission that maybe I'll just go do uh three sets of squats. That's it. >> You know, and that and that's totally okay. >> Uh that was unheard of as teens, 20s, and early 30s. just I would never it was like I I got to go do this to the point where would have scoffed at me. >> Right. To the point where maybe your workout takes an hour. If you only have 30 minutes, you're like I can't I'm not going to go. Yeah. Or even or if I didn't have the the energy to to to to finish a full 45 50 minute workout, I wasn't then I wouldn't even go either. >> So whereas I was like, you know, it's been a few days since I've lifted. I don't really feel like lifting. I don't have a lot of time. All the all the excuses running through my head. I'm like, you know what though? I can go get just three sets. The squat's done. And just giving myself that permission was this huge unlock for me. One, >> it unlocked this realization of like to your point that something is better than nothing. The it also unlocked like, oh wow, even just that little bit of a stimulus maintained a lot of it didn't progress me. I didn't just switch to training that way and I got bigger, stronger, leaner, all way better. But it's like >> you didn't get out of shape. >> I didn't get out of shape. And I was like, "Oh, that's a whole that's all I had to do to just kind of m weather the storm." >> Today's program giveaway is maps aesthetic. If you want to win, leave a comment below this video. The first 24 hours that we drop it. Also, subscribe to this channel. Also, turn on notifications. If you do all of those, we'll check your comment. If you win, we'll notify you in the comment section. Also, brand new program right now, Maps 15 Powerlift, and it's half off. If you like the maps 15 format, 15 minutes a day, and you like the power lifts, bench press, deadlift, squat, and we also threw in uh threw in overhead press, this is the program for you. It's 15powerlift.com. That's where you get it. 15powerlift.com. Use the code December50 for the discount. Here comes the show. The second thing was uh not telling myself I can't have this, I can't do that, but being aware of what I was doing training volume-wise. Like I I when I when I have a lot of muscle, when when I'm built, like I feel like sal is built right now. I got a lot of metabolic flexibility. I can enjoy the bowl of ice cream. I can eat out. I could do a lot of things and still look really good and maintain because my training volume's there. My training intensity is there. and and I love those things and I can have that kind of balance when I'm not when I'm when I'm giving myself permission to only do three sets of something and I may only trained once that week or that I can't eat like that. And so it so what it looks more like is like h you know if I really want to do that I need to do these things and so I just tell myself that I don't tell myself no I can't have it. I say, "Well, you know, I didn't train this week. Like, if I I really want to eat that, then I should definitely make sure I get in the gym tomorrow and then I'll enjoy that thing tomorrow after dinner or whatever the thing is." And just that balance of uh not just like I say, eating like an [ __ ] whenever uh to and the permission of something is better than nothing. is just is completely uh changed how I maintain this kind of fit healthy physique always even when I'm quote unquote off. >> I like to think of it uh these days is like I'm keeping myself somewhat game ready. >> Uh and that's just because I like to get after it. I like going super intense and hard and but that's those are all periodic like I do seasons of it. So, I try to at least like, you know, do a period of a month, two months or so, like throughout the year where I'm just like really getting after it. Uh, but I don't want to the friction the the difference between not training going into then going into intensity, it's so substantial. like I'm not I'm not going in and my joints and everything are just, you know, aching and and I'm and I have like all these extra days I have to recover just to just to keep going. So, for me, it's like it it just keeps me uh it keeps that momentum there, but also like I I feel like when I want to, I can really express, you know, that side of me. Well, you could Okay, so you could put exercise uh into three general categories of of how you would use exercise. Uh the first one is just activity. So activity, there's health benefits to activity. The data on this is super clear. Like if you move throughout the day in an appropriate way, like you're not hurting yourself and beating yourself up, but you're moving throughout the day, you're much healthier than if you didn't move throughout the day. So there's activity. Then you have athletic performance. Uh exercise obviously is used uh for athletic performance, stamina, endurance, agility, power, all those different things. And then you have which kind of is connected to that second category which is which are adaptations. How does exercise get my body to adapt? What am I looking for? What am I looking for from a results perspective from exercise? So we're going to we're going to take athletic performance and adaptation. We'll combine them. Most people listening to this are not necessarily working out for dramatic athletic performance. Most people are looking for some kind of a fitness uh aesthetic change, body fat, muscle, health, you know, longevity, mobility, that kind of stuff. So, those are the two categories. Activity, adaptations. So, activity, very easy, everybody uh move throughout the day. Okay? So, uh if you want to improve your health, just don't sit down all day long. Okay? So, what does that look like? I don't know. get up and walk a few times a day uh after breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This just tackles it uh greatly for most people. The data shows that about 8,000 steps a day if you were to track your steps. Gives you the vast majority of all the results we'll get from daily activity. So, if you want all the health benefits of being active, you try to aim for around 8,000 steps a day. Some people would say 10,000, but the data seems to show around 8,000 is great. So, there's that. Okay. Now, let's look at structured workouts. Adaptation. Uh, it's not the activity part that I want from those. So, this is where people get confused. They're like, "Well, I got to do a lot all the time, otherwise it's a waste of time." No, no. We got the activity part handled. >> What we're looking for now are adaptations. What do I want? What kind of adaptations am I looking for from the exercise uh, you know, type that I pick? Well, what I want is something that's going to change my body composition. It's going to build muscle. It's going to help me burn body fat through a faster metabolism. It's going to make me look better. It's going to reduce pain. It's going to improve mobility. And so that's strength training. Strength training does all those things with with little uh time spent or at least in comparison to other forms of exercise. Like if you want to build muscle, boost your metabolism, burn body fat, strength training does that with way less time than other forms of exercise. Okay, so now let's get to the time. How much time do I need to devote to strength train to maximize its effects? Well, I'll tell you what the the data shows. >> Yeah. >> Two days a week. >> Always surprises. Two days a week of a full body workout will get you about 80% of all the results you'll ever get from strength training your entire life. Three days a week will get you 90%. So three days a week is 90%. So think of all your think of your body's ultimate potential. I'm not talking about 90% of the speed of results. Don't confuse that. So your pro your progress if you do this right is as fast as it's going to be. If everything's dialed in, there's a speed and that's that. You can't move it any faster. 90% refers to your potential. So, think of the most muscular, most fit you could ever possibly get. You'll get 90% of the way there with three days a week. You'll get 80% of the way with two days a week. And most people listening to this right now would be ecstatic with the 80% number. >> I don't I I would I would go further and say most people would be ecstatic with 50% of their 80% potential. >> Right. Right. So, so and this is just just 100%. Right. If you think of yourself right now, think of the ultimate body you could ever have and you got 80% of the way there with two days a week. Like, that's a pretty darn good trade. Okay, how much do I need to do to maintain that? Let's say I've been working out 3 days a week. Let's say I'm in the 90 percentile category. Like, I'm consistent three days a week strength training. It's 45 minutes to an hour each time, and I've been doing it now for a long time. Now, I go into a difficult season and I'm like, "Okay, uh, I can't I don't have the time to go to the gym three days a week consistently or the energy. Maybe I have a lot of stress. Maybe I have a new baby. Maybe I had a new job. Okay, holiday season. Okay, should I just not go because it's not worth it?" No. Here's what the data shows. One workout a week, one workout a week. And I'm not even talking about like a long workout, 30 to 45 minutes. This is what the data shows. One set per body part in that workout. Not three sets, one set. One set of squats, one set of presses, one set of rows, one set of overhead presses, one set of curls, one set of tricep extension and ab exercise, and you're out. That right there would keep your progress. In other words, you won't go backwards. >> Yeah. >> You're going to maintain what you've built. That's how little you need. So, when things get busy, that's what it could look like. Here's the other option. Now, here's in my opinion the better option. I like the second this next option I'm going to communicate because in my experience as a coach, this is the this is the the one that's most likely to be consistent. It's the one that builds the most momentum and it works with most people's schedules. This is just the better option from a just I've seen it in practice. Instead of doing that one workout a week or two workouts a week, 15 minutes a day, that's what you do. You do two exercises a day, one exercise, two every day. And if you miss one, big deal. You've got five more days. You can fit it in anywhere >> and you're done. And you're done. And for most people, not only does this prevent going backwards, >> most people actually go forwards with this because you could progress this. What do I mean by that? Not by doing more time, you just get stronger. >> Yeah. There there's also another benefit that is I I think greatly impacted that the studies don't show because in a in a in a controlled study where we just compare the total volume in sets and if it's equal in one day versus stretch over the results are pretty similar. But behaviorally speaking, that's right, when you've trained a lot of people and you see what happens and including yourself, if you've ever measured or paid attention to this, >> the the the guy or the girl that just does one or two exercises in the day, pay attention to that day, the rest of that day, versus the day that you just didn't do anything. So, let's say that person does that full workout just on Saturday because that's the only day that fits. That's fine. Then they have a great great workout that day, but then pay attention to what Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday looks like activity-wise for that person. Mhm. >> Lot more. It tends to be a lot more difficult for that person to uh actively go out and take the walk or or choose to do something more physical labor-wise versus the person that's created this habit of like every day I just do a lift. Every day I do one or two lifts. And that person who does that, they tend to do more around the house. They it's easier for them to get up and go take the walk. And so the study doesn't tell us everything because they they'll compare those two groups, right? and they'll control all things and they'll say, "Oh, it doesn't matter. You can do all that volume in one day a week or you can spit it out." And it's relatively close the same. So, do what you like. But what I'll tell you, and I'll agree with with S on this, is that I've seen it not only in my own life, but in through clients, >> those people that just make a habit, and that's this is goes back to the two things I've distilled this down to is just giving myself the permission to go do one exercise. That's right. >> I can just go do one thing. Because what I found was after I did that one, then I was like more I was more likely to help around the house and clean. I was more likely to choose to wash my own car instead of going through the drive-through car wash. I was more likely to go take that 20 minute walk then sit on the couch and walk. And that starts to add up and compound. >> It provokes you to move more. It really does energy. >> I'll sell it even more. Right? So let's say you're you're listening to this. You're like, "Okay, things are busy. Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to do 15 minutes a day. I'm going to do one or two exercises every day. And here's what it ends up really looking like. Four or five days because you miss a couple here and there. You got a crazy life. Stuff's going on right now. Fine. You did four. Let's say you did four. Let's say over the next 3 months you consistently did four 15 minute workouts a week. That equals 60 minutes. Physiologically, four 15inute workouts spread out over four days is less stressful on the body than one one-hour workout. same time. One one-hour workout produces more stress on the body. But here's the kicker. >> The one that produces less stress on the body actually gives you better results because of the less stress. Not less stimulation, the lower stress. Yeah. >> Splitting it up actually produces also better results. And then from a momentum perspective, I don't think it's hard for me to sell this, but if you got up and did one exercise a day or two exercises a day every single day, uh it's easier to stay consistent than it is to remember to do that one one hour workout a week. Now, I'm not saying you can't do one one hour workout a week. Again, that's perfectly fine. But doing a little every day seems to work much better. And by the way, the the data that I'm pulling from when I say one workout a week will keep your progress. These were collegeaged athletes. These were advanced people. It's the more advanced you become, >> the harder it is to maintain that level of muscle. So, the more muscle you build, the more strength you build, the harder it is to keep uh when you're when you're at that level. Okay? So, that study points to one workout once a week, one set per body part. I'll tell you this. I've seen other data that looks at more regular everyday people and it looks more like one workout every other week. >> So, where am I going with this? It doesn't Something is not just better than nothing. It's great. >> This episode's brought to you by Element. This is an electrolyte powder with no artificial sweeteners, no sugar, the right amount of sodium to actually make a difference. Tastes delicious. My favorite flavor is grapefruit, but they have many others. Go check them out. Go to drinklement.com/mindpump. on that link, you'll get a free sample pack of their most popular drink mix flavors included with any purchase. Here comes the show. >> Well, I think it it actually provides the discipline to get closer towards your optimal dose, >> which I think people don't even think like that or consider that uh what is what is moving me the furthest uh in this pursuit because it's adaptation at the end of the day. It's not just healing. >> That's right. And so you can throw a whole bunch of variables at your body and you can hammer your body all you want, but are you progressing? Are you getting further along uh towards your goal and I think, you know, taking it and peeling it all back to, you know, a more simplified approach, you can always build from there. It's like you can you can squeeze out more potential, but like a lot of times what people find is that, you know, a lot less is actually more beneficial. You know, one of the most challenging parts about this podcast for 10 years is overcoming how loud the noise is uh in the fitness space >> because the hype, the motivation, the beast mode, the all out, the no days off. >> It's this it's it's sexy. It's and it and it it speaks to a very small percentage of fitness fanatics that are in this massive echo chamber that are all doing shirtless selfies and motivating each other. Meanwhile, losing >> 80 to 90% of the population who go like either go for it's not for me or they try it, get their ass handed to them, realize that they can't or they won't do that forever and then they and then they quit and then they think that that's what you have to do. If you want to look like that, if you want to be a like fit, you you got to do all those things. And in reality, it's it's not. It's much simpler. And I there's a lot of there's the we get from other fitness people a lot of [ __ ] for this conversation because it's it's counter to what everybody else is is preaching and saying it's like oh those are the guys that the no cardio guys are the guys that are always telling people to do less and that's such a blah blah blah blah blah. It's it's crazy how many people they are losing that will not step into fitness because they make people believe that you you have to it's got to be this crazy sacrifice this crazy amount of stuff and I was guilty of this as a young trainer. I mean I bought into the hype train and that was our main job. Our main job was just to motivate and hype people up to keep them motivated to show up to the gym every day and do that hour workout and can get on that cardio machine and sweat it out. And it was just like, man, there is such a better, more appropriate way to do this. And it's actually nowhere near as hard as we make it sound. The hardest part is just being consistent and and just like this whole beginning of this topic is like, how do I make it just not disappear? How is it just always a part of my my life? And part of the way you do that is by not overcommitting to something ridiculous that 90% of the people wouldn't sustain >> that only 10% of the population can continue to and and committing to something that is very realistic. And listen, if you you want to end up doing more down the road, let's say you've been doing the two exercises a day, four days a week and it's been a year and you don't miss and you've been consistent, like cool, add 10 more minutes or do another two exercises and and progress and get that extra 10% you're talking about on the table. Like, but why don't you first >> prove to yourself that you're the person who who does that doesn't exercise every every day or at least tries every day and then gets at least four a week and do that consistently and watch the return. >> Well, there's a reason why we have a lot of fitness programs that we uh that we sell. Uh, and the ones that are the most popular, and I don't mean just the ones that we sell the most, but the ones that people follow most consistently and report the best results on are the 15minute uh versions of our programs. Uh, we have one right now, MAPS 15 powerlift. It's a powerlifting program, meaning you're focusing on building strength in the big three plus the overhead press. So, the goal is to hit PRs and all those, but it's organized in a way to where it's 15 minutes a day. uh these programs and we have many others are the ones that people are the most consistent following and we uh and we consistently get the best reviews because it's the most appropriate for most people. What do I mean by most appropriate? Gets you the best results. Uh in fact, mass 15 powerlift is 50% off right now. You can get it at 15powerlift.com. The code is December50 for that. Also, you can find us on Instagram. We'll see you guys there. It's at Mindput Media. All right. I know you like that episode. If you did, check this one out. How strong should you be? Ever wonder if you're actually strong or at least compared to people like yourself? Today's episode, we're going to talk about that and we're going to help you determine how strong you should be and also talk about the steps to getting strong as fast as possible. In fact, we're going to talk about the fastest way to get bigger and stronger all at the same time. >> Say Adam look at night. >> I Yes, it does actually. And I know that you wrote a really complex episode here, but I think Justin's metric has been the