Long Term Thinking Is The Key To Sustained Fitness Success

You need to know something. About the long term perspective of fitness.

It’s not only important for your fitness success.

It’s vital.

So what am I talking about?

I’m talking about the macro game of fitness or in other words the long game.

Why is this important you might be asking? This is important for a plethora of reasons.

For instance:

1. It gives you a chance to make up for you mistakes.
2. Doesn’t care about perfection it only cares about you doing the most important things consistently.
3. Its’s not concerned about the minutiae only the fundamentals.
4. The long game is the most practical. In life things don’t always go our way. But if you stop focusing on losing loads of weight in the short term and focus on the long game where you lose less weight, consistently and let it become part of your life. This will be more sustainable.
5. The long game is where mastery happens. And you self actualise more and more of your fitness potential.

Lets Hone In On Each One Of These Separately It’s Essential For Long Term Success

1. The reason the long game gives you a chance for your mess ups is because it gives you time. You could mess up multiple times and still, over the long term get extraordinary results as long as you’re staying consistent most of the time.

In this fitness game you don’t have to be perfect you just need to be consistent. Most of the time. For example you go on instagram and see perfect physiques. And all of the impressions of perfection. Some of these people are on steroids.

The best thing to do is to take an evidence based approach instead of aiming for this superficial level of perfection that you see on instagram. Take the sustainable approach. Eat that chocolate bar. Have that piece of cheese cake. moderation is of the highest importance. But try and consume no more than 10-20% of your calories from junky goodness foods. Most importantly make the diet sustainable, stick to it for life.

The Fundamentals Are, In The Long Term, The Secret Sauce

2. As long as your focusing on the fundamentals the majority of the time. That is to say not getting into the stuff that isn’t practical like having x amount of bcaa’s or having the latest testosterone booster.

In short focus on the time proven methods that will get you from a-b things like progressive overload and energy balance. And the lifts and exercises that you’ll get the most out of. Like the squat bench press, and deadlift and overhead press.

3. The long game doesn’t care about protein timing, the rep tempo, the endless sets of bicep curls or the peck deck. It cares about the fundamentals. The long game doesn’t care about getting 6-7 workouts a week it only calls for one thing progress. This could be as little as 1-2 sessions per week if it’s what you’ll stick too.

4. The long game is the most practical because of a thing called life. You could be going on a business trip. You could be going on vacation, or to a wedding or a party. It could be anything. All that matters is that you get back on the path to success the next day.

All The Long Term Wants Is Continued Progress Over The Months And Years To Come, Not Perfection

Go to that party get a slice of that cake. And enjoy it. Because the long game is standing there thinking I don’t care, this is for life. There’s always tomorrow. I can get back on track.

5. The long game is where self actualisation and mastery occurs. Think about the first time you completed a squat. I bet it was downright dogs dinner. After 1, 2 , 3 years you have a much stronger squat. You have much better movement patterns and you’re that much closer to perfecting your form.

The long game is in short. The game for life.

Yes it’s fine to have goals like I want to get in shape for my wedding , or for a holiday/ trip. But what happens when the holiday is over.

Well you stop.

Until next time,

Next holiday.

But You Could Be And Have So Much More

If you had a why that made you shiver it was so meaningful. Then you would always have the long game intact and at the forefront of your prefrontal cortex.

Look at this guy he’s mastered his health and fitness he’s 96 years old and still staying in tip top shape. You know why. Above all he was in it for the long game.

This guy Charles Eugster, 96 years young thinks that “retirements a dirty word”. Likewise, I’d have to agree.

Staying Healthy And Fit Is Meaningful

If your like me and love working out. You’ll know what I mean. I love the feeling of leaving the gym after smashing some pr’s.

Approaching the fitness game as a long term thing and treating it as self improvement. Will help you stick to it for the long haul.

It can add a new surge of health and vitality to your life.

Carl Jung the swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst once said “The least of things with a meaning is worth more in life than the greatest of things without it.” A hobby like working out and keeping fit and healthy can truly upgrade your life for the better.

Sticking To The Long Game Will Teach You Important Virtues

Patience- Patience is one of the most commonly touted virtues. For a good reason. If you can just trust the process stay patient. And do it anyway the universe will benefit you greatly.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye. shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh. findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Matthew 7:7- 8 the bible.

So the longer you stay patient and focus on the fundamentals the door shall open to you. Trust the process do what needs to be done, and it will happen. You will reach your fitness goals trust me.

Tenacity- Tenacity is the ability to stick to something and never give up. This virtue can not only be trained In your fitness and health but in the long game. If you just focus on the long term goal then you will be able to sacrifice yourself now for the future outcome which is a better you. A healthier you.

Integrity- This is the virtue of doing what you say you’ll do. And by taking the long term approach to your fitness. And to keep on going no matter how far you’ve fell of the wagon. All that matter is to achieve what you set out to do. In this case it is to get stronger, healthier and fitter.

The Micro Game Is Part Of The Macro

So the micro is the day to day. The macro is the months and years ahead. So to fully comprehend what I’m saying you need to understand that the macro is the long term and the micro is the short term.

If you just focus on what you can do in the short term to reach your goals. The fundamentals. And practice and implement them everyday then you will get amazing results in the long run.

Benchmark Your Success

What ever physique inspires you, set it as a benchmark. Aim for it consciously and with intent. And in the long run you will get there trust the universe.

In stoic philosophy there is an extremely emphasised message that I want to convey to you. You are only in control of you. Your mind . Your choices.

Whatever goes on in anyone else’s mind. Screw that. It’s not worth thinking about. Every moment direct your energy and free will to your goals and ambitions. And in the macro you will get there.

If you want to learn more about benchmarking your success. Thereby focusing your attention on what actually works, read the one thing. This book is shown below.

Everybody Wants It Right Now

How often have you heard someone say that they’ve lost 4-6 pound in one week. And there absolutely ecstatic about it. In theory this sounds like they’ve done a good job. But it’s unsustainable and doesn’t fit in with the macro and long term aim.

Focus on the sustainable fat loss of 1% of your body weight per week. This is what’s going to help you stick to your long term aim and eventually help you reach your goals.

The Only Difference Between Where You Are Now And Where You Want To Go Is Implementing The Habits That Will Take You There

So you now know that you need to stick to the long game. Your actions now need to be aligned with your goals. The trick to succeeding in the macro is making it as easy as possible in the micro.

Some ways you can make it easier for you in the micro are:

1. Eat 3-5 fruits and vegetables a day and go shopping for them once a week.
2. Go to the butchers, supermarket each week and stock up on meat for the rest of the week.
3. Pay for a rolling gym membership to stay accountable in the long run. Or you could even buy home gym equipment like a pull up bar. And weights.
4. Go on a walk every day
5. Plan out your day with a morning to do list. And always make time for your workout. And make sure you aim to reach your caloric intake everyday depending on your goals.

There Will Be Distractions And Times When You’ll Mess Up, But It’s Okay As Long As You Have The Long Term In Mind

Accept that there will be times when you’ll mess up but don’t be disheartened by it. It’ll only make your resolve better.

Make fitness a priority.

This is whats magical about the long game. You can mess up now and then. Thats okay. You can still go out and have a good time. You can go to that restaurant and eat that 3 course meal. But remember, do the right things on a consistent basis/most of the time and these blips will mean nothing in the long run.

Examples Of Long Term Thinking And Short Term Thinking

So Peter wants to lose weight. Because his holiday is in a couple of weeks time.

So Peter goes on a detox diet and only drinks meal replacement shakes.

So the first week he loses 6 pounds. And he thinks that’s great.

Little does Peter know that his calories are extremely low for a guy of his build.

For the most part Peter loses water weight.

And a minuscule amount of fat.

After the first week he’s so sick of eating so few calories.

He quits , goes on holiday Indulges (which is fine in moderation now and then) comes back from holiday and never wants to start a fat loss diet ever again.

So that’s only focusing on the short term game.

Which is extremely futile.

Now A Long Term Thinking Example

Meet Duncan.

Duncan is also a few weeks away from going on holiday.

Duncan reads some good articles and books that are evidence based.

He determines how many calories he should be eating and puts himself in a sustainable calorie deficit of 20-25%.

For the first 2 weeks before his holiday he eats a high protein diet and maintains a calorie deficit.

Duncan loses a steady 1% of his bodyweight for each of those 2 weeks.

But Duncan is going on holiday now.

Duncan stays calm and doesn’t panic.

He knows he should eat at his maintenance calories to allow himself a bit more freedom while on holiday and surrounded by amazing types of food.

Duncan also reminds himself why he’s on holiday. He asks himself the important question. Why am I going on holiday in the first place?

After a while pondering this question he comes up with the answer.

“To have a great time with the family that I love and so that I can make memories for life.”

So Duncan did just that.

Duncan went on holiday, had a fantastic time and didn’t put on an ounce of weight.

He got back home after holiday.

He continued his sustainable calorie deficit.

And he lost fat effortlessly while still managing to enjoy his life.

He then got to a healthy body fat percentage and went down the rabit hole of learning how to have a healthy meaningful life.

Reading all the books he could get his hands on.

And he did just that.

Above all he stayed consistent.

Most importantly he emphasised long term thinking. As long as you do the most important things on a consistent basis they add up tremendously over time.

Conclusion

To sum it up:

1. Set a goal and benchmark meaning an idea of what you want your physique to look like.
2. Understand that it will take a long time but that’s okay. Because a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
3. Understand that if someone else has done it. You can too.
4. Fitness and health can provide meaning to your life and dramatically improve every single part of it.
5. Fitness will teach you some important virtues like patience , tenacity and integrity.

Thank you for reading! I appreciate every single one of my readers.

Have a fantastic day.

If you want to learn how to do a workout from home checkout my bodyweight article below.

https://henrypagetcom.wordpress.com/2020/03/27/a-bodyweight-routine-to-maintain-or-even-improve-your-physique/

On the other hand if you’re struggling to lose fat check out the 5 mistakes that are stopping you from getting lean article. Below.

https://henrypagetcom.wordpress.com/2020/04/02/5-weight-loss-mistakes-that-are-stopping-you-from-getting-lean/