Always "Switching It Up."

I'm the type of person who likes to "switch it up." I don't like doing the same thing over and over again, because then I would just get bored with it. But having said that, I do see the benefits of doing the same stuff over and over again, even to the point of boredom. In fact, being a "creature of habit" would guarantee you success much more quickly than being a person who needs to "switch it up."

There are three exercises that I do at home, and I do NOTHING else: pull-ups, push ups, and one-legged squats (which truly works the muscles around your ankle and knee joints better than double-legged squats do). I don't switch up anything. And yes, it gets boring. But this is what I'm doing: I'm making exercise a part of me. I'm building up a strong habit by doing the same stuff over and over again. If I keep switching it up, then I'd eventually stop what I'm doing because I would get too easily bored.

Here's another reason why I keep doing the same stuff: because I want to get BETTER and BETTER at it. If I could only do 10 pull-ups now, then I want to do 15 pull-ups later. If I could only do 40 push ups now, then maybe I could do 50 the next time. The more I keep doing the same stuff, the better I would get at it and the STRONGER I would become.

But let's say that I could only do 5 push ups on my toes and then got bored with push ups. So, I switch to doing chest flies and I could do about 20 of them with 10-lbs weights. Then I get bored with that and started doing tricep chair dips, and then got bored with that and started doing something else. Eventually, I would want to return to doing push ups again, and guess how many push ups I would be able to do on my toes? At best, just five. How is that? Because every time I switch my routines, I am starting from scratch. Even if the routine is working the same muscles as push ups, the new routine will not work those muscles the same way that push ups would. Every routine you switch to would work the same muscles differently and at different intensity levels.

Now if your goal is to simply stay physically active, then switch up all you want. But if you have a SPECIFIC goal, then switching up would be your downfall. You need to keep doing what you're doing over and over until you get better and better at it. Some of you noticed that I have quite a big chest -- I mean, my chest is not bodybuilder-quality, but it's big enough for people to notice. I didn't get this chest by switching up my routines.

If you attend my ZUMBA classes, you may notice that the last leg track has several "tiers" in the song and the moves are all the same. The first tier is hard, but then we take a quick break. The second tier is harder, and we take another break. By the third or fourth tier, we're about done because our legs are smashed! This is what it feels to actually accomplish something: you do it over and over until you could FEEL the work. Why are the legs getting smashed? Because they're doing the same thing over and over until they are wearing out.  

In fact, in my ZUMBA classes, the moves stay the same more or less. The music would change rather often, but the routine is pretty much the same. But one song could make the same routine harder than another song could. My method in my classes is to use the power of consistency and progression to help you get a good work out. If I kept switching up the moves every time you came to class, you would spend so much time trying to figure things out that you wouldn't even get a work out!

Goals are for people who are willing to keep a routine. If you are willing to do the same thing over and over again until you could FEEL the work, then you could obtain what you're looking for. But every time you "switch it up," then you would be starting from scratch. Always changing your routine is no better than quitting a project and starting on another project. 

I've already mentioned that I'm learning several languages at once: Spanish, German, Greek, and recently I added Russian and Hebrew. Good gracious, what's wrong with me??? Of all these languages, Spanish is becoming a bit boring to me. But guess what? My Spanish is becoming better and better. When I listen to the words being spoken, I could quickly interpret what's being said. Whenever I listen to the Bible being read in Spanish, I could understand it more and more. Now, imagine if I got so bored with Spanish that I stopped learning it so I could learn Russian. What's going to happen to my Spanish? Yep, my Spanish would suffer and I'm going to forget stuff. If my goal was to simply keep my brain active, then it doesn't matter if I become fluent in a language or not. But my goal is to eventually speak a language, so switching up my routine is a no-no. I need to keep at it even if I get sick of it, and when I start getting sick of it, that is when I become better at it.

Instead of always changing your routine, do MORE with the routine that you have. If you're a dude and you want a big chest, do push ups. When the push ups become easy, then do MORE push ups. Do the push ups faster. Do the push ups slower. Put weight on your back when you do push ups, but keep doing push ups. Don't switch to chest press, chest flies, or anything else. Just stick with one routine and MAXIMIZE it. If you're going on a road trip and you keep changing your course, how long would it take you to get to your destination? Yes, a long time! Good answer! 

Remember: if it worked one time, then it would work again. If the routine you've chosen has produced some results, then it would eventually produce more results. Stick with it and get better at it. Don't get distracted with all the latest...anything. Don't allow yourself to get so bored that you feel the need to change. Keep doing what works and do it better.