I just finished reading Malcolm Gladwell‘s book Outliers. I had heard so many people talk about this book, so I finally picked it up at the Dallas airport to read on my flights back to Pittsburgh. It’s a great book, and as Gladwell is apt to do, he pulls together research and ideas that make us think outside our box.
I won’t go into the details of the book, but I do want to comment on the “10,000-Hour Rule” that he talks about in the early chapters. This “rule” is based on a study by Anders Ericsson, and the general idea of it is that a lot of ”overnight successes” actually achieved their success only after putting in about 10,000 hours of practice. Gladwell uses the Beatles for one of his examples.
I love this concept because it goes along with the age-old saying: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice!” Typically, there is no quick way to success. It takes work, and a lot of it.
Fitness, on the other hand, doesn’t follow this rule. As compared to working to achieve success with basketball, the violin, or acting, where it takes a lot of practice before success can be eventually achieved, fitness is a journey and a process that brings success beginning on Day 1. “Success” begins to happen as soon as we begin to “practice.” You don’t have to exercise regularly for five years to suddenly become fit. You begin to get fitter every day, and you see and feel the results all along the way. Success is measured by being on the journey, not by having “arrived.”
And as with accomplished musicians that continue to practice for hours a day to stay on top of their craft, so we as fit people need to continue to get regular exercise (practicing) to stay fit! Make a workable and sustainable fitness plan, and follow it. It’s not a difficult as it might seem. Once you get into the habit of fitness, it become second nature.
Gather no moss!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
This is great Brian! Very encouraging!
Thanks Joey!