Whilst this is the literal definition of momentum, I talk about it in a slightly different manner when it comes to health and fitness.
For me, momentum is pretty simple. It’s about getting clear about your goals and then setting a plan in place to achieve them. It’s also important to understand exactly what it is that you need to do in order to achieve your goals. I still see a lot of people who’s training style, method and intensity doesn’t match their goals. Here are some examples of what I mean by that.
Example 1 GOAL - "I want to get stronger and add muscle”. So your plan should be: PLAN - Eat plenty of quality protein and whole foods and lift hard and heavy 3-4 times per week.
Example 2 GOAL - “I want to lose body fat, decrease my overall weight and get fitter”. So your plan should be: PLAN - Get your eating in order and move for 20-30mins everyday, getting your Heart rate sufficiently high enough.
Now, the next step is key, but again, too many people get stuck here. They overthink their plan. They procrastinate.
“Should I do bike or stepper”? "Should I eat breakfast or train on an empty stomach?” “Which is best? Freeweights or Machines?”.
Still no momentum, just more of the same thinking, planning, intending………but never doing!
So my response is simple, just start, do something. Even it’s not perfect, its better than doing nothing, there is no chance of getting any momentum if you’re not doing something, if you’re not moving forward.
And by starting something, anything, you’ll quickly find that you’ll spend less time thinking, planning and intending and more time doing and executing - now you have momentum!
Furthermore, as you get fitter, stronger and generally more conditioned, you’ll be able to train harder, more frequently and recover faster, which creates more……momentum!
Rather than dread your morning workout you’ll bounce out of bed and attack it. Rather than overthink and procrastinate as you once did, you’ll simply grab your training gear and get stuck into it.
Momentum, the impetus gained by a moving object, that moving object is now you.
So the take home message? Set some goals, create a plan, get your gear and get after it.
