“Nothing will work unless you do.” – Maya Angelou
The second step of the Plan, Do, Check, Act cycle is to do. This is simply doing the work you’ve planned. Conceptually it is very simple, but of course this is one of the hardest steps of the process as well since you need to be motivated to get out and do the work. At this point you should have your plan laid out with long term goals that are fed by midterm goals which are fed by short term goals. Once you have the short term goals, you work on the specific training plans that will help you get there. With the specific training plan laid out, it’s time to get to work.
This seems like a simple step but can be one of the hardest. You will need to make working out a priority, you will want to find the time slots that offer the least push back, you will still need to push yourself to get out and do it.
Make Working Out a Priority: Working out has to be a priority and it likely has to compete with many other things for your attention. Before you add working out, you are likely juggling work, family, friends, sleep, housework, etc. We all try to take on a lot, then we feel like we’re failing at most of it. Beating yourself up usually isn’t the answer, though sometimes you may need some tough love. Finding the right balance for you is tricky, but invaluable.
Find the Time: A tool I like to use to help manage priorities is time. If you can get to the point where you have designated times to do most activities, that makes things much easier when it comes to making decisions between 2 priorities. Things will interfere, but having a set workout time makes it easier to build the habit and stick to it. For weekdays, I am able to structure these to fit nicely before work and before bed, though on weekends, I still have yet to master the best times for me.
Push Yourself: Pushing yourself to get going is often the hardest part, even if you know it won’t be that long or that hard, getting that initial momentum may take all of your willpower. I have found once I get going, it’s a bit easier to stay going and once you get around halfway, often it’s easier to finish. Because of this, I try to push myself a bit harder to at least get ready and go out for a few minutes. When I’ve used this trick, most of this time I end up doing more than my minimum, sometimes I even finish the workout as planned. It’s important to note, there are times I get out there and realize something feels off and I stop, but these are few and far between.
Nobody is Perfect: You should not expect to hit every work out exactly how you have it planned. This will come up, you won’t feel well, life happens. I make my plans something that is realistic, if everything goes well, so I can shoot for 100% but I’m happy if I do at least 80% of my planned work each week. If I miss more than 20%, I know I need to revisit my plan and priorities to see if I am planning too much working out and/or improperly planning for other “surprises.” Both have happened several times. These percentages are just approximations, only you know if you’re giving it the attention it deserves. If you’re constantly avoiding something that should be a key workout, for example long runs or riding your bike, for example, both things I’ve done in the past, it may be time to pivot and pick another approach.
Be as consistent as you can with your working out and you will be rewarded for it. Also be honest with yourself, if something isn’t working or if it’s not a priority, adjust for something you can do and maintain consistently and you’ll be rewarded.