The #1 Fitness Tip That No One Is Talking About (Yet!)

Are you frustrated with the same old fitness advice and lackluster results?

What if I told you there's a groundbreaking fitness tip that no one is talking about—yet?

This tip can revolutionize your approach to health and fitness. It's so straightforward that you'll wonder why it's been hidden for so long.

Discover the eye-opening study from the European Journal of Applied Physiology and hear the compelling story of one of my clients who adopted this principle and experienced incredible health improvements.

Join us as we deliver practical strategies for making fitness an integral part of your daily routine, from starting small to scheduling non-negotiable workout sessions and tracking your progress for lasting motivation.

Tune in to the latest episode of The 2% Solution Podcast to uncover the secret that could completely transform your fitness journey. Don't miss out on this shocking revelation—your path to fitness success will become much clearer!

Resources for This Episode

• Whole Life Fitness Manifesto
• European Journal of Applied Physiology
• Listen to me narrate the Book here.

Chapters

• 0:08 Consistency Over Intensity in Fitness
• 10:16 The Power of Consistent Fitness

Transcript

Dai Manuel: 0:08

Hey, hey, hey, my wellness warriors, welcome back to another episode of the 2% Solution. I'm your host, diamond Well, and today I'm about to drop this tip that no one's talking about yet. It's one of those things that can truly transform your approach to health and fitness, and it's so simple that you might wonder why you didn't think of it before. So grab your favorite bevy, get comfy and let's dive into the number one fitness tip that's been flying under the radar but is about to change everything. All right, let's set the stage here.

Dai Manuel: 0:43

We've all heard the usual fitness advice Eat clean, train hard, get plenty of sleep, drink lots of water and don't get me wrong, those are all crucial. But what if I told you that there's one element that ties all of these things together, making your efforts in the gym and kitchen even more effective? Well, here it is Consistency over intensity. Let me say that again Consistency over intensity. Yeah, you heard me right. It's not about how hard you can go in a single workout. It's about showing up consistently, day in and day out, even if it's just for 10 or 15 minutes. And here's the thing Most people are so focused on pushing themselves to the limit every time that they forget. The real magic happens when you commit to small, consistent actions over time. Consistency is like the why of our health and fitness journey. It gives purpose and direction to our efforts. Intensity, on the other hand, is really how we train. It's about the effort we put in during each session. Now let's dig into the numbers. According to a study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology, participants who engage in consistent, moderate intensity exercise over six months saw greater improvements in cardiovascular health and muscular endurance compared to those who participated in sporadic high-intensity sessions. It's the classic tortoise and hare scenario. It's the classic tortoise and hare scenario. Slow and steady truly wins the race.

Dai Manuel: 2:28

I've seen this firsthand with clients over the years. Those who focus on consistency, who show up regularly, even if it's for shorter, less intense workouts, they often achieve better results than those who go all out and then burn out. It's about building a lifestyle, not just checking off the boxes as we go. So let me share a quick story with you. A few years back, I was working with a client who was very frustrated because they weren't seeing results they wanted, despite hitting the gym hard a few times a week, and what I mean by that was supposed to be three or four times a week, but it would often turn into one or two. We sat down and took a hard look at their routine, their commitments. What we found was that, while they were crushing it during the workouts, they were inconsistent, missing days, not keeping up with the routine. And so we lacked in that consistent effort, that daily, regular deposit, really, of intentional activities to help us along, to help us be a little bit better every day, be a little bit healthier. Just by 2%, right, it's not huge. But what was incredible was they had a reset. They decided, you know what, what's more realistic for my life and how full my life is at this moment? They had a couple of young kids, they had a full business that they were scaling, a very healthy relationship with their spouse and lots of other passion and personal commitments to passion projects.

Dai Manuel: 4:04

I was trying to say and sure enough, sure enough, when we stopped worrying about the intensity and what are we going to do in the gym, when we started focusing on what are days that we can do something physical for ourselves. Where's that opportunity? Every 24 hours? And it would have to change on the week to week. This is how I do my own calendar. Even Now, when I look at my week to week, I try to block in the family stuff as well as my fitness stuff. First, because I know if I prioritize those two things, I feel really good at the end of the week, like I've had a fulfilling week and I've honored the things that are most important. Now, on top of that, around those things, I plug in all the other stuff that's important too, like my client calls my podcasting right, my own personal passion, projects like Toastmasters or other public speaking opportunities. Either way, if we don't prioritize what's important, it often will just get forgotten or shoveled off to the side or replaced by something else, because that's just the way life flows, man. We only got so many inventory spots of time every day, and once they're gone, they're gone. So how do you build up consistency?

Dai Manuel: 5:24

Here are a few practical tips that I think will be helpful. There's five of them for you today. Number one I've shared before start small. Begin with something manageable. Just 10 to 15 minutes a day of movement with purpose. Whether it's a walk, some bodyweight exercises, quick yoga session, I mean it doesn't matter. Just get moving. 10, preferably 15 minutes, which is 1% of your 24 hours.

Dai Manuel: 5:47

If you haven't checked out the Whole Life Fitness Manifesto or some of the early episodes of season one, where I narrate the book that I wrote many years ago called the Whole Life Fitness Manifesto. I'd like to invite you to go check it out. I've included the links in the show notes. You to go check it out. I've included the links in the show notes, but it might be a wonderful place just to get started but also to get some inspiration on how to maximize those 15 minutes that you're going to be committing to moving with purpose.

Dai Manuel: 6:09

Number two you got to schedule it. Treat your workouts like appointments you can't miss. If I was going to give you $500 for every workout you did, I think you would figure out a way to do multiples a day, wouldn't you? So just treat them like an important commitment you cannot miss. Put them on your calendar and stick to them. Number three track your progress. Keep a log of your workouts.

Dai Manuel: 6:36

Seeing your consistency over time can be incredibly motivating. Believe me, I've got days, weeks, even months at times where I feel like I'm not seeing a lot of progress at the gym. And it's tough. We all hit plateaus from time to time, and even at times we sometimes regress, we actually move backwards before we can move forwards again, and definitely when you're training consistently, especially for a sport at a competitive level. This is common and I used to really struggle with that right, but inevitably when I really became a keener with logging my workouts.

Dai Manuel: 7:13

So I use an app called Wattify. It's something that we use at the gym as well, that I train and coach at, and I find it a really great app. It allows me to track all my workouts but also compare how I've done with similar workouts in the past, so I can see oh, last time I did this, I did X amount of weights. You know like I can be like. Oh, my bench press. Last time I PR'd, you know, at one rep I got a 305. I'm working towards my 300, by the way, not quite there yet. I'm speaking it into the future, I'm manifesting it. But regardless, I can look back and say, oh, okay, well, I nailed 285 for one. Well, maybe today I'm going to try for 290, right, and if I don't get it, that's okay. Maybe I don't even get the 285 again, maybe I end up with only 280 that day. Because I'm tracking it, I can at least get a good indication of where I'm at, how I've been progressing or not, and be able to look at things a little bit more logically, because it's the data that gives us extreme clarity and confidence to make better decisions.

Dai Manuel: 8:13

So track your progress. Number four find a workout buddy or, as I say, an account to buddy, because accountability is key. Find someone who will hold you to your goals and vice versa. Okay, it's a mutually respective relationship where you have to honor one another, but when you make a commitment to that person, you keep it and that person helps you honor that, and you do that for each other. Number five be kind to yourself.

Dai Manuel: 8:43

This one's critical, not always easy, because I know we can always be our own worst enemies and beat ourselves up before anybody else does. But my invitation to you is don't beat yourself up. If you miss a day, just get back on track the next day. Remember it's about progress and not perfection, the fact that you're going to show up. You're going to show up for yourself. You're going to do some of that movement with purpose. You're going to reap the rewards for that effort, that intentional effort. But remember, be kind, don't beat yourself up.

Dai Manuel: 9:19

Life happens, things happen. This week my daughter she had her wisdom teeth out. I had to rearrange a lot of stuff on my schedule and I'm okay with that. It happens she doesn't get her wisdom and teeth every week, thank goodness, by the way. Recovery's been a bit stalled, so I had to make some adjustments, right, but it happens. Did I forego a workout? I did one day. I decided to do a little bike ride when I could, a little bit later in the day instead. So again, you know, be able to modify on the fly, because, if you can, it's going to make life a little bit more smooth going.

Dai Manuel: 9:50

Okay, now resources. A few final thoughts. If you want to dive deeper into this topic, I highly recommend checking out resources. Like I'm going to say it, my book, the Whole Life Fitness Manifesto, link to the show notes, as well as studies from the European Journal of Applied Physiology. They got some great stuff, because these are great starting points to understand the power of consistency in your fitness journey. All right, my wellness warners.

Dai Manuel: 10:16

That's it for today's episode of the number one fitness tip no one is talking about. Well, at least they are now right and you're going to keep talking about it, because it's consistency over intensity. Remember, it's not about going all out every time. It's about showing up day in and day out and making small, consistent efforts that add up over time. Thanks for tuning in to the 2% Solution. If you enjoyed this episode, share with a friend who might need a little reminder that consistency is the key, and don't forget to follow us on social and leave a review if you love the podcast. Stay consistent, stay strong and keep pushing your limits. I'm Diamond Well and you've been listening to the 2% Solution. Let's keep thriving together and I'll see you next time.