When it comes to exercise, sometimes we can focus on prioritising giving 100% effort, 100% of the time but this may not be realistic in the long term. Instead, our exercise psychologist Emma Slade recommends making small incremental changes on a daily basis. Introducing… the compound effect AKA the 1% rule!
Essentially, 100% consists of 100 1%’s. So it’s all about focusing on the small yet important 1% choices and actions that will get us to the 100% we’re aiming for. These smaller pieces seem insignificant when you look at them individually but the reality is that when put together they’re really meaningful.
To really break it down, think of this rule as similar to the notion of brushing your teeth. Brushing your teeth for a whole hour once a week is nowhere near as effective as brushing them for 2 minutes daily. Developing a consistent and regular teeth brushing habit will compound and you’ll be able to flash your pearly whites with pride.
This is why the 1% rule in exercise is so important. Too often we try to rush the process. We all want to be fitter and stronger right now, we want to shed all the extra weight by yesterday but Emma says that this can lead to engaging in exercise in a way that isn’t sustainable. When we focus on building exercise habits that incrementally promote us towards our 100% goal, we work in a way that sets us up for long term success.
We can also think about the 1% rule in the opposite way. If you make a 1% misstep today, such as taking the elevator instead of the stairs, you won’t notice much of a difference. However, if you do this every day, eventually the accumulation of outcomes will become apparent.
So when it comes to our exercise, we need to ideally put more focus upon the small things that promote us towards positive change. If we eventually want to do 4 Boxx sessions a week, starting with 2 sessions a week will compound to us then being able to do a third session, which then compounds to adding a fourth session.
To help you with your Boxx session goals, we’re offering a one month free trial to our app via our website. Sign up here: www.boxxldn.com
