Episode 17: How Olympic-Level Routines Protect Everyday Independence

We use the Olympics as a lens to show how world-class routines turn pressure into performance and why that same rhythm protects everyday independence. The focus shifts from chasing motivation to building simple, repeatable habits that prevent the quiet drift into limitation.

• athletes’ routines as the real advantage
• training for life and longevity, not medals
• the quiet drift that erodes independence
• rhythm beats motivation during busy seasons
• the simple drumbeat: sleep, hydrate, protein, move, strength train
• adapt plans after setbacks instead of stopping
• coaching for structure, safety and less decision fatigue

If you ever need any help, reach out to us. Love to connect with you all and help you along your fitness journey

Transcript

Olympics Spark A Bigger Lesson

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Well, hello and welcome to another episode of the 1% better podcast with your host, Josh Williams. Thank you all for tuning in today. So we are wrapping up the Olympics. If you don't know, the Olympics started last week and they're wrapping up this week. I'm always surprised every four years how much I get into the Olympics, into some random sports that I never pay attention to nor follow, and also don't know the scoring systems or rules to them, such as you know, curling. Like I got surprisingly excited watching a really great uh shot or whatever they do, and they curled it around and you know did something cool or the figure skating, watching people twirl around and do cool tricks and also just kind of see sometimes the failure and you know the heartache that you see these storylines knowing these people have just dedicated most of them, their their lives to this moment. And it's just crazy. So but it's just so cool to see these gifted individuals be able to perform at the highest level. But what really kind of stood out to me is that is this commonality of their routines, of their their focus. And that's kind of what has stood out to me while watching it this year in the Olympics. This understanding that these athletes train for four years for this one moment in time, but most of the work happens when nobody's watching. And it's this understanding of when we look at the difference between good pe good and great, a lot of times the separation is not the talent, but it is the rhythms that they put in place to be successful. Now, this isn't to say like they're not gifted, they are, but at the same time, these are people that are gifted and at the same time have the ability to focus. And so this is understanding that this power of routine, athletes build these predictable cadences. They were doing an interview with the flying tomato name escapes me right now, Sean White, and I used to watch him growing up, and it's uh cool to see him now that he's uh promoting his own year line and all that jazz. But you you understand that they they interviewed him. I was like, how could you prepare for this game? And it's and not be overwhelmed. The understanding is that it's any other day. You wake up at the same time, you eat the same meal, you do the same routine, the same workouts, the same exercise, the same uh music. And so when you get ready for the event, it's just another another day. And it's the understanding that when the pressure arises for a lot of these athletes, they can fall back on that rhythm and on that routine. And it's really no different than what we see with someone that does very well taking care of their health and fitness, and someone that does that that struggles. I'm not saying does not, but that struggles. And that's so how does this this apply? You know, most of us we're not training for gold medals, you know, we're we're training for life. There's no like single crescendo moment that we're training for, like an athlete. We're not there's not something out there four years from now. I'm gonna give it my all, and that's why I'm training right now. Uh, most of our goals are longer, it's longevity-based goals. And so this is things like, man, I you know, summer's coming up. I don't want a garden with back pain. I want to be able to traverse stairs, I want to be able to enjoy vacation. I I don't want to have to say no to something because I don't feel confident that I can do it or my body can handle it. And so we're not training to necessarily win something, we are training so we're not losing something, and it's a different method. But you have to understand that there's this quiet drift, and so this drift is what we call our independence. We slowly drift away from independence. When we stop working, nothing dramatic happens. So when we stop when we stop working out, nothing necessarily dramatic happens. The next day, life goes on. But over time we start to avoid things quietly. Maybe it's not a full conscious decision, but we just made this decision instead of this one. And we might just be a little bit more cautious when we do something, or a little less confident when we do something, and this may be a little bit more sif now when we do that than than before.

SPEAKER_00 4:44

So independence is not preserved automatically, it's not a right that we just get.

SPEAKER_01 4:53

It is built with intention over time. We think about the benefits of working out, we rarely think about the cost of stopping. So when we're excited, we think, oh, this workout will benefit me, like I need to work out because we're finding the point. But we rarely think of when we're in it, when we're feeling good because we're in that routine of what happens if we stop.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

And so that's why rhythm over motivation.

SPEAKER_01 5:25

So understand motivation fade fades away, life gets busy, we regress sometimes, we miss workouts. That's all normal. But the key is always returning to a rhythm. So I like to call it like the drum beat. And so that's getting your sleep, hydrating, eating protein, moving daily, strength training twice a week, rinse and repeat. That's the rhythm. Sleep, drink, water, eat your protein, move and strength train. And so some months you're gonna progress, some months you're gonna maintain. The goal is to stay in the game, it's to keep the rhythm going, it's not to win every day, to win every every month, but it's to keep the rhythm going. And so what matters is not where you used to be. That's a big thing we get caught up on, it is what is appropriate for where you are now. So a lot of times our past will mess us up in our rhythm because we're comparing to then, versus what matters is what are we doing right now and where are we going right now. That's what matters, not something 20 years ago.

Coaching To Sustain The Rhythm

SPEAKER_00 6:38

And so my closing message with all this, you know, Olympic athletes have coaches, they don't wing it, they constantly get the feedback and they stay within a rhythm. And so independence works the same way.

Closing Encouragement And Help

SPEAKER_01 7:00

So independence is not something we hope to keep, it is something that we build, and so we have to fall in love with the rhythm. The rhythm was what gives us freedom. And so understand that this is what the structure that we as coaches uh provide is the goal is to help you keep that rhythm, to also help so you don't get decision fatigue. So when I come in to work out, am I thinking about what to do? No, as a coach, I can help you know what to do. I can also keep you in line so that you don't get injured, that you stay safe, so we can keep this rhythm going longer and longer. Because if I get injured, it doesn't stop the rhythm. It changes it, but doesn't stop it. But a lot of us, you know, that has been our rhythm. Something comes up and we stop. And that's where a coach comes in to keep us going and staying online. So again, I just want to encourage you all. I hope you're all enjoying the Olympics. It's awesome. But remember that what makes them truly amazing, yes, they're gifted, but it's the structure and the rhythm and the ability to keep doing it over and over again until they get the results that we want. So stay strong, keep lifting, get stronger. And if you ever need any help, uh reach out to us. Love to connect with you all and help you along your fitness journey.