WHAT MATTERS MOST

"We want to get to the starting line 80% in shape and 100% healthy rather than the other way around,"

said legendary track coach Harry Marra.

I love this philosophy.

It means don't let your training compromise your health; there's no benefit in being sore, fatigued, stiff, or mentally drained.

Better to do less and be mostly fit, but physically and mentally healthy because your overall health is the ultimate determinant of what you can do anyway.

It means undertraining is better, and smarter.

But the fitness industry isn't full of smart.

We have been convinced that more is better, and it certainly doesn't get us to the "starting line" at 6AM each day in great shape or healthy. 

It has always been a broken model.

I've got a better one. 

The fitness industry is like the pet owner who puts the leash on their dog and takes him out for miles of jogging. Does the dog really want to do it? No, but he does because he feels like he has to.

So while the dog is begrudgingly getting closer to hip dysplasia and ACL repair (yes, that's the new popular surgery these days), the cat is back in the comfort of a warm house curled up in a ball sleeping peacefully.

And when the cat wakes up he will yawn, arch his back and instantly be able to leap up onto a counter top or go outside and swat a bird out of the air.

Be more like a cat.

A few seconds of maximum isometric effort applied in your strongest joint angles creates the highest loads on your nervous system. 

This is the tide that lifts all boats.

As I wrote in my last article, Bullet Proof Your Body, maximum isometric effort produces a change within your nervous system that increases your capacity.

It means your comfort zone for taking on any activity at any effort level is possible.

It makes you 100% in shape.

And what about your health?

The beauty of isometrics is no inflammation, no soreness, no fatigue, no joint pain, and no "grind."

Rather than subtract from your health, it makes a positive contribution to being 100% healthy.

You don't need to get more things done. You need to get on a viiiv and get the right thing done. Focus on what matters most — power.

Get to your starting line everyday 100% in shape and 100% healthy.