Enthusiasm, without focus or form, is more dangerous than beneficial
Traveling a decent amount for work is full of unexpected side effects. One of the more common is working out in a lot of different gyms with a wide range of people. I could easily write a novel about how truly awful some of these gyms are.
Instead, I would like to focus today on the people at the gym: the people watching does not disappoint. Consistently, I have noticed what I have started calling ‘the old guy at the gym’ phenomenon.
What is it?
Quite frequently, there is an enthusiastic older gentlemen getting his workout in. He’s there, reasonably active, and blowing through his workout with great vigor. All good things.
The challenge is that same guy’s whirlwind of activity is almost entirely unproductive, and certainly dangerous.
For example – recently, I was on vacation in South Florida. One morning, I watch a fellow walk up to the dumbbells, grab two 35 pounders and go to work. 35’s aren’t light, so I was curious to see what he did with them.
It’s hard to capture in words the motion. The closest experience that comes to mind is what a bird does in a bird bath. The weights were moving around, up and down, forward and backward. Where they were supposed to go remains unknown.
After a minute or so of furious activity, he was done and off to the next. I think I saw him heading towards a barbell and a bench – watch out!
I’ve now seen this now play out all over the country – furious activity with the appearance of productivity. Kudos to these guys for getting into the gym – an admirable first step. The reality is though that the results are going to be limited, with a high risk of injury.
Why is this the case?
From working with my own trainer, reading extensively, and watching high quality Youtube content on the subject (h/t to Jeff Nippard’s channel), the science is clear on what promotes actual muscle growth. Focused and defined movement that push the muscle near to the point of failure. Lifting this way regularly and a good diet lay the foundation. Any single workout is inconsequential but enough stacked up, over time, move the needle.
Correct technique and movement may not even require extreme levels of weight – especially if you move slowly through the eccentric phase and pause at the bottom.
What matters most is focus – a strong mind/muscle connection, a knowledge of the correct movement, and consistent execution of it. (Yes – progressive overload matters to)
The guy in the gym has none of the above.
While he has enthusiasm, the reality is that his effort is largely being distributed across multiple muscle groups, reducing the effectiveness significantly. My guess? Memories of a younger time, maybe as far back as high school, keep the ego anchored on the amount of weight and not the specifics of the movement.
Would you rather have short impact or persistence?
Maximizing short-term impact is like a bottle rocket. It goes off with a whir of activity, but generates little long-term impression. Big movements with big weights looks impactful and may even feel that way for a time, but it misses something.
Contrast that with persistence. Persistence captures the power of compounding. The consistent application of force towards something done long enough can yield insane results. A simple movement done correctly over and over again is like the river that smooths out the hardest stone.
It is hard to do something with that degree of persistence. Most of us cannot simply stomach the boredom to do the same repetition over and over. The pursuit of excellence is anchored on this persistence.
Often, the “Old Guy at the Gym” is me. If I am distracted and unfocused, frequently what I see in the mirror is exactly what I don’t want to do. Going through the motions, but not well enough to be impactful.
The “Old Guy at the Gym” is halfway there. He has gotten off the couch and is active – a tremendous accomplishment. But sadly effort is not enough. To this, he must add focus and the endurance to pursue good form on each outing. Not changing may feel like a viable option, it has “worked” so far right?
This may be true at a conceptual level. Effort is being expended and may show some results. But this forgets the tremendous risk of bad form. Each outing, set and repetition are accompanied by a real, growing risk of injury. A Scoutmaster of mine used to say, ‘a thing worth doing, is worth doing correctly.’
Resetting to the right effort may not look impressive, and may even be downright humbling. But the opportunity for greatness is there, ripe for the taking, if he is willing.