“Being open minded; it doesn’t mean believing everything because you would like it to be true. Being truly open minded is about being prepared to change your beliefs based on the evidence, or the lack of evidence. Otherwise, you can be so open minded that your brain falls out.” – Darren Brown (Infamous, 2014)

In my last post I talked about fitness and health and making it a part of our identity. But that is easier said than done. Habits are hard to break, change, replace, etc. It just so happens that 2 days ago I came across Mel Robbin’s 5 Second Rule (link to a YouTube video below). After watching her in the video below and a podcast she did with Lewis Howes, I bought the book (Kindle version, ’cause I’m still in Africa) and I’m liking it. I am even starting to use it. It’s been a productive couple of days, even when the power is out. So I recommend checking it out and seeing if it works for you in helping make some key changes in your life. In case you’re wondering: yes, as soon as you get the impulse or thought to do something productive, count backwards from 5 to 1 and “blast off,” as she would say. It really is so simple, you will be wondering why you have never thought of it yourself.

This leads to the second book I’ve read: Dr. Martin Gabala’s “One Minute Workout.” Spoiler alert! Your workout will take longer than a minute, but this book is all of his research on High Intensity Interval Training nicely compiled into an easy-to-read-and-follow document.

If time is your biggest excuse for copping out of exercising, he nips that one in the bud with his research. So, I suggest you get a hold of this book, too. If you have been following me for a while, none of what he writes will come to you as a surprise. I’ve been using his research since he first started publishing over 10 years ago, but it’s still a nice book to have on the shelves as a resource.

This is where I piece to the two together and get my totally mathematically-incorrect equation, because time is not the only reason for copping out. Exercise is hard. It’s difficult. When done right, it’s a real stress on the body. Who wants that? But we need it! If we really want to enjoy the benefits it provides, we have to suck it up and do it. That is where Mrs Robbin’s 5 Second Rule comes in. As soon as you think about jumping on the bike and doing a few sprint sessions, 5-4-3-2-1… get on the bike and crush it!

Something else I’ve been thinking about when it comes to Dr. Gabala’s research and time constraints has been clothing. A great deal of time can still be lost when it comes to getting to the gym, changing, getting out there, crushing your soul, then likely changing and showering again and then getting out of there. I’m as big a fan as having and wearing a nice tailored suit as the next guy. But the reality is, unless you’re Daniel Craig on a James Bond set where you have had Tom Ford make 50 of the same suits for you to do that fight scene in, we’re not exactly inclined to really move or work in our office clothes, risk them getting ripped and torn or too dirty, and need to have them replaced. Good suits aren’t cheap. This might just be a little overkill, but wouldn’t it be great to have clothing you could move in, move vigorously in, and still look good for the boardroom or that parent/teacher conference? I know there is clothing and shoewear out there that already exists, I just think I’m going to try some of it out when I get back and see how it feels and how it stands up to doing a ton of burpees, wind-sprints, and lunge jumps and my next job interview.