Shiny Object Syndrome: Purposeless Workouts Impede Goal Achievement

I enjoy exercising, working out, training, weightlifting, etc.  My enthusiasm comes from the endorphins that pump mid- and post-workout, from the goal setting and goal achievement aspect, from the love of the barbell and how “200 lbs. is always 200 lbs.” [quote by Henry Rollins*].  Unfortunately this love of movement and personal challenge has gotten in the way of achieving various goals I’ve set for myself.  I often find myself doing things at the gym that I want to do instead of following a plan set forth before stepping foot in the arena.  It’s the whole “Look! Shiny object!” effect that distracts me from a program or calculated workout plan.  Sure I squatted yesterday and yes my hips are tight and sore, but look! – no one’s in the squat rack and man I’m so close to adding on those 10 lbs. to my squat.  Maybe I’ll just rep out a few and see how 75% feels…

Next thing I know I’m pissed off that my 75% feels heavy and how I’ve already blown the precious 30 minutes I had to dedicate to training today - and now it’s too late to switch to deadlifts and now I definitely can’t squat for another few days and now I’m even more upset at how an impulsive workout screwed my whole week of programming.

Does this sound familiar?  Do you find yourself veering off a training plan and doing things because you thought they sounded fun in the moment when in fact they push you off track from your goals?

I recently read an article about how every workout should have a purpose.  Now I thought to myself, “Sure, every time I workout I do so to get stronger, burn fat, work on a skill, etc.”  Initially I was convinced that yes, every time I exercised I did so with a purpose.  But after giving it some thought, I realized how the purposes I thought I was assigning to workouts were too vague.  “Getting fit”, “getting lean”, or “squatting more weight” are examples of vague purposes I often found myself using for heading to the gym.  Take my recent quest to add 10 lbs. to my front squat as an example.  I knew I had spent more than a handful of training sessions over the past weeks hitting my front squat hard but had failed to see any increase in my 1 rep max front squat.  Insert the notion of having a purpose for each training session and I soon realized my lack of gains were due in part to failed planning, and more importantly failed execution, for each time I hit the gym.  In hindsight I recognize I didn’t attack my goal of adding 10 lbs. to my front squat with a solid plan; I didn’t understand my weakness in the front squat, didn’t program a smart lifting schedule, didn’t build in any accessory work to overcome muscle group deficiencies, and most importantly, didn’t execute each workout with that specific purpose in mind.

Now the initial goal of adding 10 lbs. to my front squat was admittedly better than the vague reasons I sometimes use for training like “getting lean” or “squatting more weight” – so at least I had succeeded in setting a specific goal.  But looking back at my training log I now recognize just how much my Shiny Object Syndrome – doing work at the gym that was an impulse decision – affected my goal achievement.  One day I was supposed to do high volume/moderate weight squats and instead I ended up testing my max deadlift because the guy next to me was deadlifting and it looked fun.  Another day I did too much shoulder work and flared up my injuries all because someone egged me on to see how far/how long I could handstand walk for; this sidelined my training for an additional two days as I needed more time to rest/recover from the shoulder flare-up.  Had I stuck by my plan (we’ll save shitty programming for another post) I may have reached my goal of tacking-on those 10 lbs.

In light of these realizations, here’s a list of things I suggest one considers with regards to their training:

1.  Set Targeted, Quantifiable Goals:

“Getting in shape”, “getting leaner”, “getting stronger” – are all examples of vague goals that are not specific or measurable enough.  How would you know if you “got in shape”?  How would you track your “leaness” or “increase in strength”?  Instead, set targeted, measurable goals to strive towards.  Something like “losing 10 lbs.” is a better start, but again, how do you know if you lost fat versus built muscle versus shed water weight?  If the goal of “losing 10 lbs.” is really about looking leaner, a different (yet still measurable) goal might be to drop a pant size/number of inches or fit into skinny jeans that you haven’t worn in 6 months.

2.  Develop a Program (Develop a Plan):

When the fitness community uses the term “program”, they really mean “plan”.  A weightlifting program is a series tasks done in workouts, usually many weeks long, that trains an athlete for specific goals or events.  Creating a program to meet one’s goals is vital to success.  After setting a targeted, quantifiable goal, ask yourself: How am I going to achieve this goal?  What steps do I need to take?  Knowing the best way to program is a whole other topic, but my base suggestion is to develop a plan you can follow.  For example, I set my specific goal of adding 10 lbs. to my front squat but didn’t develop a plan for achieving that goal.  In hindsight, I should have done something like box squats on Mondays and accessory work (back extensions, good mornings, etc.) on Wednesdays with 90%+ effort squats on Fridays, done consistently (alternating additional exercises) for four weeks.

3.  Hit the Goal from All Angles:

If I want to add 10 lbs. to my front squat, I need to squat more, right?  Well, yes and no.  Sure you need to give proper attention to your squat, but also think about what’s known as accessory work – other exercises that develop specific muscles/skills used in the front squat.  In the example I gave above, instead of just front squatting more, maybe I’ll program box squats (squatting to a box then exploding back up) as these focus the training on one’s hip extensors, or maybe I’ll use back extensions to strengthen the core.  A smart way to attack a goal is from every angle; recognize what’s needed in the front squat and train every aspect (hips, glutes, hammies, core, etc.).  And of course a part of this is about understanding your weaknesses.  I have weak glutes and as such should have programmed some glute-heavy exercises in my training sessions to help achieve my goal.

4.  Stick to the Program:

You’ve set a goal. You’ve developed a plan (program) which attacks the specific goal from all angles.  Now comes the hardest part: stick to your plan.  Shiny Object Syndrome is what’s going to tempt you from straying from the path.  Don’t go to the gym planning on box squats and good mornings, but abandon that effort to run on the treadmill next to the Hot Guy for 40 minutes.  What I see most in the CrossFit community, for example, are ego-driven or peer-pressured workouts which get many athletes off track; sure, your whole crew is attacking the King Kong workout right now but you’ve programmed a rest day.  Don’t let their friendly ribbing tempt you to stray from the plan.  Have confidence that your plan is what will help you achieve your goals and stick to your guns. 

These suggestions are translatable to many goals one may set with regards to fitness and/or health.  If you want to run a faster mile, set a specific pace goal, create a running plan (maybe with sprinting), develop your weak hammies, and stick to the programmed schedule.  If you want to lose weight, think about specific goals like lose two inches off your thighs or fit into a size 6 along with a weight goal (to help you account for gains in muscle and fluctuations in water weight).  Then develop a program (maybe with cardio intervals and weight training), include diet and stretching (attacking the goal from every angle) and STICK TO THE PLAN.

Food for thought.  Post thoughts to comments!

Note: this article uses generic examples of training and fitness concepts and is less about how to best program for an increase in front squat and more about conceptual considerations.  Translation: don’t bash my programming suggestions as they are used for example only.

*http://www.oldtimestrongman.com/strength-articles/iron-henry-rollins