Steady Always Wins

AUTHOR’S NOTE

Before we get started, I want to note that this is actually my second post I’ve written this week. The first one, about sorting and organizing things, was very rightly vetoed by my editor because, and I quote, “It’s like you’re trying to make something interesting that just isn’t to most people.” So you can send her a thank-you note later for sparing you from my confused ramblings about how to sort spreadsheets. 

Seriously, KJ, thanks for keeping me interesting. 

And now, on to my second attempt. I don’t have time for a third, so you get what you get at this point. 

STEADY AS SHE GOES

My roommate was traveling recently, so I decided to treat myself to a new, 1,000-piece Star Wars jigsaw puzzle while she was gone.  

Why that particular timing, you ask? Well, something I’ve learned about myself in recent years is that I love doing a whole puzzle by myself. I get to touch every piece, sort them all by color or shape, and then when I go back to look for a piece, it’s right where I left it! Don’t get me wrong, there’s absolutely a place for doing a puzzle in a group. (Family vacations, for instance.) But I also love it as a solo activity. 

So this week I’m at home, alone, working on a puzzle, and I start to realize that this puzzle is almost entirely dark blue and red. A couple of faces in there somewhere, but otherwise about 800 blue and red pieces. And I don’t even know if the red goes at the top or the bottom. 

Oh. Did I mention I also don’t like using the box for reference? Yeah, I know. I’m weird, but so are you, so let’s move on, okay?

So I’m feeling overwhelmed by the sea of blue and red, and I think to myself, “How will I ever get this done?” 

STEADY ALWAYS WINS

And then, like any good CrossFitter, I start thinking about CrossFit. And now I’m talking about CrossFit, fulfilling the first rule of CrossFit. 

I’ve learned a lot of lessons from CrossFit, and one of them is this: in a long workout, steady always wins. 

For instance, if you were to do the well-known Hero workout called Chad, you would be doing 1,000 weighted box step-ups for time. You’re just stepping up and then down from a box 1,000 times. It’s incredibly slow and painful. And especially boring to watch. 

But let’s say I’m watching two athletes. Athlete A starts out slow and steady, 50 reps at a time, and takes short breaks between sets to shake out their legs and sip water. Athlete B comes out hot and does 20 reps at lightning speed, then stops to contemplate their life choices. Then 20 more reps at lightning speed, then 10 more. 

They might finish their first 50 reps around the same time. But I already know, based on how those 50 reps went, that Athlete A is going to finish first. Because when you’re in it for the long haul, steady and consistent always wins. 

ONE PIECE AT A TIME

Back to the puzzle. Thinking about going steady, I start to do the math. If I do 10 pieces a day, that’s 100 days. 20 pieces a day, slow and steady, that’s 50 days. I sure as heck don’t want to be doing this puzzle for 50 days. 

But that’s the other thing about slow and steady. You can’t think about how long you’ll be doing it. Because the more you do the math, the more daunting the task becomes. Thinking about 1,000 box step-ups is awful. Thinking about 50 steady reps is more manageable. 

But you know what’s really manageable? The next rep. 

Just that one. That step-up, that puzzle piece. Surely I can do one. And then that one turns into the next one. And the next. 

And suddenly I can see which end of the puzzle is blue and which end is red, and 1,000 pieces doesn’t feel quite so terrifying. 

STEADY ALWAYS WINS

So here’s my thought for the week: when I’m overwhelmed or feeling exhausted, I’m going to try just keeping it steady by focusing on the next step. And hopefully, slowly, in life as in CrossFit, steady always wins. 

What do you think?