5 Ways I've Changed My Mind

Rest periods, nutrition minutiae, sleep optimization, and beyond

I’ve been around the block with nearly every topic, fad, and “hack” in the health and wellness sector and with that comes a lot of experience.

With experience comes exposure to new ideas, changes in opinion, and discovering the “big movers” — products, habits, and actions that truly make a difference.

The 20% of things that make up 80% of the result.

Especially over the past two years with my increased training volume from running multiple endurance races, I’ve curated and established a list of items that are non-negotiables for me.

And to my surprise, these vastly differ from some strongly held beliefs I’ve maintained in the past — especially during the early beginnings of my fitness journey.

Today I’ll discuss five health ideals I’ve changed my mind about — subtly or strongly — and what’s led to the shift.

Onward we go.

1. All at Once

As a person who enjoys going to the gym and seeing my watch hit 60 minutes so I can ease the mental chatter of “getting a workout in”, this one has been a slow progression.

But a progression that has been transformational, nonetheless.

Most of us maintain the mindset that an exercise session is one that comes in the form of setting aside a 30–75-minute chunk of time to move our bodies whether that be lifting heavy objects, walking on an endlessly moving tread, or engaging in a group fitness class.

Sure, this is true — a great way to ensure you are exercising enough (which unfortunately most aren’t) is to block off time and be done with it.

But this doesn’t work for everyone, especially those that don’t enjoy a lengthy exercise session or who maintain odd workday schedules.

Which is where the idea of “all at once” falls short.

Fortunately, research supports breaking up exercise sessions into small microevents is just as effective as doing it all in one sitting. This holds true especially for strength training but may not be as relatable to cardiovascular training — that’s a story for a different time.

Nonetheless, if you have a hard time hitting those 30-75 minutes of activity, consider 4 sets of 10 minutes; heck, maybe even 8 sets of 5 minutes.

This works especially well for bodyweight movements such as squats, push-ups, pull-ups, lunges, and so forth.

They can be done anytime, anywhere — I just wouldn’t recommend getting up during a board meeting and knocking out a set of jumping jacks.

But more power to you if you do.

2. Sweating the Small Stuff w/ Nutrition

I vividly remember a conversation on the way to the gym when I was 18 years old.

My gym partner and I were discussing nutrition and talking about supporting our weight training with healthy food intake, unsurprisingly.

At that time, I was tracking my caloric intake meticulously and my friend brought up the question of whether or not I was tracking the “small stuff”.