Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Summary
On episode 504 of 40+ Fitness, Coach Allan explains why life isn’t all sprints, using his own Tough Mudder training and a torn rotator cuff from Spartan race training to show what happens when you push too hard for too long.
Allan lays out three paces to work from: the sprint (the Ferrari), the moderate pace (the pickup truck), and the slow pace (the minivan), and argues most of your time over the years should be spent in the moderate pace.
He and co-host Rachel Everett talk through why the goal was never a finish line, why weight-loss plateaus are the body protecting itself, and how self-awareness lets you pick the right pace for where your life is right now.
Links
- https://40plusfitness.com
Key Takeaways
- Sprints have a place, but only with a clear finish line in sight. Allan says a sprint needs an A to B target you can see, not an A to Z jump. Go too far, too fast, without a defined stopping point, and you set yourself up to break.
- Keep your ego in check during a sprint. Allan tore his rotator cuff pushing overhead press weight he didn’t need to lift, purely because his ego wouldn’t let him stop. Watching your own red line matters more than proving a point.
- There are three usable paces: the Ferrari, the pickup truck, and the minivan. The Ferrari is an all-out sprint with nothing in your way. The pickup truck is a moderate pace that can carry life’s baggage, like family, work, and vacations. The minivan is slow but still moving forward.
- Most of your health and fitness journey should be spent in the pickup truck. A moderate, sustainable pace lets you carry your real-life obligations while still making steady progress over years, not weeks.
- Slow still counts, as long as you’re not sliding backward. When life gets in the way, holding your ground or nudging forward a little is a legitimate pace, not a failure.
- The goal was never the finish line. Hitting a weight-loss number or finishing a race doesn’t mean you’re done. You still have to keep training and eating well afterward, so the real goal is a sustainable lifestyle you can stay on most of the time.
- Extreme restriction increases the odds you’ll fall off the wagon. Telling yourself you’ll never have another drink or another slice of pizza is a harder, more fragile plan than building habits you can actually sustain.
- Plateaus are the body protecting itself, not a sign you’ve failed. Rachel and Allan agree plateaus are useful feedback: they tell you what was working has stopped working, which is a cue to change something, not to quit.
- Self-awareness is the tool that tells you which pace to use. Life will hand you windows for sprinting, stretches that call for a moderate pace, and times you need to slow down. Knowing which one fits right now keeps you moving forward instead of breaking or stalling.
“The faster you go, the longer you go, the more likely you break.”
Coach Allan