I want to set the scene here with a story;

Imagine a sculptor. She has a huge block of stone 10ft wide and 20 ft tall. Her goal is to take this giant brutal mass and transform it into a remarkable and refined masterpiece.

She begins with a stick of dynamite to blast away a giant edge of the block. Next, she takes a jackhammer and chips and breaks several smaller but still significant pieces away from the mass. Days have passed in this effort.

After some day’s rest, she returns with a sledgehammer and sharp pick. She swings these tools high overhead as she begins to shape the enormous stone into something resembling her final piece. This is a week-long affair.

Things are beginning to take shape, the sculptor climbs a ladder and starts to edge in more detail with a handheld hammer and flat-edged chisel. She works tirelessly for over a month with these instruments.

To the naked eye, we can now see the clear outline of the sculptor’s efforts. A masterpiece in the making. But far from complete.

For the next 3 months, the sculptor hones her craft with a selection of small hammers, scalpels, and sandpapers.

Alas, 6 months have passed, and the sculptor has completed her work. A masterpiece of strategic tireless perseverance and effort is unveiled.

Now imagine if this same process was repeated but we switched the order of the tools used. Think of how much energy would be wasted and how little progress would be made.

So often we focus on the minutia when 80% of a task can be completed by 1-2 high-impact behaviors/adjustments (dynamite and jackhammers).

Counting macros, avoiding preservatives, supplementation, meal timing. These are some examples of the “nice to haves” that we are so often drawn to. They sound specific and technical. Well, I hate to burst the bubbles, but they aren’t that important for most of us. They are akin to using the scalpel to get started in step one.

Instead, we can be better served by finding our own dynamite and jackhammers. These can be many things to many people, but some good places to start are;

• Eating 2-3 fruits and/or vegetables per day.

• Eating lean/quality proteins at each meal.

• Lifting weights 2-3x per week.

• Performing some daily activity (walking is an easy high-impact option).

• Getting 7-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep per night.

These are all high-impact and simple (not easy) actions/behaviors that can go 80% of the way to helping people achieve their health and fitness goals. More nuance may well be needed after that, at which point we can decide on our more unique choice of hammers and chisels to suit our needs, environments, and preferences.

Until then, start looking for dynamite and jackhammers and use them.

Thanks for reading.