Consistency Is More Important Than Training Harder
There is something I have learned about exercise over the years:
You don't need to train harder and harder to make progress. You need to find a way of moving that you can keep doing.
I didn't always understand this.
In fact, consistency is something I built over several years without really realising I was doing it.
And looking back, I think that is one of the most important lessons I could share with anyone trying to become more active.
I Didn't Start as Someone Who Exercised Regularly
There was a time when I wasn't really moving much at all.
Maybe I went for the occasional walk, but most of my time was spent working, on the sofa or bed.
Few years back, a friend of mine was cycling everywhere and one day asked if I wanted to go for an easy bike ride.
It wasn't a long ride and I was tired afterwards, but I also felt alive. I did enjoy it.
So we went on a few more rides over the summer. When I am saying few more rides I am talking about 2-3 and about one hour each and not in the row, we would stopped in places.
Anyway, eventually, I decided to buy my own bike.
I enjoyed it, but I also discovered something I hadn't really thought about before:
cycling made it easier to go places and see things.
Instead of taking the bus or Underground, I could get on my bike and go.
So I started cycling to work as well.
At first, it was simply something I enjoyed. I wasn't thinking about exercise goals, training plans or how many workouts I should be doing each week.
I was just riding my bike.
Then Winter Came
Cycling was great when the weather was nice.
Winter was a different story.
When it was cold or raining, I would rather take the bus or Underground instead. Thought it would be easier and not hard to get to work.
But I didn't particularly enjoy it.
I'd be sitting there, usually looking at my phone or simply staring around without really paying attention to anything. Then one day, while I was on the bus, I looked outside and saw this amazing sunrise and I remember looking around at all the people sitting on the bus. Most of them were looking at their phones, and hardly anyone was looking at what was happening outside.
It made me realise how much I actually preferred being outside, moving and looking.
So I bought better clothing for the rain and cold. And I started cycling regardless of the weather.
Of course, there were still days when I didn't feel like it. Sometimes it was raining and I would think about taking public transport instead.
But then I would remember how I felt sitting on the bus that morning.
I could ride slowly.
I could get wet.
I could be cold for a while.
But once I arrived at work, I could change, warm up and feel better because I had moved and experienced the journey rather than simply sitting there.
Eventually, something changed.
I didn't make a conscious decision to become "consistent".
I just became consistent.
After a few years, people started asking me:
"Do you cycle even when it's raining?"
And my reaction was almost:
"I actually don't even check anymore. I just go."
That was when I realised that cycling had become part of my life.
It wasn't something I had to motivate myself to do every morning.
It had simply become something I did.
Then I Had to Learn the Same Lesson With Strength Training
One day I saw on social media people doing pull-ups, and thought that look amazing and so I decided I wanted to learn how to do them myself.
So I started strength training.
And, surprisingly, I struggled with consistency again.
My first idea was to train after work.
That didn't work.
By the time I finished work, I was tired and didn't really want to exercise.
So I tried getting up very early to train before work and no breakfast.
That didn't work either.
I was still too tired.
I was picking millions of exercises that I would see online and just do them.
That didn’t help either.
This time I had a goal, do a pull-up. I didn’t have a clear path.
Eventually, after a lot of trials and fails, I did found what worked for me.
I woke up early, had a light breakfast, chose few and simple exercises. Nothing complicated. About half an hour. Then straight to work. And that worked much better for me.
The lesson wasn't that I needed more motivation.
I needed a routine that actually fitted me and my life.
Consistency Didn't Happen Overnight
This is something I think is important to say because a lot of people think all the above happened over night.
Well… No, it did not. And it did not in a few weeks either.
It took me years!
There were changes along the way.
I found activities and exercises that I enjoyed.
I learned when I preferred to exercise.
I learned what made exercise easier to fit around work.
And because I started to exercise in the morning, with time, I began going to bed at roughly the same time so I could get up and exercise before work.
Gradually, exercise became part of a more balanced lifestyle.
And eventually, it became something I don't really negotiate with myself about.
Much like brushing my teeth, washing my face or getting dressed to go to work, exercise has become something that is simply part of my routine.
That doesn't mean I am motivated every day.
I am definitely not.
Sometimes I procrastinate.
Sometimes I don't really feel like exercising.
Sometimes I waste time before finally getting started.
But eventually, I get it done.
Consistency isn't the absence of those feelings.
It's what you do despite them.
You Don't Need to Train Harder Every Time
I think this is where we can sometimes get fitness wrong.
We see people pushing themselves through intense workouts.
We hear that we need to challenge ourselves.
We see programmes promising faster results.
And it can be easy to think:
"Maybe I'm not doing enough."
So we add another workout.
We make sessions longer.
We increase the intensity.
We try to train more often.
But more isn't automatically better.
Training needs to be challenging enough to create a stimulus, but it also needs to fit within your ability to recover and your ability to maintain the routine.
A workout that you can do consistently is often more useful than a perfect workout that you only manage for three weeks.
What Does Consistency Actually Mean?
Consistency doesn't mean doing exactly the same thing every week.
Life doesn't work that way.
Some weeks you might have plenty of time and energy.
Other weeks might be completely different.
You might have a busy period at work.
Family responsibilities might take more of your time.
You might be tired.
You might go away.
You might get ill.
You might simply have a difficult week.
Being consistent doesn't mean pretending those things don't happen.
It means learning how to adapt.
Maybe you planned three workouts but only manage two.
That's still two workouts.
Maybe you can't do your normal session, so you do something shorter.
Maybe you move your workout to another day.
Maybe you take a walk instead.
The important thing is not to turn one change into:
"I've failed, so I'll start again next week."
You adjust and continue.
Find What Fits Your Life
When someone tells me they are struggling to stay consistent with exercise, I don't automatically think they need more discipline.
I want to understand the routine.
When are they trying to exercise?
How long are the sessions?
What type of exercise are they doing?
Do they actually enjoy it?
What happens when work gets busy?
What happens when they are tired?
What happens when their original plan doesn't work?
Because sometimes the problem isn't that someone isn't trying hard enough.
The problem is that the plan is asking too much of them.
A routine needs to work in real life, not just on paper.
Start With Something You Can Repeat
If you're starting or restarting exercise, it can be tempting to do everything at once.
You might decide:
"This time I'm going to train five days a week."
"I'm going to completely change my diet."
"I'm going to walk every morning."
"I'm going to get up at 5am."
The enthusiasm is great.
But instead of asking:
"What is the most I can do?"
try asking:
"What could I realistically keep doing?"
Maybe that's two strength sessions a week.
Maybe it's three shorter sessions.
Maybe it's walking regularly.
Maybe it's starting with 20–30 minutes rather than an hour.
There is nothing wrong with starting small.
You're not trying to prove how motivated you are.
You're trying to build something that can become part of your life.
Consistency Is Not Perfection
This is probably one of the biggest things I have learned.
Being consistent doesn't mean never missing a workout.
It doesn't mean exercising when you're exhausted just because it's on your plan.
It doesn't mean never procrastinating.
And it definitely doesn't mean having a perfect week every week.
It means that exercise has become something you return to.
You might have a bad week.
Then you have a better week.
You might miss a session.
Then you do the next one.
You might need to change your routine.
Then you adapt it.
The goal isn't perfection.
The goal is to keep going.
Final Thoughts
Looking back, I didn't build consistency by suddenly becoming more motivated or disciplined.
I built it gradually.
I found something I enjoyed.
I made it useful.
I adapted when circumstances changed.
I learned what worked for me.
And when something didn't work, I changed the approach rather than giving up.
That process took years.
And even now, I don't wake up every morning excited to exercise.
Sometimes I don't feel like it.
Sometimes I procrastinate.
But exercise has become part of my life.
I don't have to make the decision from scratch every day.
And I think that's something worth remembering if you're trying to become more consistent yourself.
You don't necessarily need to train harder.
You may need to find a way of training that you can actually keep doing.
Because one hard week won't transform your fitness.
But months and years of consistent movement can change a lot.
If you're thinking about starting or restarting exercise and you're not sure how to make it fit around your life, I offer personal training designed to help you build strength, improve fitness and feel more confident at a pace that works for you.
You don't need to be highly motivated or already fit to begin.
Sometimes the first step is simply finding an approach that works for you.
If you'd like to talk about your goals, get in touch for a completely free consultation.
