Why 100% is Actually Easier

Photo by Stefan Cosma on Unsplash

I’m a multi-tasker. Or at least I try to be. If I’m walking, I’m on the phone or listening to a podcast. If I’m cooking, I’m catching up on my course lectures. If I’m running - well I’m writing or “reading” an audiobook. I’ll squeeze a quick email in between intervals or pile errands on to the end of a long run. Why do one thing when I can do two? Three birds with one stone? I’m there for it. 

A couple weeks ago, J had to fly the tween back to South Carolina. It was a weekend, so no daycare or work. I told them I’d manage, but really I was pretty nervous. Weekends are stressful when both parents are here. Trying to get all the housework done, groceries shopped, bodies washed, grades in, homework submitted - it’s a lot. But there I was, facing nearly 48 hours of solo parenting. There would be no multitasking. There would be no quick blog posts while the kiddos ate. Just “mom”ing. That was all I could manage. 

And you know what - the weekend was pretty pleasant, less stressful even. 

Wild. 

(Important caveat here. I am in no way claiming that stay-at-home parenting is easy, simple, or stress-free. That’s insane. Just stick with me.)

I rolled this over in my mind for days. My kids, ok my toddler, are not easy. I was moving all day. My house was a mess and I got none of my typical work done. I’m pretty sure I just ate various forms of bread and single serving cheese all day. But it was ok. I didn’t feel overwhelmed, or behind, or even stressed. And then it hit me. 

I was focused. I had one single role for the day. I wasn’t a Marine, a coach, or an athlete. I wasn’t a writer or diplomat. I wasn’t an instructor or student. I was 100% mom. 

We know the benefits of going all in, getting hyper focused on something, entering that state of flow. It’s when our creativity sparks our productivity, where time stretches and compresses, where we are engaged and disengaged all at the same time. Focused work breeds all sorts of benefits to our training, our work, and our relationships - output, connection, challenge, and growth, to name just a few. Going all in is great for progress, but as it turns out, it’s also easier. 

Giving 100% is easier than giving less. 

This makes perfect sense. I remember those long days on the transcontinental run, where I’d have to stop to check a map or weather report, or an email. Ugh, that was enough to ruin the mile. I remember all the trips in which I turned a relaxing vacation into a stress mess of a schedule, packing it all in. My body and my mind were everywhere, and the mental energy required to hold it all in my head was exhausting. 

We have three types of resources - time, energy, and money. When I plan my weeks I think of this. When I’m short on time, I source things out, usually at a cost. Delivered groceries are more expensive, but they save me time. I can save money by doing things myself, but that takes time. Time. Money. Energy. Take from one to save another.

We do this with fitness as well. As a coach, I have no magical powers, just a body of knowledge and experience that I can share with athletes. A body of knowledge and experience that took years to acquire. Clients aren’t paying for a training plan, they’re paying for my time and energy (and the knowledge that came from it). 

And here’s the thing. When we think of those resources we can see the finite nature of time and money. We have 168 hours in the week. We have a certain amount of money in the bank. These resources are quantifiable. 

Energy is more squishy, less quantifiable. 

And so, here’s the important part, we treat it as infinite, self-replenishing, and readily available. If we can’t see where it runs out, then it must not run out - right? 

We tell ourselves, hell the entire fitness community tells us, that we can always just dig down deeper, pull from our reserves. We push through, go harder, longer, faster. We sacrifice sleep for early morning miles and again for late night weight sessions. We do two things at once because we know we don’t have more hours, but we do have more energy. We can fake it with coffee and Red Bulls, Instagram reels, or a splash of cold water to the face. We never think of our energy, our focus, as exhaustible. 

Until we are exhausted. 

That’s why ignoring your energy needs is the quickest way to burnout and injury. We see it in athletes all the time. Too much mileage, imbalanced cross-training (too much or too little). Too many calories (energy) out and not enough energy in. 

We read about athletes who are hyper focused on running end up injured or burnout, but we see folks on the opposite side too, especially during this time of year. Folks who felt the pressure to change in the new year, who tried to do much, and split their focus. We know these folks, we are these folks, trying to run PRs in 5ks while training for a 100 milers. Picking up yoga, crossfit, and trail running all in the same week. Setting ambitious, but altogether unrealistic and overwhelming goals, only to realize their happiness and growth lay in the small, sustainable changes. 

And it’s not exactly the opposite problem in a way, it’s the same issue as the athletes who dumped all their energy into one thing - we burned out of energy, of focus. Some of us on one thing, others on a buffet of obligations. 

And here's the thing with burning all your energy, it’s really slow to come back. It’s not running a gas tank to E, it’s running the oil out of an engine. You don’t just fill it back up and hit the road. 

You get a fresh 24 hours each day. If you have a steady job, you get a paycheck on a regular basis. Time and money are finite, but there’s often a reliable stream. There’s no such guarantee with focus. It doesn't replenish on a timetable. It’s not steady. Which is why my holiday break wasn’t restful. My energy stores were dangerously low, approaching burnout, and slow to refill. 

So yeah, multitasking is appealing, knock out this while powering through that. Doubling up saves us time and often money, but at the expense of our energy. There’s an old adage in running - if you’re not enjoying it, slow down. Slowing down takes the pressure off, it allows us to move through the miles with intention and joy. Sure it takes more time, but we get to focus on our steps, our breathing, the trail and the space around us. Slowing down allows us to focus, allows us to give 100%. 

And 100% is easier. Of course to start giving 100%, you have to learn how to quit…more on that next week.