Enough is enough.
How do you know when you’ve done enough exercise? Eaten enough? Read enough? Prayed enough? Worked enough? Parented enough?
Some people believe that we should stop when a number tells us to. If you’ve done an hour of exercise, that’s enough. If your food measures a certain amount, that’s enough. If you’ve clocked enough time or distance or reps or sets or pages or prayers or hours, then that’s enough.
But we know that’s not really true. Very little in life is truly dependent on a number verifying if we’re done. There’s always more, so why stop? At some point, we have a sense inside that tells us what to do or not. Maybe we’re tired and feel weaker or fuller or distracted or committed. Maybe when you get the right answer from your kids, you know you’ve parented. When you read the last word, your book is done. When your spirit is peaceful, you’re done praying.
Why not follow the senses inside for your workouts and meals just like you do in the rest of your life. Why not stop when the weight is heavier than you can lift instead of a particular number of reps and sets? Who decided that for you, your 3 sets of 15 reps was enough? Who said ½ cup of fruit is what you need to be energized and nourished? Who said you need 60 minutes of heart pumping cardio before you can be done?
Well, lots of people have worked very hard to determine a general rule of thumb for all measurements in order to get us to a starting place. In order to behave with order, we have to begin with some guidelines. But that’s not where we are meant to build our house and live for the rest of our lives. We start there and then look at the results.
So if your 3 sets of 15 isn’t improving your strength, change. Do more or heavier and less. Do something different to find what your body needs. Start by eating according to sound nutrition guides, like fewer processed and more whole(some) foods, and then adjust. Actually spend some time paying attention to what you’re doing so you can learn how to live YOUR best life. And then the next time, start again. The more you tune into your own sense of fullness, the easier it becomes to finish and feel accomplished.
