- Methods are useful guides but not magic formulas.
- Life is full of variables that make it impossible to follow every plan to the letter.
- Using the method flexibly reduces frustration and improves results.
What you’re about to read might make you think we’re crazy. We’re not—but to prove it, you’ll have to let us explain.
Alright, here it is: we, the ones always giving you advice and talking about methods, are about to tell you to look at them with a bit of suspicion.
Yep, we said it.
Now, let us explain why.
The sense of method
You’ve probably heard the phrase, “The map is not the territory.” It means that reality can’t be fully captured in a simple drawing. A map is one thing, but the actual place it represents? That’s something else entirely. Mountains look flat on paper, roads are just lines, and details get smoothed over. But that doesn’t make maps useless—they help guide us, give us direction, and tell us where we are.
A method is like that. A map. Or a compass, if you prefer. It points you in the right direction.
Having a method is super helpful—it’s like holding an instruction manual that tells you how to reach your goal: whether it’s shaving minutes off your run time, losing weight, or just climbing stairs without gasping for air at the top.
Think about Legos for a second. The method is the little booklet that shows you how to turn a random pile of bricks into a spaceship or a castle. It’s clear, step-by-step, and comforting. But here’s where it gets tricky: we often mistake the method for a magic formula. Like if we follow it perfectly, we’re guaranteed the exact result.
And we forget one big thing—we’re not Legos. We’re not made of plastic, and we don’t snap together piece by piece. We’re human. Even with the most flawless training plan—every interval timed perfectly—your body and life don’t always follow the script.
The building blocks of life don’t always fit
If only we were Legos, right? Life would be so much simpler. But no, we’re made of mismatched parts from a hundred different toy boxes.
In the real world, there are endless variables that no method can account for. Like your job taking up a third of your day, family obligations that pop up right when you planned your long run (which you’ll now do at 5 a.m. on a freezing winter Sunday… in the rain), unexpected injuries, or just one of those days when you feel totally drained.
These variables throw off even the most perfect plan. Yet, we keep treating methods like they’re infallible—as if simply “doing everything right” will guarantee success.
When the method doesn’t work
Here’s where the real frustration kicks in. You followed the method to a T, but the results? Meh. It didn’t work. Naturally, you start blaming something. Maybe the method was garbage. Or worse—you think you are.
“I’m just not disciplined enough.”
“I don’t have the willpower.”
Suddenly, a simple training plan that didn’t quite deliver spirals into a full-blown existential crisis. Okay, we’re exaggerating. But you get it. ;)
This frustration often leads to total distrust—both in the method and in yourself. That’s when people usually quit. They figure the method isn’t for them and go searching for the next one, or worse, they decide they’re just not cut out for any of it.
It’s like spending hours on a Lego set, following every step, and ending up with something that looks nothing like the picture on the box. Eventually, you think, “Maybe I’m just bad at this.”
The Perfect Method
Spoiler alert: it doesn’t exist. But hey, we couldn’t resist the dramatic heading.
Here’s the truth—there is a better method out there: the flexible method. But there’s a catch. The flexibility? It has to come from you.
No method is perfect. No plan is foolproof. They’re just tools—not magic wands. The trick is to treat them like a compass, something that points you in the right direction, not a GPS that tells you every single turn to take.
You’ve got to accept that life will throw curveballs (or Monopoly’s Chance cards, if that’s your vibe) that’ll knock you off course. Can’t do intervals today? No problem—an easy run still counts. Missed a workout altogether? It’s not the end of the world. Progress isn’t about perfect adherence to a plan; it’s about adapting without losing sight of where you’re headed.
You know what we tell ourselves when we skip a session?
“We’ll do it tomorrow.”
Unless Godzilla shows up to destroy the city, it’s just a 24-hour delay. No big deal.
Trusting the method (again)
Regaining confidence in a method means seeing it for what it really is: a helpful guide, not an unbreakable rulebook.
Remember Wile E. Coyote? His plans were always “perfect” but never worked. And yeah, he was hilarious, but also kinda tragic. (Also, let’s be honest—Beep Beep was the worst.)
You don’t need to be Wile E. Coyote, obsessively chasing perfection. But you don’t have to be Beep Beep either, smugly racing past life’s challenges without a care.
Just use the method as it was meant to be—a map, a suggestion. You’ll get to your destination. Maybe not exactly how you planned, but that’s okay.