80:20 Rule

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I want to introduce a concept of the Pareto’s Law. It comes from an Italian Economist in the 1900s that noticed 80% of the land was owned by 20% of the people. We all should remember this from high school social studies; The Nobels and upper class had more than 80% of the wealth. Pareto found that this obscurity runs true for many other things not just land/wealth. Said in a different context 80% of the worlds problems come from only 20% of the population. 20% of the population are responsible for 80% of the worlds energy crisis. Not only that, but the gap is usually greater than 80-20! Crime, for instance is usually attributed to those few  individuals, gangs, etc  that disrupt society over the majority of the time. First impressions are generated in less than a second of meeting someone, yet account for large portion of how we view someone. The words we actually speak practically mean nothing, it is our body language, tone of voice, etc that account for people’s perception of us. There are so many examples, im sure you can think of a few yourself. This principle also seems to run true in the fitness industry. 80% of your results come from only 20% of what you actually do in the gym. Stop wasting your time on the treadmill, doing crunches, step ups, cardio kickboxing, tricep extensions and leg lifts. Instead go hit 10 reps with a back squat then run 100 yards. Its called training economy and getting the most bang for your buck. We want to use the most muscle in a given amount of time. The problem is no one wants to squat and then run because its hard work, they want something fancy and exciting. I hate to tell you but fitness is boring and you shouldn’t be doing it for instant gratification. Squats, deadlifts and presses have been around forever for a reason…because they work. In a world of confusion, lack of truth, and endless information, simplicity reigns supreme in this case. When you look at movement in a sense that a deadlift is just bending over and standing up…with a weight, a squat is standing up from a chair…with weight, and a press is pushing something away from you, you develop a new appreciation. It is these exercises that should comprise a big portion of your program because they provide you with big results. The weights never lie and always tell you the truth. If you cant pick up something heavy you are probably weak and should get stronger, especially before you go and try to move that TV to the living room. I have heard stories of Olympic weightlifters squatting everyday! If that doesn’t make you queasy then you just haven’t squatted heavy before. These guys are probably the most explosive athletes in the world, considering they squat over 2-3x their bodyweight.  “But that is boring, I don’t want to squat everyday”, yes it sounds awful but..it works. I am NOT saying to squat heavy everyday, nor that you need to squat 2-3x bodyweight,  but you should try to always get stronger. The point is they get massive results from a small pool of exercises.  Here is some more brutal advice I heard from Dave Tate….

“Do you look in the mirror and say…

a) i look awesome

b) i look gross

If you answered “a” then good job. However, if you answered “b” then everyday go run up a hill for an hour and eat less.”

Very, very simple and doesn’t require much thought, but I”m sure you would get results. The trick for me is to try to get people to have fun while gradually progressing them to do more work like that without getting hurt. Have a good day, and don’t take it too seriously!