Hey ,
Have you ever heard of the theory of super compensation? In coaching, it means that an athlete starts at a base level, applies the perfect amount of training, and follows up with the right amount of recovery. If done correctly, super compensation occurs and the athlete is better than they were when they started a week ago.
Now, if the athlete overtrains or doesn’t get enough recovery, it leads to burnout, poor performance and in many cases, injury. I’ve been thinking a lot about how this theory applies to the real world - work, school, home, etc. Instead of overtraining, it shows up as “doing the most”, or giving too much effort.
I know what you’re thinking, isn’t giving effort a good thing? Yes, effort is usually good but too much, like overtraining, can lead to burnout and other negative outcomes.
- For runners, this could look like skipping rest days, increasing mileage too quickly, and ending up in a boot for 4-6 weeks.
- At the office, it could be taking on more projects than you have time to complete and missing a big deadline.
- At home, it’s doing all of the chores around the house instead of asking your partner or roommate to help, ultimately making you feel overworked and underappreciated.
For the worst offenders like myself, “doing the most” is never isolated to one area of life. It often leads to overcommitting and poor time management across the board. If you've ever found yourself doing this, you know it's an awful feeling.
This month, I’m working on NOT doing the most. Does this mean I’m going to stop giving 100% effort? No, but it does mean that I’ll be more mindful of what I commit 100% to, learn to be a better delegator and say no to opportunities that don't really serve me.
, if you also find yourself "doing the most", I invite you to join me this month in pulling back. Let me know how it goes!
