Making room for the gym
The clothes, the morning plan and three books that helped me think about the pattern.
The earlier membership
GoodLife Fitness · December 2018. I still have the renewal email from that earlier membership. The gym was close to work. I could hardly have made it more convenient to walk past.
What I wanted to change was the part before I got there: leaving everything until I was already in a hurry.
Start before the rush
I began leaving my gym clothes where I would see them immediately after my shower. I also chose a time to go before the morning became a chase.
The clothes gave me a reminder. Making room in the day gave me somewhere to put it.
Prepare one small next step
The night before
Set out what you will need. Choose a realistic time and account for getting there, changing and returning.
At the familiar moment
Use something you already do as the reminder. Mine was coming out of the shower and seeing the clothes.
When plans change
Decide what still works if your usual company cannot come. The smaller plan can be your own.
After a missed day
Look at what got in the way, make one adjustment and choose the next opportunity. You do not have to wait for Monday.
Keep the company, keep your plan
Going with other people helped me get started. The useful change was keeping a plan for the days our calendars did not line up.
Before the week begins, try finishing two sentences: “With the group, I will…” and “If the group cannot go, I will…” Keep both realistic. The second could mean another time, a shorter visit or a different activity you can manage.
Reading to come back to
Extreme Ownership
Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
The question I take from this is: what part can I do something about? I could not make work quiet, but I could pack my bag and choose a time before it became busy.
Explore the authors’ framework →Atomic Habits
James Clear
Clear’s advice to make a habit obvious and easy to begin gives me a way to think about that pile of clothes. It was in view when I needed it, with one less decision left to make.
About the book →The Power of Habit
Charles Duhigg
Duhigg describes a loop of cue, routine and reward. It made me think about the reward I was getting from postponing: immediate relief from one more decision. That helped explain why a plan I wanted could keep becoming tomorrow’s problem.
Explore the publisher’s reading guide →A note for tomorrow morning
Write down the moment, the visible reminder and the next action in one sentence:
After I finish __________, I will see __________ and do __________.
Then make room for it. What needs preparing tonight? What time do you need to leave? What will you do if your usual plan changes?
Keep the note somewhere you will meet it before you need it.