1-2-3 Sundays: What's Next, iPhone Life Hack & The Paradox of Effort

1 Theme

"What's Next?"

This is a question I've been thinking about for the last couple of weeks.

It's been a pretty intense year in terms of events - 10km trail runs, the marathon, a photo shoot and the upcoming half marathon.

Rather than thinking about what's next, I'm taking the time to appreciate what I've achieved.

The question "where would I be if I hadn't decided to go all in?" has what's been on my mind.

I know for sure I wouldn't have done a marathon or photoshoot.

It's great to be looking forward and planning to go for big goals. Taking time to be present however opens up room for an appreciation of not only what you've done but the journey you've been on.

You can appreciate the experiences and the people who've been there along the way.

The destination is great, but you never forget the journey.

2 Positive Outcomes

Trying Something New

I changed up my meal prep this week.

I usually cook the same meal for lunch each day on a Sunday however I decided to go for 2 different dishes this week.

Piri-piri chicken pasta
Chickpea curry

Both are very easy to make and can be made simultaneously reasonably quickly.

My goal is to KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid, when meal prepping.

High protein and a good serving of vegetables.

I've had a busy week socially:

Mini-golfing on Friday night with work colleagues.

We went to Golf Fang in Glasgow - I would recommend it, especially for groups.

Meeting up with a good friend on Saturday.

It's been a while since we last saw each other so it was nice to catch up. We always have great conversations.

Arranging another 2 events in the coming weeks.

One of which will take my Munro count up to 4.

3 Things I've Learned

iPhone Focus Mode

I'm probably late to the game on this one.

I made a "Fitness" focus mode. I want to focus on my workouts without the distraction of social media.

You can set the focus for certain time windows. This is handy if you train at the same time everyday so you don't need to manually turn it on.

My home screen has only the apps I need for being in the gym:

Audio - Spotify, Audible, YouTube
Tracking - StrengthLog, TrueCoach, Strava

Next, I'll be making a work focus mode.

Adding Water When Cooking

I made a risotto this week.

The recipe said for chicken stock to be added all at once.

To avoid having a watery dish and waiting longer for it to boil off, add slightly less than what's asked for. It's easier to add small amounts in as and when you need them.

Some recipes ask for too much or too little. The size of your pot/pan also matters too!

The Paradox of Effort

Have you ever looked at someone and admired how effortless they appear?

The footballer gliding past defenders. Musicians performing live.

It looks so easy from our point of view.

What we fail to see is the thousands of hours of work put in to get to the highest level. Social media has only enhanced this. We see the highlight reel - not what goes on behind the scenes.

The paradox is to appear effortless, a lot of effort must be put in.

It's the thousands of reps in practice to nail it on the big stage.

Luckily for us, the small actions we perform each day can compound into the effortless and exceptional performance we desire.