Ian Mitchell - Timeless

Is anyone else sick of hearing about consistency.

The fitness industry loves telling people “It’s all about consistency.”

Followed by generic advice about 10k steps and calories. 😴

But rarely does anyone explain the most important thing:

Why you can’t actually be consistent. 😨

Because consistency isn’t just a ticking a box.

It’s often an identity problem. 🧠

You’re trying to repeatedly do things that don’t yet fit with who you believe you are.

You want to train hard. 🏋️
Eat well. 🥩
Drink less at the weekend. 🍹
Stop starting again every Monday. 🗓️

But deep down, you still see yourself as someone who:

“Will never have the time.”
“Isn’t disciplined.”
“Loves food too much.”
“Can never stick to anything.”
“Worries what other people think.”

So you chase an outcome while carrying an identity that contradicts it.

Lose weight, you’re motivated.
Scales stop moving, motivation disappears.
Holidays, no point trying now.
Feel guilty, sabotage.
Start over Monday.

A better approach is to build around a why that goes beyond the outcome.

Not:
“I need to lose 10lbs.”

But:
“I want to become someone who prioritises their health so they can feel their best”
“I want my kids to see me taking care of my health.”
“I want to trust myself to do what I say I’ll do.”
“I want to see what I’m actually capable of.”
“I want to inspire those around me.”

Now your actions have somewhere to come from.

You’re not training because you’re desperate to change your body.😩

You’re training because this is who you are becoming.💡

Because outcomes fluctuate.
Motivation comes and goes.
Life always gets in the way.

Identity gives you something to return to.

Consistency isn’t half arsing a step goal or tracking on MyFitnessPal

It’s becoming someone who doesn’t need to start over every time life gets in the way.

As you get older or enter a new chapter of your life, your values naturally change with it.

This means your approach to health and fitness has to evolve with them too.

You can’t keep relying on the next diet or transformation to fix things the way it did 10 years ago.

Instead your health and energy need to become the foundation that supports your life and those around you, not project that consumes it.

Great experience at roon the toon yesterday.

Very inspiring seeing so many people getting after it in a local race and having busy crowds cheering you on the full way round.

Topped off with a 10km PB for me too, 39:16.

Half marathon PB at Bellahouston Park yesterday.

1:27:09 ⏱️

Probably my favourite distance to run, but been a few years since I actually raced it.

So, was a fun morning, especially with Kirsteen and Rayna there to cheer me on.

Even when you’re suffering big time near the end, you can’t help but smile and get a boost running past.

I want to run sub 3 at the Yorkshire marathon in October this year, so, decent starting position from here I think with that time.

Legs are feeling it big time today, so few days to rest and recover the it’s time to take it up a level again.

If nothing change underneath,
Then nothing changes long term.

A really bad habit I used to have…

Was telling myself I’d catch up later. 🤥

If I missed a session, I’d do extra the next day. 😰

If the week got busy, I’d stay up late tomorrow to get on top of things. 😴

If I felt behind, I’d “sort it out on Sunday.” 💭

Catching up became my default setting whenever I felt stressed or overwhelmed. 😖

Instead of dealing with what was in front of me, I’d withdraw.

Distance myself.

And to justify the guilt, I’d tell myself:
“I’ll catch up later.”

It wasn’t until I started running a few years ago that it really exposed what I was doing. 🤔

You can’t just catch up with running. 🏃🏻‍♂️

With lifting weights, you can sometimes adjust things.🏋️

Train different body parts on successive days.

Add a bit more volume next session.

Not optimal, but more manageable.

Running doesn’t work like that. ❌

You can’t miss sessions and then cram 30km in at the end of the week.

Before you know it, you’re stacking sessions on tired legs.

Recovery suffers.

Injury risk goes through the roof. 🤕

You end up building fatigue faster than actual fitness. 🪫

And it opened my eyes I was doing the same thing in other areas of my life. 👀

Delaying difficult conversations.

Avoiding decisions.

Pushing tasks back.

Telling myself I’d handle it when things calmed down.

But it doesn’t work like that.

Work keeps piling up. 💻

Family takes priority. 👧🏼

Life has a way of filling very gap you leave open. ⏰

Putting things off doesn’t make them lighter. 🪶

It makes them grow. 🧱

And by the time you finally deal with it,

It costs far more mentally, emotionally and physically

Than if you’d handled it properly in the first place. 🤦🏼‍♂️

I still catch myself wanting to slip into that pattern when things feel busy.

The difference now is I recognise it faster.

Because catching up isn’t about time management. ⌚️

It’s about emotional management. 🧘🏻‍♂️

Of course, planning and organisation makes things easier. 📝

But standards are what remove the constant negotiation you have with yourself. 🧠

They mean showing up, regardless of how you feel or whether it’s convenient.

Fitness advice in January sounds good, but usually doesn’t work.

Hyrox Manchester

When I originally booked this, I wouldn’t have been happy with this time.

But considering the half-arsed training block over the last few months, I can’t really be surprised. 🤷🏼‍♂️

Life’s been busy and I’ve had other things on my mind. 

So training’s been more of an afterthought than a focus.🏃 

Still, it’s just over a minute PB from last time, but that says more about the foundations in place than recent efforts. 🧱 

That leads to two lessons worth sharing.

1. Raising the floor matters more than climbing the ladder for long term success🪜 

I’ve not been my usual self recently. Missing sessions, cutting corners and letting myself off the hook. 🪝 

This is where people fall off the ladder, crashing back into their old self-sabotaging routines and have to start from the bottom again. 💥 

But the habits and standards I’ve built over years mean my baseline is higher now. 📈 

That doesn’t mean you won’t fall or things wont go wrong. 

It means you don’t fall as far or as hard when you do. 💡 

This only comes from raising your personal standards and living better year-round.

Not having a diet or fitness event as the glue holding your life and personality together. 👀

2. You have to let go of your ego. 

Ego isn’t just the arrogant person who thinks they know best.

It’s the wee stories you tell yourself to avoid discomfort, protect your feelings and justify your lack of action 😱 

So up until about 2 weeks ago I was considering just not going. 

I wont get a PB anyway so what’s the point. 🤡 

The world doesn’t owe you anything though and life doesn’t align itself around your goals. 🌍 

But the effort you put in always adds up and compounds over time, especially when it feels easier not to bother. 

Most people quit here, not because they’re incapable, but because there’s no extra reward or gratification when things feel harder than usual.

Rayna came down to Manchester with us. 

Hearing her cheer me on and high-five me as I ran round is a memory I’ll always have. 🥰

It also put my frustration about a daft wee hyrox into perspective.

Showing up, even when you’re not at your best is the standard I actually care about passing on.

Pure dad milestone taking Rayna out on her bike for the first time.

And after a few heart in mouth moments, it became pretty obvious why stabilisers are so important at first. 🚲

I think we can all agree they’re the perfect system to put in place while the basics are being learned. 👍🏻

But….

When we compare that to fat loss goals, especially in January, things usually aren’t so steady looking. 👀

The combination of having that new year clean slate and the guilt from ripping the arse out of it in December. 🎅🏻

Means motivation is at an all-time high.

Everyone goes full speed ahead, doing everything and anything to shift the weight.

But we don’t have the right systems in place to support that speed and the what ifs?

Thats why when we miss a session, eat more than planned or life just gets in the way, 😳

It doesn’t just feel like a small wobble,

It feels like a full on crash. 💥

Thats why your January shouldn’t be about doing more. ❌

It should be about doing better. ✅ 

Raising your standards so progress becomes inevitable. 📈

That looks like,

Training with each week with intent and structure, not just when and what you feel like.🏋🏼‍♀️ 

Simple nutrition rules that remove decision fatigue and energise you, not leave you feeling restricted. 🍽️ 

Clear expectations for managing your social life, even when things are busy. 🍻

Properly planning your week, so progress isn’t left to chance. 📔

With the right structure, confidence and progress builds naturally.

You stop relying on motivation.

You stop needing constant resets.

Eventually, the stabilisers can come off.