Learn how you can use Tim Ferriss’ fear setting exercise to answer the question… Should I start strength training?
Tim Ferriss
I am a big fan of Tim Ferriss and have recently been listening to a lot of his podcast episodes. He has a fascinating way of interviewing his guests, really trying to understand everything about them and what has made them the person they have become.
TED Talk
Out of all Tim’s resources, this TED talk that Tim presented has had the biggest impact on me. It has helped me with a few of the bigger decisions that I have had to make in the last couple of years.
The video is just over 13 minutes long. Please take the time to watch this now, ensuring you watch it right to the end.
Fear Setting
In my very first post on Never Too Old to lift, How do I Start Strength Training, I discussed the importance of goal setting. Unless you really know your ‘Why’ for wanting to start strength training you are likely to find motivation a challenge.
What Tim does in this talk is flip that idea upside down. Instead of goal setting, Tim introduces the concept of ‘Fear Setting’. He explains how his reading of Stoicism help him discover this process from which he devised this written exercise.
What can you control?
The written exercise is designed to make you train yourself to separate what you can control from what you cannot control. You then do exercises to focus exclusively on the former.
Whenever you are faced with a choice to make that will have an impact on your life, you can go through the following exercise.
“Visualise the worst-case scenario, in detail, that you fear. One that prevents you from taking action, so that you can take action to overcome that paralysis”.
3 Step Process
Tim breaks down the exercise into 3 stages. Take 3 pages and use 1 page for each stage.
Stage 1: What if I {insert your choice here}?
Across the top of a page write the heading of 3 columns:
- Define
- Prevent
- Repair
Define:
In the define column list up to 20 fears you have about making the decision you are considering.
Prevent:
In the prevent column list what actions could you take to prevent (or reduce the risk of) each fear from becoming a reality.
Repair:
If each fear you listed came true, what could you do to repair your situation?
Consider the following.
Tim suggests keeping the following question in mind…
“Has anyone else in the history of time, less intelligent or less driven, figured this out?”
Chances are the answer is yes! Straight away this should make your fear less scary.
Stage 2: What would success look like?
On this page, write down what might be the benefit of an attempt or a partial success?
Stage 3: What is the cost of inactivity?
Tim asks you to consider the following question… “If I avoid this action or decision, what might my life look like in 6 months, 1 year or 3 years”.
“What we don’t often consider is the atrocious cost of the status quo”.
Should I Start Strength Training?
In the TED talk, Tim goes on to describe making the decision to go on an extended trip to London as an example of the process.
I wanted to use the example of you whether you should take action to start strength training.
I will go through each stage put down just a few ideas to get you started.
Stage 1: What if I start Strength Training?
- Define: What if I don’t know what to do?
- Prevent: I can develop a plan and a program to follow.
- Repair: I can see a physiotherapist, strength&conditioning coach, personal trainer etc to review my plan to get me back on track and then to progress me further.
- Define: What if I get injured?
- Prevent: I can plan and follow a gradually progressive program to reduce the risks?
- Repair: I can see a physiotherapist to guide me following my injury and get me back stronger than I was prior to the injury.
- Define: What I look stupid and people judge me at the gym?
- Prevent: I can buy some affordable equipment and follow a plan to gain confidence in working out at home.
- Repair: I can work with a physiotherapist, strength and conditioning coach, personal trainer, etc to rebuild my confidence.
Page 2: What might be the benefits of an attempt or partial success?
If I started strength training and I achieved even partial success, I might….
- Feel stronger
- Be steadier on my feet
- Reduce the risk of falling
- Increase muscle mass and bone density.
- Reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease, hypertension,etc
- Lose body fat
- Boost my energy levels and improve my mood
- Feel better about myself and feel more confident
- Be able to continue playing my sport
- Survive a day looking after my grandchildren
- Manage a full day in the garden
Page 3: What might be the cost of inactivity?
If I continue not doing 2 sessions of strength training per week (as recommended by the physical activity guideline – click here for more details) I will continue to lose muscle mass and strength as I age.
The result of reduced muscle strength might be that the activities I currently enjoy doing are likely to become more difficult and less enjoyable.
I might become less mobile and have an increased risk of falling. This could result in an injury and other medical conditions associated with physical inactivity.
My relationship with friends and family may become strained as I can’t spend as much time with them.
Summary
The above is just a quick example of the process using some of the common fears and difficulties that some of my patients discuss with me.
There are many more fears that I could add to stage 1 and several more elements to add to both page 2 and 3. All of this is very different and individual for each person I see.
Have a go at the process yourself, whether that’s related to starting strength training or another important decision in your life.
What are your fears that you can think of with regards to starting strength training? How could you prevent and repair these fears?
Let us Know
Write your fears in a comment below to share with other readers. Your fear might be one that resonates with someone else. Your suggestions might help them prepare for that fear.
More on Tim Ferriss
If you wanted to discover more of Tim Ferriss you can:
“Fear setting doesn’t make all the hard times and the hard choices easy, but it can make a lot of them easier”.
This post was written by myself, Chris Tiley, a physiotherapist based out of Movement Therapy Clinics in Harborne, Birmingham. For more information on how I can help you visit christileyphysiotherapy.com
8 Responses
Big proponent of strength training and have been doing it for decades. I have not heard of any of these podcasts. They sound interesting and I will check them out
Yes check out his podcast out, The episodes tend to be longer and last between 90-120 minutes. Once you get past that they are fantastic and you end up wishing they lasted longer.
Ohh! I like this. I like the Idea of Define, Prevent Repair!
Yes, it’s a great concept which I’ve used a few times now.
yes!! I think strength training should be a part of everyone’s routine. Even if you don’t want to bulk up, it’s great for your muscles, well-being and longevity.
I love the name of your blog, and I’m all for lifting/strength training!! I haven’t heard of Tim Ferriss’ podcast, but I’ll have to check it out! Thinking about the cost of inactivity is a great way to frame it (I may have to try that with my patients!).
These sound like some of the conversations I have with friends/family as I encourage them to try new types of workouts, especially weight lifting!
Thanks for this practical advice!
Thanks so much for sharing. Strength training is a huge part of my routine and I recommend it to everyone. I have a lot of friends who only do cardio and I’ve been trying to get them to start adding strength training into their routine. I’ll share these tips with them!