What is the Bout Effect? In simple terms the more you repeat a behavior, the less it impacts you because you have become accustomed to it. This concept is usually discussed in the exercise arena. It would seem that the more you do the same thing over time there is a diminishing return. However, if you change the routine from light to heavy there is a noticeable change of improvement as well as decreasing soreness.

Consider the following:

• When you have not done much strength training, doing 30 pushups will improve strength. However after a few months an extra 30 pushups will not make that much difference in strength.
• When you drink your first cup of coffee there is a noticeable caffeine spike, However, after months of drinking coffee little is noticed in terms of a caffeine spike.
• When you start eating smaller portions you will loose weight. After the first 10-15 pounds are lost your smaller portion becomes your normal portion and weight lose stalls.

Failure to understand the Bout Effect will lead us to declare:

• This always happens to me. I make a bit of progress and then I hit a brick wall and plateau.
• I am working out every week and nothing seems to be happening.
• I have tried everything. Exercise does not work for me

Actually it did work. The initial exercise accomplished what it was meant to accomplish – RESULTS. Now you have a new baseline by which to measure a higher level of success. If you desire to accomplish a higher level then you need to add something new to the mix. Consider these three insights  on improvement.

1. By doing light amounts of work consistently will reduce the pain of difficult sessions in life.
2. The amount of work that you need to do to reach your maximum potential and output is greater that what you are doing presently. There is always room for growth! New levels of achievement require new levels of effort.
3. Deliberate effort is critical for long-term success. Doing the same type of work over and over again is a strange form of laziness. New skills will take you to new places of achievement.

Marshall Goldsmith says in his best selling book, What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, suggests that doing the same thing over and over again, even if it worked for a long time will eventually plateau. If nothing changes, nothing is going to change.

Write three goals that you can accomplish in the next two weeks. Once these are mastered, then add something to the mix that challenges you to the next level. Keep the BIG MO moving in your favor.