As some of you are aware, I have a new interest. Coffee roasting. Yes, coffee roasting!! Although I love to cook, this world of roasting coffee beans is completely uncharted territory for me. About the closest thing I’ve done in the food world is make caramel…though caramelizing sugar really is quite a far cry from bean roasting. The best part is that I feel like a “newbie”. I literally have NO idea what I’m doing! But you know me…I’m ready to learn & look for life lessons from something as random as coffee roasting!
To date I’ve roasted 2 batches of coffee. To be as scientific as possible, I used the same beans in both batches AND I only made 1 small change to the 2nd batch roasting procedure. My hope is that, by only changing 1 thing at a time, I can better determine how the variables (coffee bean origin, heat, bean agitation & roasting time) affect the flavor. To start I changed the roasting time – my 1st batch roasted for 10 min & my 2nd batch roasted for 10 min 30 sec. Yep, just 30 more seconds. And wow…I was blown away by how this 1 small change led to such different (and frankly, better!) results.
From Coffee Roasting to Training
Coffee aside…I feel like this concept – the potential for 1 small change to produce significantly different results – is so important for athletes to remember. If you ask most athletes to name their goals, they often list things like:
- Get faster
- Get fitter
- Get stronger
- Get leaner
Great goals, all! But then you ask them what they are doing to achieve those goals. They list things like…
- Add in strength training & do some plyometrics & do some speed sets & lose some weight.
- Start lifting weights & eat healthier & sleep more & do cardio every day.
- Lift 3x per week & add in big, compound lifts & decrease the rep range & eat more protein.
- Eat more protein & intermittent fast & decrease carbs & do more cardio & drink lots of water & do HIIT workouts.
All great ideas! But too many & too much. If you change all of these things at one time, yes, you’ll certainly get a different result…but you’ll never really understand which change(s) were most effective. And, more importantly, the new result may not be the result you wanted (lots of rapid change can often lead to negative results like injury, burnout, etc.).
Keep It Simple, Silly!
So, my dear athletes. Remember the Rule of 1%:
The difference a tiny improvement can make over time is astounding. Here’s how the math works out: if you can get 1 percent better each day for one year, you’ll end up thirty-seven times better by the time you’re done. Conversely, if you get 1 percent worse each day for one year, you’ll decline nearly down to zero. James Clear
Take all your motivation to change, to achieve results, to get better & channel that into a list of things you COULD do. Then take a close look at that list & find the SMALLEST thing to change. Do everything else exactly the same way you’ve always done it…but add in that 1 small change. Then give it time to work. If your experience is at all like mine, you’ll be amazed at how 30 seconds changes everything!
Happy training!
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