Competence Breeds Confidence
No matter where you are right now on your health and fitness journey. You will have moments of fear, doubt, and uncertainty.
Points where you question yourself and your abilities. You’ll say things like;
"This is too hard for me."
"I can't get it right".
"What's the point?"
The point is, to achieve your long-term goal.
It's much like a marriage. You MUST be all-in, and commit to it wholeheartedly.
Otherwise, it’s not going to work. And it won’t end well.
Total and utter commitment, nothing less.
In good times and bad. Through thick and thin. When it's smooth sailing and in rough waters.
One of the reasons people struggle to stay committed to their goals is they never feel good enough.
Not personally, necessarily — but sometimes, that’s also true.
I'm referring to how you go about the process of your strength training.
You don't know which exercises to do. So you mix them up every week. You rotate them thinking novelty, and more variety, is the answer.
It's not.
You've been told you should have squats and deadlifts in your training program. But you don't know the right technique to use. So you stick to light weights, that don't produce any results. Or avoid them altogether so you don't hurt yourself.
Good call.
You aren't making the progress you want with a straightforward program. So instead, you think doing HIIT training is the answer. You end up training even harder, sweating more, and achieving less.
Not surprising.
Want to know your real, deeper problem?
You never took the time to master the fundamentals. You tried to build a house on sand. You don't have a solid base or a strong foundation.
It’s weak, unstable, shaky, and easy to break down when any sort of load is placed upon you.
When you don't know what to do, you'll try just about anything.
Let me explain something to you in black and white.
When you first try a new exercise, expect to suck at it. Or even, to be shit at it.
You've never done it before, right?
So what chance do you think you have of nailing it, 100% correctly, the first time?
The answer is, "very little".
It doesn't mean you shouldn't try. Absolutely do! Give it everything you’ve got.
All it means is, that this is your current starting point.
From there, the goal is to progress.
The only way you will build confidence in your technique, your ability to get better, and make gains is through practice.
Yes, practice.
You must treat your strength training and gym sessions as practice, not a workout.
Any idiot can make you sweaty, sore, or tired. That's easy!
The hard part is making you better.
This all comes back down to “movement competency”.
Understanding the ins and outs of the exercise you are doing.
If you know nothing about a squat, you won't feel confident doing one.
For example: Where do you put your feet?
You can't say, “on the ground”...duh.
I'm talking about how wide your feet are.
I'm referring to the degree of toe flare.
I'm discussing the position of your stance.
All these little details play a part in you hitting an amazing, high-quality, deep, squat.
So you get the absolute most out of every single repetition.
When you start off, you'll likely just put your feet shoulder-width(ish).
Toes pointing wherever is most comfortable or convenient to you.
It's not right or wrong, it's just what I know you'll do.
After a few reps, you'll likely move your feet, in or out, based on how it feels to you.
You're learning, adjusting, and correcting.
Every rep is giving you feedback and information.
It's providing a real-time response and signal to your brain about what you're doing, so you can adjust as necessary.
Stance too narrow? Go wider.
Toes want to angle out? Let them.
Body tipping forward? Resist.
Lower back rounding? Fight it.
Every squat you do is a chance — an opportunity — for you to tweak, and modify it.
To make it better and more effective.
So when I say you'll be shit (or suck) at squats in the beginning, this is why.
You have limited information, minimal experience, and very few reps "under your belt".
You haven't done that many, so it’s only natural that your technique will be average, at best.
This is your current level of competency.
Here’s how it works.
A low level of competency = low confidence.
A high level of competency = high confidence.
When you've done 100 squats, you have one hundred bits of feedback and data points to process and consider.
When you've performed 1,000 squats, you have ten times the amount of information at your disposal.
When you've completed 10,000 squats over the course of a training career, you know what does and doesn't work for you, and why.
Because you've put in the time, effort, and reps to understand the small (but important) details of what goes into a great squat.
You know with certainty, the exact best foot position for you.
You understand how to organise your body optimally as you drop into the bottom position.
You grasp the concept of bracing and know when is the best time to breathe.
You are able to concentrate fully on every single portion of the squat without letting your mind wander or get distracted.
That's the difference between a beginner, an intermediate, and an advanced lifter.
The beginner has little information, minimal experience, and very little know-how. Because it's new or unfamiliar.
The advanced knows every little detail, and how to squeeze the most out of each repetition, with supreme accuracy.
I'll leave you with this.
The more knowledge you have, the more chance you have of getting an exercise right.
It's for this reason, you must become a student of each exercise you perform in the gym.
If you pay no attention to the details — no matter how big or small — it'll be impossible for you to do it to the best of your ability.
This means you won't get stronger. It won't allow you to build the muscle you want. You aren't going to feel in control or confident executing the movement.
Period.
The more you comprehend a given exercise, the more potential you have to perform it well.
But don't just assume because you "know" what to do, that you can actually do it well.
Demonstrate it. Prove it. Show it.
Fact-check every rep and make sure it's as good as you think it is.
If you're new to strength training, you will go through the four same stages of learning as everyone who's come before you. They are;
Shit - Suck - Good - Great
(If you want to take a deep dive into the “Four Stages Of Competency”, listen to this podcast.)
The only reason you won't progress and ascend this ladder is either if;
A) You don't pay attention to what you're doing
B) You quit
Stay the course, learn what you need to, practice your reps, and don't stop — even when things get tough, or frustrating.
Do that, and your level of competence in any given exercise will rise, and along with it, your confidence.
Confidence doesn't appear out of thin air, and it certainly isn't through a façade of 'fake it til you make it'.
It comes from diligence, discipline, and accurate execution of the small details.
Every rep. Every set. Every session.
That's how you build confidence in yourself and in what your body is capable of doing.