Going Back to Basics

An accidental theme for me the last few months has been “Back to Basics.” Over the course of my regular Peloton workouts, I happened upon one class in the Boost Your Base - Power Zones program and was hooked. Next thing I knew, I had committed to the full 8-week series. The program is designed for progressive overload: There are three classes a week offered by half a dozen coaches, all guiding you towards the same goal of improved endurance. The classes focus on a lower output (combination of speed and resistance) than my usual high intensity interval training (HIIT), but for increasingly longer periods of time — from 30, 45, 60, 75, to ultimately 90 minutes.

I enjoy being part of a community with a common goal, and it has been exciting being coached by a group of individuals committed to helping others be better, smarter. Throughout the program, one is reminded of its strategic design to increase performance.

At week seven, the program peaks with a 90 minute ride co-led by two instructors. Though I had been nervous about the ride that day, as soon as I logged in, a smile spread across my face. The energy they created with the community in the studio immediately made me feel like I was a part of something bigger. The training I’d received up to that point had prepared me for that ride. It was the most fun I’ve had on the bike yet.

The Blindspot

Looking back, I realize now that I had almost not made it to that session. Four weeks into the program, I noticed the metrics I usually track - HRV and Sleep Score were decreasing, rather than improving. Instead, another metric, weight, was decreasing. Though this hadn’t been my initial focus, it was a nice to have. I wasn't complaining.

The longer rides at a low intensity were in the aerobic, or “fat burning” zone. This side effect prompted a different level of awareness for me. I was having to eat more to maintain my energy levels, and wanting to eat healthily required a level of foresight and planning on my part that hadn’t previously existed. It exposed a blindspot I had, which I am still strengthening.

What I uncovered was just how much of my success, not only in this program but around all my goals, is dependent on the quality of my reflection and planning.

Rituals of Reflection

I have had a fairly consistent ritual of reflection and planning for the last twenty years, based on a framework I learned in 2005.

This process starts around this time of year, looking out to a future date (usually the end of next year, though now I go as far out as 10 years). You cast a vision, and work backwards from that vision to identify milestones, and goals. From there, you work backward to determine your priorities for the year and the strategies you’ll execute for each. You then put all that into a one-pager, and each month, ask yourself what you can achieve as milestones towards those longer-term annual goals. Each week you do the same. Asking yourself, what activities can I do this week to achieve those milestones? Those activities are then added as time blocks to your calendar.

You don’t plan everything in advance. You just check in with yourself - week by week, month by month, year by year. And now, I do it quarter by quarter.

Though the specific reflection questions are important, and the process is enhanced greatly when facilitated by a coach, the foundational piece is showing up consistently to do the work of reflection and planning. When you have a community, even better.

Slow Down to Speed Up

From a mindset perspective, this can be hard. When you're running all the time and getting so much done, protecting space on your calendar for something that won’t specifically produce an output related to your goals can feel uncomfortable.

This is exactly the experience I had on the bike.

I found the “easier” slow rides as challenging as the longer ones. And the idea of committing to a program that didn’t feel like it was impacting my explicit goals directly felt weird.

I think this is a fitting metaphor for life.

All too often, slowing down at all is hard. Creating a new routine to do the basics is harder — and often unachievable — in and of itself. Yet it’s this ritual of reflection of planning that has given me both peace and progress in 2025.

Peace and Progress

I could have easily quit the program, saying that it wasn’t aligned with my immediate goal. Just like I could have skipped the reflection time to get more done. However, both were building my endurance. My ability to go further for longer. To keep moving in a sustainable and healthy way towards my explicit goals.

Now that I’ve completed the program, I have refocused on strength training. What I am seeing is that I’ve not only upped the weight I can lift, but I have a more balanced, sustainable weekly plan. And, it takes less time to execute. I recover faster and thus can work out more consistently, resulting in greater impact.

Too often, we want results now, and we’re willing to chronically hustle to get them. To feed the need for what we think is success. Hint: It's not busyness.

Next to my bathroom mirror hangs a small wooden sign that says,

"The love you are looking for is not found in the hustle."

It's a reminder from a friend when we turned 40 to take a deeper look at myself daily - what brings me joy. Fulfillment.

What I have noticed this past month, while participating in end-of-year retreats, is that most people aren’t clear about what “success” means for them. They can't say what brings them joy. They just know it's no longer what they have been doing.

That may be you, too.

Reset to Go Further

Surely, whatever your version of success is, to some extent, it is about being able to achieve the toughest goals with less effort. Not muscling through, but opening ourselves to a different approach.

Focusing on lower-intensity activities for longer, like rituals of reflection, could be the reset you need this year to help you go further.

It has been interesting sticking with a training program that doesn’t seem to align with my plan, but sometimes life is like that. It’s exactly what you don’t know or think you need that gives you that extra edge and pushes you outside an unknown comfort zone.

Questions for Reflection

Take a look at your own year:

• Have the foundation-building activities—the ones that feel slow—been the most difficult to execute?
• What experiences this year have made you smile?
• What activities may have been hard but have brought you the most fulfillment?
• What stole your energy this year?

If you are interested, join me in my rituals of reflection this year. Book a quick call to learn more.

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Published November 24, 2025