“You already want. Want at the right level.”
Somehow, moving 6,205 lbs in 45 minutes is easier than moving 0 lbs.
My life was forever changed when I encountered this idea in Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics:
- Virtue is formed through habitual, repeated actions.
In college, I focused on habit formation. Routine is simple – and for me, can be easy: “Every day” is often easier than five days per week. Habit is a valuable default.
But sometimes, excellence requires non-habit. Sometimes, wanting to win can make you lose.
Know When to Fold ‘Em
The hunger that makes you a cutthroat poker player can also lose you tournaments.
In many poker tournament situations, the winning move is to fold. There are plenty of spots where one has the guaranteed best hand yet the proper move is folding! (E.g. pocket aces with a short stack on a tournament bubble when multiple other players are all-in.)
The fastest way to lose a fortune at poker is over-bluffing.
Give up on this hand. Find a better spot.
Know When to Walk Away
The strategy that makes you a skilled weightlifter also exacerbates your injuries.
Ten years ago, I bulged a disc in my spine.
Three weeks ago, I re-activated the same injury. I paused deadlifts and squats, only returning to them 3 days ago. My sciatica flared up again. I stopped.
In the long term, one day without lifting doesn’t matter. One week wouldn’t matter. A re-injury could bench me for life.
Wanting to lift weights makes you a good weightlifter. But wanting to lift weights can also make you a permanently-bad weightlifter.
Know When to Run
For the next 6 weeks, any lifts involving my back would be “rolling the dice”. Contrary to popular opinion, I don’t like gambling: I like situations where gambling leads to an edge.
This isn’t one. Today, I’m taking a rest day from the gym.
Count Your Money When the Dealin’s Done
The game isn’t one poker hand. The game is long-term winning.
The game isn’t today’s weightlifting. The game is long-term health.
These intellectual reframes – “it’s not about this hand” and “it’s not about lifting today” – can have cascading effects. They relax your mind. They create new patience.
Today I will take a rest day. And each second when I’m not lifting weights, I will remind myself I’m getting stronger.
Julian Wise 