Have you been caught in the trap of how much to do for exercise versus the minimalist approach?
How do you know what’s right for you?
Turkish sharpshooter Yusef Dikec is taking over the internet with memes and opinions about his approach to shooting and how he was able to win a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Yusef performed his sharpshooting in prescription glasses, earbuds and less high-tech equipment than his competition. Let’s call his approach “minimalist.”
His competitors used all the high-tech gadgets needed in sharpshooting.
The meme’s have depicted everything from his casual approach looking like their neighbor woke up, stepped outside, took a shot and won a silver medal to some random guy was picked off the street to represent his country.
It’s funny how people can go all in on one person’s approach to without understanding anything about the process leading up to it, simultaneously discrediting everything that is current and proven.
The amount of practice and preparation that goes into anything at an advanced and elite level needs to be appreciated.
Exercise falls under the same criticism. A minimalist approach works and recognizing context is critical.
There are many ways to exercise. What matters is finding what works for you the most.
Let’s go back to Yusef, who was born in Turkey in 1973. He enrolled in military school in 1994. He became a corporal, then a sergeant in 1996, and in 2001 he began shooting in competition.
23 years later he won a silver medal at the Olympics. Between those two decades, he won national and international competitions along with world records. He’s been practicing a long time.
Minimalist exercise approaches work similarly.
For example, you can get a very effective workout using one kettlebell. It’s one tool with many options.
For those who have practiced their technique consistently for years, you can create year’s worth of training programs performing one to three exercises and your results can be outstanding.
Giving a beginner such a pared down routine might be a mistake. They need to build a foundation of skill and strength.
A simple yet complex movement like the snatch works the entire body and delivers qualities of hinging, squatting, pulling, pushing and core stability.
It’s not appropriate to give that type of training to a beginner or someone who craves a variety.
However, as years of practice accumulate, different approaches fit the needs and desires of the participant.
Some people need the latest gadgets in heart rate training, heart rate variability, force production measurements, sleep and recovery monitoring.
Other people need a clock, chalk and a kettlebell.
The approach to take is the one that is going to keep you in the game for years to come. Stay engaged, continue to learn, develop and refine your technique, moving better and getting stronger.
It could take a minimalist or maximalist approach.
It doesn’t matter what others do.
It matters that whichever approach you take, you do it consistently and with intention. What moves the progress needle in the direction you want to go in depends on you, your lifestyle and environment.