Yesterday, I had a patient with balance issues. I told him this:
“I can’t let you leave until you do this correctly – balanced – and stable – five consecutive times.”
He eagerly tried to complete the task, rushing from one rep to the next. He continuously failed at 4.
Dooley: “If you don’t feel stable, don’t come off the ground.”
Patient: “I’m rushing.”
Dooley: “Yes. This is not a set of 5. This is five sets of one.”
He was giving me one good rep, then wobbling on the next 3 until failure came.
We must do something well and make it reproducible – just like solid data. Each rep is a new rep. It’s not a collection of subpar reps I am seeking.
I want five sets of one.
And the patient gave them to me. I encouraged him to hit reset after each rep. Then, he amazed himself by doing it. He did five sets of one, instead of powering through five with wobbly form.
So, I could let him leave proud, with a big take home point:
Reps are stupid.
In the words of the great Dave Whitley, “I am not interested in how heavy, how fast, how long, or how many times you can do something poorly.”
Five sets of one, not one set of five.
Start with one good rep. Then, make it reproducible.
– Dr. Kathy Dooley