What does “consistency” really mean?

The science behind consistency is crucial in the fitness industry. But I'll let you in on a secret. The word "consistency" is not well defined. Not in scientific literature, not amongst coaches, or just about anyone else for that matter.

Coaches, myself included, promote consistency as being the ultimate tool for achieving health and fitness goals. We do this because we witness it to be true all the time. Those who continually work towards their goals, every single day, eventually end up meeting them. This makes logical sense, right? How can someone achieve a goal they never work towards?

But the term consistency can mean different things for different people. I do think this is important to recognize.

Many start their fitness journey thinking they will begin working out 4 or 5 times a week. Then they get tired, injured, frustrated, or lose motivation. Eventually, they recognize this, then try again. The cycle continues.

The problem with this approach is the inability to recognize consistency in context. For someone who is sedentary and wants to become active, consistency may look like seeing a personal trainer once a week, or going to the gym twice a week. It may simply mean walking a few days a week during lunch.

The point is, everyone is different. Consistency for me may very well look different than consistency for you. For example, I want to develop some definition in my upper body. I know that to do this, I must work my upper body a few days a week at the gym for several weeks. Doing this means I am being consistent. But if I want to start walking more during my lunch breaks, and I start doing so 2 or 3 times a week for several weeks, then this is also an example of me being consistent.

There are a few reasons why these examples show consistency in different ways. One is because the goals are very different in nature. But also, someone's physical fitness level or physical capacity looks different for everyone. If I was disabled, walking 2 or 3 days a week may be exactly what I need, a fantastic goal. If I am already an elite athlete, adding an additional upper body day is also great. Everyone's physical capacity is different.

I was just reading an article about researchers studying measures of physical fitness among patients with chronic kidney disease. One of the frustrations in this review from the researchers is that every article had a different idea and definition of what physical fitness was. That's simply because everyone is different. While frustrating from a research perspective, it also highlights the beauty of how different everyone is. Fitness included.

So, back to the main point. What is consistency? There's a sense of repetition, setting realistic goals, and being physically active. There's also an element of behavior/behavior change mixed in.

I will end with my definition of consistency: repeatedly and routinely moving your body in way(s) that help people meet their realistically achievable physical fitness goals. Take some time to think about your goals and what consistency means to you

I wouldn't be a good researcher if I didn't add a link to the article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34013106/