AMRAP mentality is an engine of productivity.

[CreamCat]

I watched the following video and summarized it.

 

• AMRAP is an acronym for "as many reps as possible"
• AMRAP workouts challenge athletes to do a specific move as many times as they can within a set amount of time.
• These workout are intense. They can be a great way to track the progress over time.
• Modern life is filled with technological distractions. However, you almost never find your mind wandering from the present moment when you are in the middle of an AMRAP workout.
  • When you are trying as hard as you can to raise your chin to that bar just one more time, you are completely focused on the task at hand.
  • The level of shear intensity involved in AMRAP round makes it impossible to focus on your weekend plans, video games you played last night, and so on.
• Channel that intense focus and that present-mindedness you experience during intense workout to the rest of your life.
• AMRAP mentality is a useful visual metaphor that makes it easier to slip into the flow state with work.

The process of using AMRAP mentality in 4 steps

• Identify your areas of focus. Make sure each has a strong internal "why".
  • You should only have a few of these. Each of them should have strong internal reason.
  • You should do this for micro goals as well as macro goals.
    • Each day, write down a few things you want to accomplish, and apply AMRAP mentality to them.
• Choose one area, focus on it with all of your attention, and work hard at it.
  • When you are riding a bike, your only focus is on where you are going.
  • If you want to get where you are going with any amount of speed, you're going to crank those pedals hard.
• Switch gears, and do it deliberately with good reasons to do so.
  • When this happens, you go back to step 2.
  • Switching from one task to another task is like going from an AMRAP set of push-ups to another AMRAP set of pull-ups.
  • Your focus calmly switches to the new thing, and all of your attention becomes fixated on it.
• Do frequent re-evaluations
  • Sit often, and ask yourself "Do my areas of focus still make sense?"
  • Your time, attention, and energy are all limited resources.

My takeaway

• Leo's videos on productivity are powerful, but they don't seem to provide me with a simple engine of productivity.
  • It takes hours to grok Leo Gura's videos. But, it takes less than 30 minutes to embody AMRAP mentality because physical metaphors are simple and powerful.
  • My productivity plummeted after watching Leo's videos. I became too entangled in my thoughts to see the essence of productivity. Productivity is simple. It is as simple as AMRAP mentality. You should intensely work out your mind to the extent that it is impossible to focus on other things. You should also take proper rests regularly to recharge your fatigued mind.
  • The engine should be simple. The maintenance of the engine and the vehicle is going to be complex.
• Thomas Frank equips you with an engine of productivity. Leo helps you with becoming a wiser driver of your life and maintaining the engine of productivity over months and years.
• Leo should do more workout so that he will utilize more exercise metaphors. Exercise is a powerful motivator.
• Doing 17 pull-ups during a break recharges my fatigued mind quickly. You should do it, too. You should also work out your mind while you work.
  • Exercise your mind while you work. Exercise your body while you take rests from work.
  • Make an exercise regime for breaks from work. I have one, too. While I take breaks from work, I do pull-ups, stretch my body, and so on.
• Apply AMRAP mentality to meditation, positive affirmation, and visualization
  • Don't shirk mental exercises. Do as much of them as possible while you can. Take rests after exercising your mind.

Edited September 24, 2018 by CreamCat

[molosku]

Interesting post.

One additional bridge that should be gapped with AMRAP mentality to self-development is that AMRAP does not mean "as many reps as you can take", it means "so many reps that you cant take it". Another way to say AMRAP would be to say "until failure". One close to home example would be leos failed 30 day meditation retreat: he meditated until he just failed. Thats a true AMRAP retreat. 

To truly make an useful framework for self dev of AMRAP, is to make a clear distinction between total failure and near failure. On the outside it looks like the same thing, but internally it is different. If something is really done to failure succesfully, there is a choise to be made afterwards: push on and burn out, our retreat back and recover. One or the other must happen. 

Edited September 24, 2018 by molosku

[CreamCat]

@molosku So, should I do so many pull-ups that my arm muscles can't physically lift my body weight if I wanted to honor AMRAP mentality?

[molosku]

@CreamCat i think you should program intelligently, so I cant say if you should or should not. 

[CreamCat]

17 hours ago, molosku said:

@CreamCat i think you should program intelligently, so I cant say if you should or should not. 

What kind of programming do you mean?