Strength, Attention and Curiosity.

Photo by Heather Ford on Unsplash

Consider these three quiet shifts for March.

Meaningful change tends to take root in modest, repeatable habits. When sustained over time, these small shifts can alter not just what we do, but how we feel as we move through our days.

More Strength Training

A strong and capable body signals good health and aids optimum performance, not just in the gym but as we go about our daily lives.  Having strong muscles becomes even more important with age. In her book, Roar, Dr Stacy Sims explains that we lose lean muscle mass to the tune of up to 3% per decade between ages 30 and 80, and that physical strength declines 30% between the ages of 50 and 70. That’s a long and slow decline – but it can be offset by a conscious effort to move in ways that make our bodies stronger.

Cardio training is important for metabolic fitness, but focusing solely on this can lead to what is sometimes referred to as ‘skinny fat’. Researchers describe this body composition as normal-weight obesity — when someone appears slim but carries a higher proportion of body fat and insufficient muscle. A solid core, stability and mobility are important, but a key focus should be on maintaining and improving muscular strength. In her book, Dr Sims says that “heavy weight plus good form equals great results”, and advises just 2 to 3 twenty-minute weight sessions each week.

By challenging and stimulating your muscles, they will break down and repair bigger and stronger. Beginning with bodyweight exercises – squats, lunges and push-ups   – can help re-engage dormant strength. Accessing good guidance — whether through a trainer or reliable resources — can make incorporating strength work into your routine more achievable. Over time, the results tend to show up not only in our physical capability but in our energy and vitality too.

Less Screen time

Less screen time is about reclaiming attention, and being more deliberate about where our focus is placed. A phone is an invaluable tool – it enables communication via multiple channels, provides news, banking, navigation, the ability to take photographs and videos, and to be entertained. Unfortunately, it can also serve as a significant distraction, and a threat to the quality and productivity of daily life. Having a device at arm’s length 24/7 makes it extremely difficult not to reach for when bored or requiring a mental break, until it becomes reflexive to scan and scroll between almost every task.

We open, check, and close our apps multiple times on autopilot, and depending on how often we do this, significant chunks of our day can be wasted on just looking, rather than absorbing. The answer sounds straightforward, though in practice it can be surprisingly difficult. It often comes down to becoming more deliberate about how we use our devices. In his book, Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World, Cal Newport reminds us that “a life well lived requires activities that fill the soul.” If the number of hours you spend on your phone is affecting the amount of time you have available for the things you want to do more of, it may be worth reconsidering how that time is being spent. Setting a target for daily screen time can empower us to consciously direct our attention more towards the next task. Managing attention is an ongoing practice, and less digital clutter often translates into more space for what matters.

Learning and Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity is the brain’s lifelong ability to change — to rewire itself through experience, practice and learning — meaning that growth and adaptation remain possible at any age. This was recognised as far back as the 1700’s, when Swiss philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau proposed that the organisation of the brain is affected by our experiences, and that we need to exercise our mental abilities in the same way that we exercise our muscles. With age, we can fall into the trap of labelling learning as difficult and challenging, either due to a lack of interest in the subject or due to discomfort caused by a loss of learning fitness.

Satisfaction and stimulation come from purposefully increasing capabilities or knowledge in our areas of real interest.  For example, choosing interesting subjects related to our careers provides knowledge that results in added perspective and confidence, and an ability to shape new strategies, or generate more relevant and current ideas. We have a wealth of wisdom at our fingertips and are able to upskill in our choice of area. A more intentional approach — identifying an area and spending time exploring it more deeply —turns our passive consumption into genuine, purposeful learning.

Strength, attention and curiosity are not dramatic interventions, but they shape the texture of everyday life. A little more muscle, a little less distraction, and a willingness to keep learning are quiet shifts that accumulate over time. This month, remember that progress rarely arrives all at once. It tends to emerge gradually, through the small choices that we repeat.