People spend more time searching for the perfect exercise than actually exercising.
And social media absolutely fuels this mindset.
“3 exercises for bulletproof knees.”
“One stretch to fix your posture.”
“Fix your back pain forever.”
Sounds great.
Usually nonsense.
Because there is no perfect exercise.
There are useful exercises.
Appropriate exercises.
Exercises that fit your current situation.
But two people with “knee pain” can need completely different things.
One lacks strength.
One lacks confidence.
One overloads too quickly.
One avoids movement completely.
One sleeps four hours per night and survives on caffeine and stress.
The exercise itself is only one small piece of the puzzle.
A chapter called “Carpenters’ Tools” from a book I recently read reminded me a lot of this mindset.
The young carpenter constantly searches for the perfect tool, while the experienced carpenter simply uses the tool that gets the job done.
When someone refuses to use a tool because it’s not perfect, they’re probably not actually doing the work.
I see this all the time in rehab and training.
People stop exercising because:
- the plan wasn’t optimal
- they missed a workout
- the exercise felt awkward
- progress wasn’t fast enough
- somebody online recommended a “better” method
Meanwhile, the people making progress are usually doing something far less exciting:
They keep showing up.
Not perfectly.
Consistently.
Ironically, the basics people love to skip are often the things that work best.
🧪 Let’s Experiment
Optimization can become a very effective form of procrastination.
Social media makes people feel like progress always lives in the next program, the next method or the next magical correction.
Meanwhile, your body is just sitting there waiting for consistency.
🎯 Try This:
Look at your current training or rehab plan and ask:
- Which exercises actually help me?
- Which ones do I consistently avoid?
- Which ones am I only doing because somebody online said they’re “optimal”?
Then simplify.
Keep the things that work.
Remove unnecessary noise.
Your rehab does not need to look impressive to be effective.
🧠 Final Thought:
The people making progress are usually not the ones with the perfect program. They’re the ones still doing the basics 3 months later.
Keep it simple, stay curious, and keep learning—you’ve got this.
Take care,
Carina 🦊