It’s been two years since the start of the pandemic and now we’re dealing with the Omicron variant of the virus. Great. Here in Finland, bars and restaurants must close at 6pm. Gyms and fitness centers are closed altogether.

I’ve been really, really frustrated about the gym closures, because hitting the gym 2-3 times a week has been very important for me. Weight training is my favorite form of exercise and like most others out there, I don’t have the luxury of a home gym.

I’m not going to get into the rationale (or lack thereof) behind the closures, but I’ve been thinking a lot about my frustration. Why do I feel so irritated? Is there any point in being so frustrated about the situation? What should I do? I mean, it’s not like I would have the power to open up the gyms, or anything like that.

Dealing with this frustration got me thinking about the dichotomy of control, a Stoic practice that basically states that some things are within our control and others are not. It gives us a framework to be effective at solving problems by dividing them into segments – things we can control and things we can't.

William Irvine has expanded the dichotomy into a trichotomy by showing that there are also things over which we have some but not complete control.

So, applying the trichotomy of control to my exercise situation leads me to the following thinking:

1. I have no control whatsoever over the gym closures. Therefore, I should not waste any energy worrying about that.

2. I have partial control over what kind of weight training I can do without going to the gym. For example, I could buy some kettlebells and a pull-up bar to my home. There are also full body workouts that can be done without any gear.

3. I have full control over the training goals I set for myself. Therefore, it would be wise to set some motivating and meaningful targets for my home training.

I think Irvine is on to something when he says that “by routinely internalizing your goals, you can reduce (but probably not eliminate) what would otherwise be a significant source of distress in your life: the feeling that you have failed to accomplish some goal”.

In other words, rather than messing around with external goals, let’s focus on internal goals, over which we have complete control.