Browsing in a magazine store the other day, I picked up one of those generic men’s magazines.  You know the type:  a guy with unnaturally white teeth and a six pack on the cover — together with promises of gadgets, sex tips, and a six-pack of your own — to lure you in.

I picked it up – hey, I have the occasional moments of weakness and wanting to be pumped and ripped and shredded – and flicking through it actually found an insight of some use.

An athletic trainer was talking about how to get unstuck, how to breakthrough when you’ve hit a certain point and can’t go beyond.

His insight was this:

Undertrain for a few days, take it easy and do less rather than more.

And then come back to the challenge, and odds are you’ll be able to push through it to your next goal.

It’s not unlike Seth Godin’s advice in The Dip.

But it’s not just stamina you need.  You also need some smarts about how to get out of your own way, and undertraining to gather breath and energy for the breakthrough is one of those strategies.