A couple things I want to touch on regarding my listening pattern that has seemed to bring in better results as of late. I’ve switched from 5-7 minutes, to the full fifteen. As of the time being, I don’t really have to worry much about recon/performance unless I have an interview, and even then it hasn’t seemed to cause any issues. I do get more intense recon again, but just in the forum of intense waves of emotions for maybe an hour or so, and go into deep introspection, but it’s manageable. The upside to this, is that I “feel” the subs working again, which starts a positive feedback loop of results. More tired throughout the day and have been sleeping more, which in a high-pressure sales job I can’t have, but from what I gathered, when you have the time/space to handle the recon, full loops are more effective.
To make this more manageable, I have been doing one title at 5 mins, and the other at 15, and rotating that on listening days. I also do the 5 min in the morning, and the 15 mins at night which again makes the increased listening that much more tolerable.
I still believe there’s a time and place for micro-loops, but the results and changes have sped up drastically, reminiscent of how Zp2 functioned.
Thinking in terms of lifting and the gym which is often compared to subs here;
The beginner weight lifter should focus on the basic and foundational movements (beginner subs), and do the minimum effective volume to create a stress response and change, though as a beginner you can get away with pretty much anything… For optimal results this would function like picking one or two subs that get you the most bang for your buck, and finding that sweet spot, which as a beginner probably won’t be much more then 3-5 minutes.
Now the intermediate lifter is where the most confusion arises. The #1 thing I see people do wrong, and where I messed up for years, is they fall into the “minimalist lifting” or “high intensity” training camps. There’s a time and place for these as well, such as trying to maintain your lifestyle, prioritize other area’s. Most intermediate lifters however, need more volume and frequency, and to simply practice at getting better at the lift. There’s a lot of ways you can implement this, but in simple terms, you may need more exposure, and more frequently, so long as that doesn’t impede on your recovery enough to halt your progress. Sometimes exercise (or sub) variety can be beneficial at this stage, especially accessory exercises that support your main driver of progression.
Self-limiting variations of lifts, such as a stiff-leg deadlift, can also be great to strength your weakest points in the lift. This is so that you can continue to strengthen the main movement pattern, without running into over-use symptoms
Relating this to subs, as an intermediate your still going to want to have your one/two main subs that are your primary driver of progression. I would implement this by slowly increasing that listening time, not all at once, but adding 1-2 sets (minutes per week). Once you start to plateau, there is a couple options, add in some accessories, smaller/less taxing movements (less dense subs) ideally accessories that address your weak points, or you could rotate one of the main lifts out for a similar movement pattern, something that still drives progression towards your goal, but from a different angle. Mogul for HOM for example.
Finally there’s the advanced lifter. This is where things get counter intuitive, but because they are significantly stronger, and using much bigger weights, recover here is significantly more important. They can get the same stimulus from 2 sets, that the intermediate is getting from 5. They may have to get very creative with their training, using drop sets, super sets, or focus on bringing up one area at a time. To manage their recovery, those self limiting variations I mentioned become way more crucial, as it brings the nessicary weight to get a stimulus down significantly. They start to focus on bringing up their weak points where theirs their most bang for buck, rather then bringing their bench press from 400 to 450, and so a lot of the time you see more variety here, but still lifting with intent.
The advanced user therefor, has already amassed a great deal of success in their chosen area of focus. Their fore, they can be more experimental. You can start to tackle some of the low hanging fruit. What’s missing in your life, that would make your already awesome existence even awesomer? Spend 3-6 months bringing that up, then find your next mountain to climb.
*** For reference here, the way I think of beginner/intermediate/advanced, is where you are at in proximity to your goals, not how long you have ran subs. So in this fashion, you may be advanced with wealth subs, but a complete beginner in spirituality.
Finally, not to yank my own horn here, but I’ve got to say Limitless has really improved my writing ability and to explain my thoughts/ideas.