TeenLife 2024 Guide to Summer Programs

But you’re not a runner — the most fitness you get is walking
between classes — so you know being able to run that
5K is going to take some work and be a bit of a challenge.
In other words, you’ll need to step out of your comfort
zone, or your place of greatest security, and get uncomfortable
in order to achieve that particular goal.
How do you know where that boundary is — and is the
“comfort zone” even a real thing?
The idea of comfort zones is rooted in research conducted
by psychologists Robert M. Yerkes and John Dillingham
Dodson in 1908. They developed the Yerkes–Dodson Law,
which states that performance increases as stress increases,
and performance decreases as stress decreases.
However, at a certain point, high levels of stress inhibit
performance.
In the context of our 5K example, this means that while
you may just want to just walk on a treadmill to train,
there’s not much stress in doing so and therefore no
increase in performance. However, when you apply
stress by upping the speed on the treadmill, it gets a little
harder and you have to jog.
Now you’re actually training. But, setting the speed of the
treadmill too high to start won’t be beneficial and may result
in injury or propelling you off the treadmill altogether.
THE BENEFITS OF LEAVING YOUR
COMFORT ZONE
As you train for your 5K, you can see how speeding up
your walking pace and pushing yourself to jog — getting
outside your comfort zone — can help you develop the
fitness, stamina, and mental fortitude to run your race.
But there are a number of benefits to moving outside
of your comfort zone and challenging yourself to grow
beyond just crossing the finish line.
Achieving your goals. Not everything you want to
achieve in life will be easy. By moving beyond your comfort
zone into the growth zone, you’ll be able to do just
that: grow. You’ll find yourself becoming more productive,
achieving more, and reaching the goals you set for
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