You’ve completed your final set, and there you are lyimg on your back after a workout, exhausted, wondering how in the world you’re going to be able to even lift a bar of soap to wash yourself in the shower. The next day you talk to your workout buddies about how sore you are from the the previous day’s exercise routine, and collectively agree, “That was a good workout.”
Sound familiar? Let me ask, in the above scenario, what was “good” about that workout? I ask because I want to make a point. That point is “hard” does not necessarily equal “good.” Martin Rooney has a fantastic quote, “Anyone can make someone tired. Great coaches make someone better.” I’m most interested in being a great coach. My goal is for anyone who comes to see me, leaves better than when they came, whether it be through exercise or other. For example, I rarely program burpees for my training clients. To me that is an exercise designed to make someone tired. Obviously, sometimes that is in fact the intent, but it depends on the circumstance. I’m more interested designing programs that allow my clients to improve in areas specific to their needs. What’s good for one person, may not also be good for another. Everyone responds to exercise differently. CrossFit has grown in popularity over the last several years. I have my opinions of their programming, but no one can argue with results. There have been thousands of people who have seen great results through CrossFit. So, I decided to design my own workouts around the CrossFit methodology for a while. They have had proven results and it was a lot of lifts that I enjoy doing. So, I gave it a shot. Exercise should leave you energized and your body feeling better. After each one of these workouts I was completely wiped out for the rest of the day, and felt sore all the time. Needless to say, my body did not respond well to these workouts. I have since switched up my approach. I basically lift something heavy a few days a week, and get some form of cardio in on my off-days. I feel great after these workouts, I’ve seen changes in my body, and it is all still lifts I generally enjoy doing. Not to mention, it’s always fun to be able to move a lot of weight now and then. Finding the style of exercise that works best for you will increase your enjoyment of participating, and increase the likelihood of adherence to the program. It was everything I had to motivate myself to go out and crush myself with high intesnsity CrossFit style workouts. I did not look forward to it, and if my workout partner was not there with me, there was a better than good chance I was going to find a reason not to do it that day. Exercise should be enjoyable, but still challenging. The good thing is that if it is an activity you enjoy, you welcome the challenge. Another thing to keep in mind, is that exercise does not necessarily mean going to the gym for a workout, or streaming a workout from home. Exercise can be anything that you enjoy, as long as you are able to progressively challenge yourself in order to improve. If you are at the point where you aren’t sure which style is the right one for you, please contact me. We can work together to find the most effective routine for you on your journey to improved health and wellness.
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It’s recipe time! One of my favorite things to do is cook. I actually get annoyed when my days get so busy that I don’t have time to prepare a meal for my family. One of my goals for this site is to periodically highlight a recipe I’ve tried that’s worth sharing. So, here we go...
I like to cook, but I am for sure a recipe follower. The stuffed pepper soup recipe I started with is here. It was not my own recipe. However, once I know the basics, I tend to modify based on what I or my family likes. So, for this recipe I subbed out ground beef for Italian sausage. I did this for two reasons: 1) We just ate beef the night before, and 2) I like sausage 😁. Because I subbed in Italian sausage for the beef, I cut the Italian seasoning measurement in half as well. The only other modification I made was subbing in cauliflower rice for white rice, 2B Mindset style baby. I can tell you that my 4 and 6 year old had no idea that they were eating cauliflower. I cooked it by the instructions listed, and ate it topped with a little Parmesan cheese, and some gluten free corn muffins. Just a disclaimer, I don’t always eat gluten free stuff, I just think Wegman’s gluten free corn bread mix tastes better than the regular. I know, that’s not really cooking either, but I gotta save time somewhere. So there it is, Stuffed Pepper Soup. Pretty easy, delicious, and made with veggies most! This was enough for my wife and I and both kids to eat for dinner, and Both my wife and I also had enough to take for lunch the next day. Be sure you make enough for that. But, don’t make too much that you’ll end up throwing it away. If you’re only cooking for one or two, the leftovers would freeze easy, and serve as a perfect impromptu meal on a cold winter evening. Enjoy! Stress has been shown to contribute to a number of the leading causes of death in America. It changes your body biologically, as well as changes your mindset and how you operate. Many ways exist to cope with stress such as meditation, exercise, and even medication. When people begin to feel stressed they (hopefully) revert to one of these methods to help decrease the amount of stress they experience. Worst case, they do nothing, often leading to a number of health issues. Treating stress is one thing, but what if you could shift the way you perceive your stressors? Think of a situation that causes you a lot of stress. Your boss wants you to present one of your ideas to a group of company managers and supervisors. You’re going on a job interview. You have a big project due. All of these situations cause you stress because it may be outside of your comfort zone. Since we are uncomfortable with these situations, we worry about messing up or failing. Here is a challenge to you the next time you find yourself in a stressful situation. Rather than seeing it as a stressor, think of it as an opportunity. And, think of your body's response to this stress as a primer for success. In each of the situations that I mentioned, someone has an expectation of you. MOST of the time, someone wouldn’t put you in these situations if they did not think that you could at the very least meet expectations. This triggers the fear of doing just the opposite. Hence, stress. If you were to view these situations as an opportunity for you to exceed expectations, you would change your perspective from being scared or stressed, to excited to share what you know. You can get excited about talking about something that you’ve worked so hard on. You will be eager to tell someone why they should hire you. You have the opportunity to submit a project that solves a major issue in the company. If you need proof that changing the way you view stress, and your body's response to stress, can have a positive impact on your health, watch the brief Ted Talk below with Kelly McGonigal. Hear her explain how viewing your stressful situations differently can change your health, and the potential outcomes of the situation. Another interesting aspect of the above Ted Talk is the effect of connection with others on your stress experience. I get to do this on a daily basis, which perhaps may lead to me not feeling great amounts of stress. Being part of a supportive community that is all working toward the same goal can improve not only your stress, but your desire to adhere to different lifestyle habits. This is one thing that drew me to the Beachbody programs. Everyone is working to improve themselves, and everyone else in the community is supporting and encouraging you on this path, no matter who you or they are. I strongly encourage you to consider becoming part of a supportive community such as this on your journey to improved health and wellness, whether it be through Beachbody or other. If you want to be part of an amazing support network like this, please contact me to get started! In closing, the next time you find yourself staring down a stressful situation, ask yourself what opportunity do you have in front of you to make an impact. Accept your body's response as positive, adjust your mindset, and even turn to your support group for help. Take these steps to go from stressed, to your best. |
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