Perfection and optimization and reality

While I spend a good chunk of my time planning exercises for people, thinking about balancing cardio, strength, balance, and flexibility, I know that ultimately the best exercise is the exercise that gets done.  I can plan the perfect workout, but if I don’t do it, it doesn’t help.

When my clients are with me, they do what I plan.  The rest of their lives, they are on their own and have to make positive fitness choices All By Themselves, just like we all do.

As an impatient person, I complain about tracking things.  It takes too long to write stuff down.  (I am waiting for the Fitbit Psychic, which will just know what I eat and do and everything without me having to do anything…)  However, when I do track what I do, I learn to make better choices. 

I make a plan every week.  The first part of making the plan is looking at last week’s results and seeing how I did.  If I set my goal too low, I know I need to kick it up a little.  If I didn’t do half of what I planned, I need to figure out whether I was overly optimistic about what was possible or just lazy or some combination.

Maybe a pattern emerges.  Maybe it turns out that 5:30 a.m. spin just doesn’t work right now.  Maybe that lunchtime workout does the trick.

The workout we do is better than the perfect workout we avoid.

Because I am 48 now

Forty eight reasons to get and stay fit:

1.     Fun

2.     Beaches

3.     Hospital avoidance

4.     Cake without guilt

5.     Bikes

6.     Heroine worship of Mrs. Obama’s arms

7.     Ability to move furniture All By Myself

8.     Kitchen dancing

9.     Swings

10.  Cute clothes

11.  Cute boys

12.  (Eventual) cute grandchildren

13.  Loud music

14.  Sushi

15.  Climbing things (trees, stairs, pyramids…)

16.  Skiing

17.  Ice cream

18.  Dog walks

19.  Travel

20.  Independence

21.  Heavy books

22.  Heavy groceries

23.  High heels

24.  High shelves

25.  Vanity

26.  Energy

27.  Victory over the Depression Monster

28.  Strong muscles

29.  Strong character

30.  Strong odor—wait, I mean, hot showers

31.  Tight jar lids

32.  New sports

33.  Adventures

34.  Endorphins

35.  Views

36.  Farmers’ markets

37.  Mental acuity

38.  Karmic balance

39.  Meditative practice

40.  Continence

41.  Better sleep

42.  Better waking

43.  Peace of mind

44.  Speedy tennies

45.  Environmental impact

46.  Cuddles

47.  Empowerment

48.  More birthdays

Words of wisdom, so you know I didn't say them! Also, an elephant

One of my clients gave me an inspirational example of a positive attitude that I want to emulate myself and share.  We were working on an exercise that required her to use her core to balance.  It was challenging; that was the point.  She said, “I suck at this.  Make me do it more.”

No, I am not advocating that we all go around saying we suck at things.  What I am advocating is recognizing that there are hard things we need to do and acknowledging that we need to practice until we master them.

It is really easy to suck at something and do everything we can to avoid ever having to do it again.  How much more can we grow when we face up to those difficult things and build the strength and power to kick their butts?

Friday Exericse: Tricep Kickbacks

The Amazing Stickie is proud of her strong triceps.  One way she ensures that they stay strong is by doing tricep kickbacks.

She holds dumbbells in her hands.  She bends her knees slightly and hinges forward at her hips, keeping her spine long.  Then she bends her elbows to raise the dumbbells up to her armpits, the elbows pointing behind her body as if she were preparing to imitate a chicken.

As she exhales, she extends her elbows, straightening her arms out behind her.  She is tempted to drop her elbows toward the floor as she does this, but she resists the temptation, knowing that this is cheating.

She inhales and returns the dumbbells to her armpits.  Three sets of ten to fifteen repetitions later, she is done.

Thursday Book Report on Book Reports, with Color Commentary

I make a point of reading every day.  I admit that I love to read, so it isn’t exactly a burden.  I also think of it as my self-directed continuing education, which is why I manage to report on my fitness-related reading each week.

Sometimes, however, I have to slow down.  I have not finished reading another book that has relevance to this fitness blog.  (I am, however, deeply engrossed in Gregory Maguire’s Egg and Spoon.)  Life is not entirely about fitness, after all.

I am reading and coloring my way through Netter’s Anatomy Coloring Book by John T. Hansen.  Coloring is slow.  As the pallets of adult-oriented coloring books in stores attest, coloring has become a thing.  This is not entirely surprising to those of us who never forgot that coloring can be peaceful, meditative, and absorbing.  It is also a good way to spend time looking at structures and embedding their images in the mind.

So far, I have not colored very many pages.  I will be coloring pages for a long time.  I’m sure I will read things in between that I will write about.  For now, I will simply suggest that it is worth it to go deep rather than fast from time to time.

The good parts...

I think that a lot of times we think of fitness as stuff we Have To Do.  While some important fitness activities can fall into that category, it is important to remember that there are whole rafts of fitness processes that are inherently pleasurable.

Think, for example, about eating.  Eating food that tastes good and that nourishes us in body and soul can provide a nearly transcendent experience.  It helps to be mindful about what we are eating and how much, of course.  Then it is just about the sensory enjoyment of color, smell, taste, and texture.

How about massage?  Relaxation, whether we access it through touch or meditation or breathing, reduces our cortisol levels.  We become healthier, more resilient, and often just plain nicer as we relax.

Some people adhere to the philosophy that there is plenty of time to sleep when we are dead.  Not me.  Sleep and rest are essential to life.  It is during sleep that our bodies repair themselves and our minds process all the events of our days.  We do not want metaphoric scurvy brought on by deprivation of Vitamin Sleep.

Yes, do the weight workout (even the burpees).  Get in the cardio.  And then make sure to eat, relax, and rest.

Sea turtles are like tortoises, but swimmier

Patience is not my leading virtue.  Anything that can be done can probably be done faster, right?  What are we hanging around for?  And look!  There’s something shiny over there!

Some things, however, have to take their time.  Growing babies, for example.  Or growing babies into adults, for another.  Long division, poems, and Ikea projects also all benefit from careful consideration, concentration, and perhaps occasional swearing.  It turns out that mobility and motor control are two more of those things.

I have known for some time that a lot of strength builds during the eccentric, or lowering, phase of weight training.  Increasing the time a muscle is under tension adds fatigue and eventually strength.

However, I didn’t fully realize that slowing down movement gives the body time to smooth out the motion, to figure out how best to use its pathways, and to create feedback and feed-forward to develop better strategies.  Giving the muscles and the brain more time to work produces better results.

It is time to embrace the tortoise side of things.