No, it is not a dungeon...

Some of us define working out in terms of punishment.  We say things like, “I’m really going to have to work hard at the gym today because of that cookie.”  Workouts are described as torture.  We speak of having our butts kicked.  Sure, in many cases, it’s just word play, but the attitude is there.

I am not about to tell anyone that working out becomes easier if we just pretend we have a positive attitude.  Working out can and often should be difficult.  Difficult things, however, do not have to be punishments.  Is it a punishment when a musician plays a supremely complicated piece?  Nope.  It’s a welcome challenge and a demonstration of skill built up by long practice.  Under the best circumstances, it is play.

My studio is called Recess on purpose.  We will do hard things, but we will have fun doing them.  We do not deserve to be punished; we deserve to have a good time while we get stronger.

Monday Workout: TRX

My TRX was feeling lonely, so it’s time to let it come out and play.  Depending on time and energy, do two or three rounds.

TRX
1 min cardio
atomic oblique pushup	10/side	mid calf
side plank with rotation	10 total	mid calf
sprinter start (with hop)	20/side	long
chest press deep angle	10	long
1 leg squat (with hop)	20/side	mid length
kneeling roll out	10	mid calf
TY deltoid fly	10	mid length
back row, deep angle	10	short
hamstring curl	10	mid calf

Friday Book Report: Little Girls in Pretty Boxes

Whatever it is that the San Francisco Chronicle does in selecting or training or mentoring the writers who produce its sport section, I like it.  As a group, they are funny, knowledgeable, and talented.  They will even get me to read about sports in which I have no interest because of their ability to write.  Joan Ryan is an alumna of that group and one I miss on my daily visits to the Sporting Green.

Therefore, it is no surprise that I found her book Little Girls in Pretty Boxes: The Making and Breaking of Elite Gymnasts and Figure Skaters to be a good one, if a book as disturbing as this one can be described as good.  It came out in 1995, but remains relevant today as the—how shall I put it—disaster that is the sexual abuse scandal in American gymnastics continues to unfold.  In fact, I am saddened that the book was not enough of a wake-up call; twenty more years of abuse happened.

Ryan details the manufacture, use, and scrapping of skating and gymnastic stars, from physical and mental abuse through staggering expense, eating disorders, death, and destroyed families.  There are almost no voices of sanity in the wilderness of ego and greed on display in the service of exploiting little girls.

Let’s say no.  The machine of ultra-competitive sports is bad for all of us (Hi, Football, I’m looking at you…).  We all need to move our bodies.  It is good for us to want to be our best and to push toward that goal.  We do not need to get there by abuse and we definitely do not need to condone the abuse of others for our entertainment.