Five that don't and one that does

Excuses that don’t work (sorry!):

 

1.     But I exercised yesterday!  That was then.  This is now.  Gotta do it again.

2.     It’s too (pick one) hot, cold, rainy, windy, dry.  This is why clothes and heat and air conditioning were invented.

3.     I’m too tired and grumpy.  It will be better afterward.  Really.

4.     Can’t somebody do it for me?  No.

5.     But I paid for my session/gym membership/ equipment!  Yep.  And none of it works without showing up to do it.

 

One that does:  I am sick and/or injured.  Rest.

Team Sports

I have some pretty standard disclaimers that I say, a lot.  As a personal trainer and Pilates instructor, I am not a doctor or physical therapist.  I am not a chiropractor.  I am not a dietician or nutritionist.  I do not diagnose or treat illness or injury.

 

This does not mean that I am not able to give an opinion, based on my experience and education.  (Spoiler alert:  if you are sick or injured, you should see a doctor or other health professional.   If you want a detailed diet plan, you should consult a nutritionist.)  I consistently tell people that consulting health professionals is just smart.

 

I can talk about macronutrients (protein, carbs, fats) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and the general outline of healthy eating—whole foods, minimally processed, nutritionally dense.  I can tell people that ice is a friend to swollen parts, that Ibuprofen can be wonderful for those who can take it, and that resting a hurting part is a good idea.  If things are still hurting enough to keep us from doing our normal activities after a couple of days, it is time to see the doc.

 

Healthy living is a team sport.  I do my best work in conjunction with all the other professionals who want people to live long and good lives.

 

Go play.

And cake. There will be cake.

So today is my birthday.  (Fine.  I wrote this ahead, but I’m posting it on my birthday.)  Time is passing.  I am now 54.

 

The best part about birthdays, obviously, is the presents.  Here are the presents I am giving myself this year in hopes of eventually giving myself many more good years.

 

First, I am giving myself the gift of cardio.  Getting breathless does so many good things for me:  keeps my mood positive, helps my brain work, gives me the endurance to have the adventures I want, burns calories, and, not coincidentally, I think it’s fun (most of the time).

 

Second, I am giving myself some outside.  It’s really easy for me to spend a whole day without going out in the fresh air, but I’m making it a priority.  Some of it is for the novelty of a new environment.  Some of it is about spending time with plants and flowers.  All of it is good for me.

 

Third, I am giving myself a break.  I could make this list of good-for-me gifts long and complicated.  Sometimes we can have too much of even good things (like cupcakes).  The stress of trying to do All The Things and do them perfectly (natch) gets large and tends to undo the benefits.

 

What would you give yourself?

Monday Workout: Kettle!

I love kettle bells because they are so flexible as a tool.  Also, they make us work hard.  Three rounds.

 

jacks	30
bench press	20
YTA	10
kb swings	30
kb twists	20
kb 8s	10
woodchoppers	30
flies	20
pretty princesses	10

 

Affirmations for the Challenged

I confess that I hate affirmations.  The Wellness Police are probably coming for me right now.  However, here are a few for people who hate them.

 

1.     My body is amazing.  Really.  It keeps breathing all by itself.  It moves me around.  It turns food into energy, light into images, and waves into music.

2.     I can do things.  I got up this morning and brushed my teeth. 

3.     The world is beautiful.  There is a sky.  There are leaves.  And flowers!

4.     I can make connections.  There are other humans!  We can talk!  We can laugh at stupid jokes and know that dogs and babies are adorable. 

Anxiety Training

I write a fair amount about the connection between exercise and depression (short version:  get cardio to reduce symptoms), but I sometimes forget to write about how exercise helps with anxiety.  (Note:  exercise anxiety is a thing, but I’m talking about the garden-variety kind here.)

 

People who deal with anxiety are familiar with the raised heart rate, shortness of breath, and panicky feelings it can produce.  They know about the hamster wheel of worry.

 

Here’s what exercise does to help.  That hamster?  It gets tired out when we do our cardio.  Our brains literally calm down.  When we go outside, it works even better.

 

Cardio also raises our heart rate and makes us breathe faster and harder.  In effect, we practice for panic attacks by doing cardio.  We get familiar with the feelings and we know how to recover from them because we’ve done it so many times before.

 

None of these things are a substitute for actual medical and/or psychological help.  If we need medication, we should take it.  If we need to talk to an expert, we should do it.  What I am suggesting is that exercise can be a helpful addition to the coping toolkit.

 

Be well.

Sick Workout, Dude

Sometimes we get sick.  When we’re sick it can be hard to tell whether we are well enough to work out or not.  Here are some thoughts to help the decision process.

 

First and foremost:  rest is devalued in our culture.  Most of us run around on not enough sleep.  We are constantly stressed out.  Getting sick is one of the only acceptable reasons we have to get some sleep.  It is not only all right to rest when we are sick, it is almost always a really good idea.

 

Also important:  we do not bring our germs to the gym.  Nobody wants them.  We need to stay away from others until we are sure that we are not sharing.

 

Now that we’ve dealt with those important bits, what if we still want to work out?  If we are having any GI issues, it is probably best to wait until they’re fully done.  We want our insides to stay inside while we are working out.

 

If we are congested, we may want to go easy on the cardio.  It’s already a challenge to breathe; we don’t want to make it worse.

 

In fact, going easy is the magic concept here.  A gentle walk, a bit of yoga or stretching, maybe some light weights:  these are the kinds of workouts we do when we are getting better.  We want enough work to remind ourselves that we know how, but not so much that we tax systems that are already trying to deal with our viral or bacterial invaders.

 

Again, resting is a perfectly valid option.