Month: February 2020

Last Thursday, I arrived at work pretty pissed off. My commute took me an extra 45 minutes because traffic was backed up nearly to the ramp on which I get on the highway. It was not until I was finally close to getting off the interstate that I learned out why. Cap-and-trade opponents, Timber Unity, were staging a protest in the capital (Salem, Oregon). Truck were backed up for several miles before the exit and all the way into the capital center. Traffic was at a stand-still getting off the highway, and, at this point, my bladder was nearly ready to explode and I was getting low on gasoline. Fortunately, the trucks were confined to one lane after the ramp, and I was able to resume a normal speed the rest of the way to my usual gas stop and to work. It didn’t matter, though, because my attitude had already soured against the truckers (the cause for whom I had some sympathy—until now). Surely, they could have gone about voicing their concerns without screwing up my morning! It was well into my work day before I managed to collect myself. My day was disrupted. There was no getting that time back, and if I hadn’t controlled my bladder….

The next day, I asked a colleague how it affected her commute. She lives in Salem, so I expected it had negative consequences for her, as well. She said it only delayed her getting her daughter to pre-school. For the three-year-old, though, it made her day. She got to see the “big trucks”. She was ecstatic. For her mom, it made her day to see her daughter’s joy.

Friday, I got a lesson in perspective. I learned a bit more about gratitude and had my grattitude adjusted. I was still annoyed, of course, but I was reminded that the thorn in one’s side can be another’s rose. I need to look for the joy to be found in my circumstances. There is something to the advice to become like little children (Matthew 18:2-4). I need to seek to have a child’s grattitude.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

Image source: https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2020/02/timber-unity-supporters-rumble-into-salem-protesting-proposed-cap-and-trade-climate-bill.html

The time we spend exercising is respective of our individual goals—more specifically, to our commitment to our goals. It is also respective of opportunity. If one has lofty goals but not the time to commit to said goals, one needs to reevaluate one’s goals.

The is time to exercise. Time is the #1 worst excuse for not exercising. It literally takes minutes a day to achieve more optimal health. Of course, exceeding the “average fitness” category takes more than minutes. Nevertheless, substantial improvements in health and neuromotor skill-related physical fitness can be obtained in less than an hour a day. If one desires higher levels of fitness and body composition, more time and effort might be required.

In one of my courses, a student asked how she should respond to a female client who says she “doesn’t want to lift weights and build big, bulky muscles”. In a particularly ornery mood, I skipped the discussion of hormones, genetics, etc. and told her to “tell her she isn’t willing to put in the time”. I realized that this is actually the most accurate answer. It takes a lot of work in the gym and nutritional management to build big muscles. If she were the very rare individual who can easily add muscle mass, she would not have to spend as much time in the gym to “not build big, bulky muscles”. Those who aspire to be competitive body builders or physique athletes need to spend considerably more time in the gym (and need to carefully manage recovery with adequate sleep and nutrition).

If we can be satisfied with modest gains, we need to begin with a time commitment and work from there. Personally, I don’t believe three visits to the gym a week is sufficient. I would prefer at least six sessions per week—three weight training and three cardio sessions. Most ideal would be 9-12 sessions—3-6 weight training, 3-6 cardio, and 3 high-intensity interval resistance training (HIIRT) sessions. These need not be excessively long—ideally, 30-45 minutes. If one has time to commit, one can commit more time (and/or more sessions). The most important thing is to make time and use the time wisely. More isn’t always better. Key is to prioritize the activities that will deliver the most bang-for-the-buck (the most effective training stimulus).

On top of planning time to exercise, one must plan for effective recovery. Have planned meal times—and planned meals (nutrient timing and macro balance is important). Also, have a planned sleep wake schedule. “Bedtime” is not just for kids. Getting adequate and effective sleep is essential. Exercise is, itself, catabolic (destructive to the muscle). Recovery is anabolic and, therefore, essential to physical adaptation. Plan for 7-8 hours each night!

Prioritize your scheduling so, when things come up unexpectedly, they don’t cut into your most important exercise time. Don’t feel guilty for missed sessions. Pick up with your next scheduled session and keep progressing. Rather than skipping “leg day” reschedule. Abbreviate sessions if you must, but don’t skip the essentials (e.g., squat, deadlift, bench, row, and overhead press variations). Drop the accessory work (“curls for the girls”, abs, etc.), if you must. Shorten a cardio session rather than skipping it.

A 24-hour day is an opportunity.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow!

Carpe momento!

I often find the principles of exercise to be allegories for life. Today, I consider the squat.

The squat is one of what I consider the “basic five” exercises (i.e., squat, deadlift, bench, row, and overhead press). It is arguably the single-most effective exercise for total-body strength. It is an excellent representation of the opportunities of life.

Anyone who has squatted any significant weight knows that it is a hard exercise. It is especially challenging to perform well—i.e., correctly. It requires concentration and practice. It also requires an element of self-efficacy (trust in one’s own ability).

When squatting heavy (is there any other way??), it is important to maintain a stable core and contract the involved muscles in the correct sequence and appropriate levels of force. It is especially important to trust that when you drop into the bottom (of the squat) you will be able to return safely to the standing position. It is often this fear of “getting stuck” that leads exercisers to avoid squatting a full range of motion. As well, exercisers continue to add (a perception) of load all the while shortening the range of motion—the result of which is a lack of actual progress (i.e., true strength gain and muscle hypertrophy) and, invariably, to injury.

In life, growth requires proper overload—just like squatting. It requires facing increasingly difficult challenges. It requires checking the ego at the door, doing as well as one is capable, and doing it better (and under greater overload—i.e., progression) the next time.

If we never getting “stuck at the bottom of the squat”, we never progress as far as we are capable. If we do “partial squats” with heavy weights we are fooling ourselves into thinking we are challenged and living a productive life.

I think also of the folks who like to post their squats on social media using numerous bumper plates to give the perception of lifting more. (There are the wide bumper plates that look heavier than the standard 45# plate, and there are the lighter Olympic plates that have the same diameter of the 45# plate but may be as small as 10#.) These are the folks who want to be perceived as successes without putting in the effort.

In performing the squat, one needs strong internal support—a strong core, good bracing technique, upper body strength to support the bar, etc. In life, we might call this an internal locus of control. When the weights (or the challenges in life) approach maximal, we may need to depend on greater external support. One may use a weight belt or require spotters. It is wise to also have safety bars to prevent us from getting trapped under the weight. I life, this may include the support of family and friends, a faith in a Higher Power, community, mental health care and practices, etc. In other words, one should not bear the heavy burdens alone.

Approach life like performing the squat. Experience it deeply and passionately. Pursue growth and welcome challenges as the opportunity to grow. Seek a trustworthy support system. Have the confidence that when you hit the full depth you can explode out of the bottom and complete the repetition.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!

“The most glorious moments in your life are not the so-called days of success, but rather those days when out of dejection and despair you feel rise in you a challenge to life, and the promise of future accomplishments.”—Gustave Flaubert

Easy success has little value. In my humble opinion, the greater value is in the hardest fought loss or failure. We grow in the learning that comes from failure. (In other words, we don’t learn from the failure itself, but from the opportunity that failure offers to make us a better person.)

I have shared many times the popular saying that “in wrestling, there are no losers, only winners and learners”. I am seeing it in my son as he wrestles as a young freshman in the 170 lb weight class. He has won quite a few easy matches against other freshman wrestlers. He has been pinned by a few far more physically-developed and experienced junior varsity and varsity wrestlers. He has had a few matched in-between where the scale was tipped a bit more toward his opponent, and he has fought to the final whistle and lost. The wins have been far less rewarding than the losses. The losses are teaching him. They are driving him to lift weights to develop his strength and physicality. They are pushing him to practice with more focus.

As an educator, I share a philosophy I learned from a friend and mentor, Dr. Travis Beck. Travis once shared what a Biology professor had taught him—“We never really learn anything until we are first completely confused by it.” In other words, we learn best when we have to struggle to learn it.

It is not popular among many educational professionals these days (I was once chastised that it was damaging to the students’ self-esteem), but I prefer hard exams that students rarely score in the 90s. I like a high-60s/low-70s average that I can curve upwards. I believe that asking students questions to which they know the answer is of little value. Instead, I want to show them what they don’t know and help them learn it.

It is unpopular to challenge students these days. I for one, see the mistake in this. For one, it does not prepare them for the inevitable failings in life. Second, the lack of self-confidence (or sense of false-confidence) is far less disabling than the perceived damage to one’s self-esteem (and, personally, I am one to believe that self-esteem—more specifically, self-efficacy—comes from overcoming more than being told you are okay as you are).

Self-efficacy, after all, is the very sense that one’s ability to accomplish the task at hand—in Flaubert’s words: “the promise of future accomplishments.”

I believe “’Can’t’ never did anything”, but we never know “Can” until we sufficient push (and grow) our limits.

Be your best today; be better tomorrow.

Carpe momento!