What Is Your Bus?

This article was inspired by a little old lady I observed while in my car driving home today.  The woman looked to be fairly elderly, walking slowly along the sidewalk holding a large bag.  As I drove closer, suddenly she stood up straight, grabbed her bag tight and started to run.  Not just run, sprint.  I noticed that she saw the bus coming and really, really wanted to catch it rather than waiting for the next one, which is obviously why she made that decision.  Suddenly this somewhat frail looking woman could become Usain Bolt just because she suddenly wanted to.  She did catch the bus, by the way (good for her).

As a society we typically take the easy way out, unless it is something that we really want.   Then we will beat ourselves up, lie, work ourselves into mental illness or neglect other important things simply to get it done.  This all comes down to simple priorities and motivation.  When was the last time that you missed dinner with your family or an event because you were working late?  When was the last time you skipped breakfast in order to get an extra ten minutes of sleep?  People tend to confuse “want” as opposed to “have to” more often than they need to.  As Tony Robbins would say, if you can change your “shoulds” into “musts” then your brain will literally change the way it thinks about things.

Think about this the next time you tell yourself that you “should go to the gym”.  Change the way you say it to “I have to go to the gym”.  The intention completely changes.  Just like we as trainers manipulate the intention of different exercises, you can literally change the intention of how to spend your day to day activities – without having to drop everything and sprint.  Find that reason and everything suddenly becomes easier.  I often tell people – what if someone was holding a gun to your head?  Would you get it done?  What if your children or family were at risk?  What would suddenly change that thing from 4th on your priority list to 1st?

In short – what is your bus?  What would make you drop everything and sprint, possibly sacrificing injury and losing your bags without a second thought?  Is it your job?  Your family?  Or maybe is there another bus you should be running for – like your health?  So often I hear stories from clients and people I know that they wish they had started to take care of themselves sooner, or just stayed consistent with what they were doing before another bus came along that they felt they had to start running for.  The thing is, once that bus pulls away and you miss it there might be another one coming, but it won’t take you to the same place.  You might have to travel a few extra stops before you get to where you want to go.

I’m obviously an advocate of taking care of your health and well-being first, and then everything else kind of falls into place.  This can be as simple as meditation, finding an activity that inspires you or setting a goal that motivates you to get out and do something active.  And the next time you think about stopping the momentum, just imagine that you look behind you and that bus is coming down the road.  Maybe you won’t have to sprint to get there, but it might help you pick up your pace just a bit.

The Cleaver Vs. The Scalpel

I’ve written before many times on how easy it is to kick someone’s ass physically.  In fact, I wrote about it previously under “Anyone Can Kick Somebody’s Ass” if you care to check it out.  Many times in my industry clients fall victim to trainers pushing them far too hard, or people are victims themselves by putting themselves through a workout that they have no business doing, especially over a period of time.   Due to the theory of “no pain, no gain” people think wrongly about forces and how they are applied to the body, imagining that the harder they work the faster things are going to move.  In fact many times the opposite is true, and you’re doing yourself far more harm than good by trying to stimulate the body past what it is capable of dealing with.

I was in my local butcher the other day watching a guy cut up various bits of meat while my order was being prepared, and I couldn’t help but think that the instruments he was using wasn’t too far off from what some trainers try to use when trying to mitigate change.  For some cuts there was no precision at all, just a big cleaver that hacked up everything as fast as possible for the sake of getting it done.  Now, these guys are probably better at using a cleaver than anyone because of experience, which can also be the basis for a skilled trainer to be using force like that.  They can hack through a joint without thinking about it because they have done it 1000 times.   They know just where to strike in order to separate things without having to do it again, possibly dulling the blade in the process.

However, then I saw a more delicate operation being done on a fish, which was a very precise series of cuts with a razor thin blade in order to remove bones, which if not done properly completely ruins the meat in both look and feel.  This is the other side of the equation.  If you use a cleaver to debone a fish, you’re going to get a big smelly mess on the floor and the precision that you need just isn’t there.  If you use a scalpel to hack up a chicken, you’re likely to not only take forever but get really frustrated when you try to cut through a joint.  When I’m dealing with a serious injury case, it needs to be precise, focused energy devoted to doing exactly what I want to have happen, otherwise I’m going to potentially make the person worse, not better.  However, if I’m dealing with a person who needs to be able to generate a lot of force for a specific physical act, then maybe they need a different approach.

So does the desired result dictate the tool or the other way around?

In my experience too many people think too much about the outcome and not how they are going to get there.  They are so focused on the goal and willing to do whatever it take to get there they forget about the tool, and that in the physical world there is an endless amount of tools at their disposal in order to achieve that goal.  This is where real skill as a trainer enters the picture.  Just like a master chef, a really good trainer can pull out a variety of tools in order to create the desired outcome that they are looking for, whether it be simple movement, higher amounts of force, or even something like changes to lifestyle for a client.  Some people need a cleaver because they need to have things completely changed – and they can handle the force.  Some require a bit of a finer touch and just some very precise modifications in order to keep their progress moving forward.  Many clients prefer the cleaver, thinking that the best approach is just to smash everything, when the scalpel is often what is needed, especially at the beginning of an exercise program, or a change to what you are trying to accomplish.  The ego can easily get in the way.

So the next time you are evaluating your exercise program, ask yourself – what tool do you need in order to make things the most effective for what you are trying to achieve at that moment?  And on top of that, would you be better off using another tool at that point because the one you really want to use or are used to using doesn’t do the right thing?  This requires thought and constant evaluation.  The benefit of working with someone who knows how to do this is that it takes the guess work out of it for you.  However, even if you are working on your own just remember that tools are just that – tools.  It is the person behind them performing the movement or coaching you through the movement that is actually causing the change.  Make sure that you are using the right ones.  And that the person you are trusting with your physical health has as many tools as possible in order to get the job done.

And if anyone in Ottawa needs a good butcher, just let me know.

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Dissing “Dysfunctional”

Recently I read an article published in a local running magazine where a couple of trainers spoke about using corrective exercise towards achieving better form for running.  So far, so good.  My only problem with the article is that it was peppered at the beginning with a word that I personally think is misused a lot.  Dysfunction.  You have read here before about people using words when they have no idea what it actually means, and 90% of the time this word is a prime example of that.  If you do something that isn’t perfect form, then you are dysfunctional.  There is obviously something horribly wrong with you and we need to take you from dysfunction into “functional” movement
(another word that gets completely misused in my opinion).  Functional for what?  But I digress…

So let’s first look at the definition of the word.  Don’t Google it if you are at work, because the first bajillion hits have the word erectile in front of it.  However, if you find the dictionary definition then it reads “impaired or abnormal functioning (as of an organ of the body)”.  So far so good.

But here’s the thing.  If you think about the rules of the body and how it moves, this is based on a huge amount of variables that may or may not apply to the person in question.  There’s a lot of people out there who would define that if movement isn’t perfectly done the way that it is supposed to be (and again, that definition can change easily), then it is wrong for some reason.  If I squat and my knees go past my toes then I’m doing it wrong.  If I squat and my knees CAN’T go past my toes then something is wrong.  If I run and my knee is collapsing in then I’m doing it wrong.  If I don’t extend my hips back far enough I’m doing it wrong.  If I round my back during a deadlift then I’m doing it wrong.  If I arch my back during a bench press then I’m doing it wrong.

But here’s the thing:  all of these things are totally depending on the person doing it, what they are trying to accomplish and also HOW THEIR STRUCTURE AND NERVOUS SYSTEM DICTATES THAT THEY MOVE (at that moment) IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH IT.  Your body is not stupid – it will figure out how to get from point A to point B how it feels is the best way to do so.  This is the very definition of optimal function in my opinion.  It is when we try to tell it that it is doing something wrong and shove it into another position it isn’t used to that something will likely go wrong.  So by trying to correct this “dysfunction” so may actually be fighting against what keeps the body sound in the first place.  It is when we push the body too far in some way before it is ready to do so that it breaks down.

Take running, as the example used in the article.  I have a runner that starts off and then after a few hundred meters gets fatigued and starts to lose form from what it originally was at the beginning of the run.  Are they weak somewhere?  Running too fast?  Running too slow?  Tired because they didn’t sleep well?  Stressed due to work?  Ate a fatty burger for lunch?  Socks not quite fitting right?  If they are weak, how do you know what body part it is?

Maybe they are just going to the form their body is used to or which will allow them to continue doing the activity they want to do.  Ah…but they’re dysfunctional, many trainers would scream!  You have to strengthen x muscle or stretch y muscle because obviously something is “wrong”.  My point being you can’t assume that something deviating slightly from the norm isn’t fully in line with the intention of your body at that time.

If you want to be able to improve at a movement, then you simply need to break down the individual joint movements involved, improve your body’s ability to deal with the forces involved so that the muscles don’t fatigue and lose control of the joints, and then you can work on chaining it all together.  Hopefully by then your system will figure it out and get better, faster, stronger, or whatever you like.  It doesn’t mean that there is anything wrong with you – you just need to take the time to teach your body how to improve that specific thing.  Calling it “dysfunctional” isn’t true at all – because your body is doing exactly what it knows how to do – again, the very definition that most would say applies to “function”.

My industry is notorious for taking people who are perfectly fine, finding stuff that supposedly needs to be “fixed” or “functional” and making them feel bad about it so that they will pay lots of money to “get better”.  So we get articles that give exercises to people who maybe run perfectly fine for their structure, but because they can’t do a one legged squat or an overhead press with perfect form something needs to be fixed.  The next time you watch a marathon watch some people who have absolutely horrible running form (according to textbooks) but somehow they still manage to get through a 3 hour marathon without hurting themselves.  Let’s focus a bit more on the movement of the individual and what they are capable of at that time, and what they are doing well, give their body tools to get stronger and try to improve them without worrying about making them perfect.

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Taking Care of the Baby

As many of you know, I had a beautiful baby girl four months ago.  What many of you also can probably relate to is the total chaos that your life becomes when a new life that is totally dependent on you enters it.  Now that the smoke has cleared a bit, there are some serious lessons I have learned so far.  It is amazing how many of these things also apply to those of you who are trying to make fitness and health a regular part of your life so I thought I would outline them and give some tips for managing things when it seems like absolutely nothing is manageable:

  • Prioritizing is essential.

I’m very lucky that I make my own hours and can (sort of) control my own schedule.  When you’re dealing with your child, they are obviously going to take precedence over most other things (sometimes everything).  Too many people in my experience put fitness and health too low on their priority radar when it should be much higher.  If you aren’t healthy, you can’t take care of yourself or your family.  If you have no energy, you can’t jump out of bed on those nights when the baby cries at 2am.  If you have a bad back or bad knees, you can’t hold/pick up your kids or the mountains of bags they generate.  After holding an infant for hours in a Baby Bjorn even my back was killing me, which was a sign that I needed to start working on my lower back strength a bit more.  You might have areas that need the same thing.

  • Think about the long term, don’t obsess about the short term

Any good fitness and health program is a period of months, if not years – and should really be a permanent part of your life, just like your new little one.  Development and progress can be drawn out over a period of time.  Ask my wife after our little one just got through her first two baby teeth!  Children develop at their own pace and can be encouraged but not forced, just like your body.  Give everything time to settle into place and develop at whatever pace works best.  Set goals that stretch over months and seasons, not a “90 day challenge” where at the end you go back to doing whatever you were doing before.  Check back with yourself in a year and you might be pleasantly surprised.

  • Patience is a virtue and remain calm

Not everything is going to go smoothly.  Your routine might suddenly get thrown completely out of whack when changes occur.  You might have to deal with setbacks or situations you can’t control and the best thing to do is just stay calm, make sure all of the right strategies are in place and keep moving forward.  Don’t hit the panic button after a bad week and try to change everything around.  If you have a good trainer, simply trust in the process.  Even when your child poops in the middle of the doctors’ office, sometimes you just have to laugh it off, stay calm and realize that there is nothing you can do about it so why worry?  Clean up the poop, change the diaper and next time, make sure to pack an extra change of clothes.

  • Expect to hit bumps in the road and have setbacks

Sometimes as a new parent it is easy to get frustrated.  Things can be humming along in a good routine and then something crops up that makes it hard or stops progress.  If you expect and prepare for this ahead of time then you will be much better off.  Can’t make a workout?  Have a backup plan.  Have to suddenly travel one week?  Make sure your hotel has a gym or research local places you can get in your exercise.  Teething and growth spurts for us was a prime example of this when you can’t keep the baby from being uncomfortable. Just realize what is going on and also realize that it is a temporary thing that will resolve itself in time.

  • Enjoy yourself along the way

For every exasperating moment we might have with our daughter, seeing her smile at the start of the day and cuddle into your chest is probably the best thing in the world.  Find that aspect of fitness that makes you feel really good – that class you love, the feeling after you hit a personal best on the weight stack, the runners’ high – and remember that every time so that you stay motivated and just keep going.  Like I said before, it is a process that should take place for the rest of your life, just like watching your child grow and develop.

At the end of four months you never realize how much your life can change for the better but now we can’t imagine what our lives were like without our daughter.  Think about that the next time you think about skipping a workout because ideally it will almost feel the same way.  Better health and wellness to all of you!

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Our beautiful daughter doing a perfect back extension.