Judging Choices
Who are we to judge?
We have no business judging people's choices.
As we continue to deal with the pandemic and more gym closures, the comment of "Why are gyms closed but fast food restaurants are still open" continues to be spread by the fitness industry.
It's a bullshit comparison that needs to stop.
Gyms are not more essential than people's access to food. The quality of the food at those places is irrelevant.
I want gyms to be open. They allow people to improve their health. But we all need access to food. It's a basic human need.
And the narrative is full of judgement and assumption.
It assumes you are going there to make "bad" choices.
Those same "bad" choices could be made at a grocery store. Yet no one is complaining that those are open.
Is getting that Happy Meal for your kids after a challenging day of online learning "bad"?
Is getting that $1 coffee "bad"?
Is a homeless person getting their first meal in days "bad"?
People judge those places because they assume the food is unhealthy.
You know what else is unhealthy? Not having any food.
People judge the people who go there because they assume the people who go there are unhealthy.
You know what is also unhealthy? Judging and shaming people.
We have no business judging peoples choices. We don't know their story. We don't know why they made that choice.
We can help people improve without judgement. It requires compassion and understanding.
The Monitor Says You Burned “X” Calories…
Are calories burned accurate? Or important?
The monitor on the exercise machine says you burned 30 calories, is that true?
Probably not.
Unless you and the conditions of training fit a formula.
A common question people have when using exercise machines that display a number of calories is if that equates to calories burned.
Concept2 (popular rowing erg manufacturer) states that their formula for calculating calories on a monitor is based on a 175lb individual.
Are you exactly 175lbs?
Probably not. And that's ok!
It’s also ok to not think of calories when doing a workout. I would encourage that.
Because why do calories need to be a metric of effort? When programming for clients I have largely stopped using them. There are other metrics like distance, time, watts, perceived effort etc. Calories are just another option for a unit of measurement. Sure there can be some different performance outcomes when training using different units of measurements but that's a different discussion.
You do not need to look at “burned” calories to feel successful in your training. This idea can lead to the feeling that you need to “burn” calories to earn the calories you consume. Which is an unfortunate mindset. Because calories aren’t inherently bad.
Cheat Meals
What is a cheat meal?
What is a cheat meal? Or a cheat day? Whatever you want to call it.
Here’s my definition of a cheat meal: You went against the rules of a competition that involves food.
Example: You’re in a hot dog eating contest. You get to the point where you have a “reversal of fortune”. Apparently, that’s the term used in the sport of competitive eating for vomiting. You can not do that. You will be issued a red penalty flag. You cheated. That's a cheat meal.
In my mind, there is no other instance where the phrase cheat meal or cheat day needs to be used.
Enjoy your food!
Want to have a burger? Maybe some fries? How about ice cream?
Go for it!
Do we want to do it every day? Probably not.
On a diet that doesn’t allow you to eat certain foods? Ask why. It’s possible there is a great reason for that. It’s also possible that there is no good reason at all.
I would rather see someone exercise/sleep/eat/breathe perfectly 70% of the days in a year, instead of being perfect for a period of 1 month before falling off the wagon for the rest of the year because of an unhealthy relationship with “insert thing”.
It can be really hard to love your body or love yourself with negative associations with an action, like eating certain foods.
Side note: “Reversal of fortune” is the most polite way I have ever heard to describe vomiting. I would like everyone to use that phrasing from now on. Thank you.