Don’t Exercise to Avoid Feeling Guilty. Exercise to Feel Good.
Why should you exercise?
So many people are working out because they feel guilty if they don’t. This is extremely common. People train because they have negative feelings if they don’t, not because they have positive feelings when they do.
I often ask people why they train so much or at such high intensity and they are quick to say... because I will lose my fitness if I don’t...
People are so afraid of losing gains, gaining weight, or becoming less “fit”, that they feel guilty if they don’t train at a certain intensity and frequency.
If you are reading this, and it resonates with you, comment below.
If you are reading this and you know someone who feels this way, send this to them
If you are reading this, and you are also experiencing pain, let me know in the comments.
Age ≠ Pain
Is physical pain because of age?
Pain is not inevitable.
When we believe that our pain is due to our age, we relinquish the control we could have with how our bodies feel.
If the statement was true, that pain was inevitable, at what age could we expect it?
At 30? 45? 60?
That information to answer that question does not exist.
Is there an aging process that could contribute to pain? Absolutely.
But we aren’t helpless against it.
There are things we can control. We can control how we eat, sleep, move and think.
The idea that pain is inevitable can be easily spread and believed by those who aren’t sure what to do about it.
Know someone who believes their pain is due to age? Share this with them.
Why Do You Workout?
What is your reason for working out?
Let's hear it...
Your answer today could be very different tomorrow and that's ok!
Priorities change and we want our training to match those priorities.
I started working out to be a better basketball player.
Then it was to get through military training.
Then it was to get bigger.
Then it was to be a better rower.
Then it was to get better at CrossFit.
Now it's to make sure my body feels good and that I can do whatever I want outside of the gym pain free (primarily golfing).
What's your why?
@activelifeprofessional
Not Enough Hours In The Day?
How many hours in a day are for you?
Let’s make some progress. Even if it’s not the big step you wanted to take.
You’ve had a stressful day.
There are many tasks remaining on your to do list.
One of those tasks is working out.
Normally your workouts take 60 minutes.
But today that 60 minutes isn’t in the cards.
So what do you do?
Do you skip it? Or do you try to force it into your schedule?
If you would need to sacrifice food or sleep to fit that workout in, then that workout is not needed. Prioritize sleep and food, those aspects are crucial for how you feel the next day. You are moving the needle forward in your recovery.
How about adjusting the plan?
Maybe you can get 10, 20, or 30 minutes of movement. That’s still moving the needle forward.
That could be doing the warmup that was programmed. Or doing part of the assigned session.
One small step forward is better than none.
A good coach will help you prioritize what is important in your training with the time you have.
Throw Like a Girl
What does it mean to throw like a girl?
Here’s an insult that needs to go away.
Where did this insult come from?
Cultural and sexist norms. That continue to be used.
There is a principle in training called the SAID principle. Specific adaptation to imposed demands. Basically says that you adapt to tasks you are exposed to.
People throw the way they do because of their exposure to throwing.
Something I learned from a Medball training course from @ericcressey is that baseball players became excellent at throwing from something called humeral retroversion. It's an adaptation in growth plates that allows people to demonstrate more movement in their shoulders.
Many people, especially women, have not developed that ability.
And it’s not their fault.
It's the people who have said things like:
“Baseball is a men’s sport”
“Throwing is for boys”
“No I can’t play catch with you, go play with your dolls”
Many people that aren’t good at throwing are a product of norms that denied them the ability to learn and adapt to that activity.
Jackie Mitchell was one of the first female professional baseball players in history. After learning to walk her father taught her how to throw. At 17 years old she played in an exhibition game against the New York Yankees. She struck out both Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, two of the best baseball players in history.
Babe Ruth was quoted saying: "I don't know what's going to happen if they begin to let women in baseball. Of course, they will never make good. Why? Because they are too delicate. It would kill them to play ball every day."
Days later her contract was voided, and women were banned from professional baseball. It was said that the game was “too strenuous”...
There could be a lot more people like Jackie Mitchell. If we allowed them to participate in the same activities as everyone else.
When to Use a Foam Roller
When should you use a foam roller?
Let’s dive into some claims about foam rolling.
One of the big claims for foam rolling is decreased soreness. Studies have shown no negative effect of foam rolling (increased soreness) and found about a 2% improvement in perceived soreness. This was studied using a 10x10 back squat program and 20 minutes of foam rolling.
Some claim that it promotes blood flow. So does running, walking, squatting, biking, rowing, or just moving. You would have to foam roll crazy fast to match the amount of blood flow created by those activities.
Another claim is loosening muscles. A commonly spread idea is that it will loosen knots in your muscles. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Let’s take someone who squats 500lbs. Their muscles and body structure have adapted to move 500lbs. A piece of foam isn’t going to do much to those muscles. But can change happen? Yes. But it won’t last long. Studies looking at improving range of motion showed that foam rolling prior to training can improve range of motion but that the improvement lasts approximately 15 minutes.
So how would I use it for myself or my clients?
To me, 20 minutes of foam rolling isn’t worth it for 2% improvement. I would rather manage the training volume and overall recovery (sleep, nutrition, etc) better. But for athletes, this could make a lot more sense. Athletes can’t control when their games are or how intense a game is. If it helps, do it.
For some people who feel restricted in movement, foam rolling could be useful. Let’s take someone who has very stiff ankles and it is restricting their squat or ability to run. Small bouts of foam rolling on the calf prior to training could provide a short-term window of improved range of motion. Next, we would use that range of motion. We would load it. Want to change your muscles? Load them. If we load that new range of motion, it will be more likely that that range becomes more permanent. So that eventually increasing range of motion could be less of a priority.
Lastly, the placebo effect is real. If you have been foam rolling, you enjoy it and are seeing results, then keep doing it. No need to change something that is working.
Shoutout to E3 Rehab for the majority of the content for this post. They have some great resources on the topic on youtube.
I Squatted. Now My Knees Hurt…
Is squatting the problem?
So your knees are hurting. You’ve been running a lot. You are in a busier time in your life.
You go to the gym and your coach has squats planned for the day. You do your squats. They feel surprisingly ok.
The next day while running your knees feel worse! So what’s to blame? Is it the squats?
Not necessarily. Squats for unfortunate reasons can get a bad reputation for knee pain. Some of that is misinformation. But it’s also a reasonable conclusion. Your knees hurt so it must have been something that used your knees that led to your pain.
Pain can come from multiple inputs and we can be complicated beings.
Your habits, beliefs, coping methods, lifestyle, emotions, anatomy, activity levels, and more, all influence how your body feels.
This can make it difficult to identify a cause, but not impossible to find a solution.
Looking at someone's pain experience requires analysis and assessment of who they are and where they are at. From there a path towards a solution can be found.
Only sleeping 4 hours a night? Imagine what an extra 2 hours could do for your recovery.
Eating 1200 calories a day. Very unlikely for that intake to be enough to meet your needs. Imagine what more food could do for your recovery (and your mood).
Are you constantly foam rolling and stretching to address your pain? Maybe you need load and not length to recover.
Are you feeling unsupported in your physical goals by others? Maybe being in a more supportive environment could change your outlook on pain.
Pain is frustrating. It can be easy to place blame when we are unsure of a solution.
The solution requires introspection and effort.
The problem probably isn’t squats.
Workouts Should Not Make you Puke
Puking is not a badge of honour.
When you are training, you should not need to puke.
I’m not talking about that puking feeling you get when you ate 10-day old leftovers for lunch.
I’m talking about that puking feeling you get after going too hard in a workout.
You are TRAINING. You don’t need to puke.
There are a variety of responses your body could have in response to too much intensity. These include but are not limited to: pain, anxiety, disordered breathing, nausea, dizziness, and vomiting.
All of these responses can be adjusted. By appropriate volume and intensity, nutrition, and recover
If you are competing I would understand it slightly more. Only slightly. There is something you are trying to win.
How do you win training? I would say you win training by recovering and improving.
How can you recover and improve if you are puking during training?
From a recovery standpoint, it just doesn’t make sense. It rids your body of the fuel it would use to recover. If you can’t recover your progress will be so much less.
So how can you improve this?
1. Pre-workout nutrition can play a role. You can play around with meal timing and quantities.
2. Manage your pacing. If you start feeling unwell in a workout, listen to that signal your body is giving you and back off the intensity.
3. Evaluate your workouts. Are they all high-intensity sprints? If so this is likely not sustainable. Give your body a break and try some lower intensity workouts.
Cooldowns
What’s the best cooldown? It’s more simple than you probably think.
How should you cool down?
Do you need a cool down?
Should you stretch in a cool down?
Should you use a foam roller during your cool down?
For general health I think this is a topic that has become way too complicated and overly emphasized.
Is it important? Yes.
Does it need to be long and complicated? Probably not.
So let’s keep it simple.
If you are training for general health this should be your cool down:
Do what you were doing for training, but slower, lighter, and at less intensity. Keep moving but move less and move slower.
The goal of a cool down is to bring you to the state needed to do your next thing and assist in recovery.
Basically don’t go from 100% to 0% right away. Do this gradually.
Some of this can happen naturally.
Were you lifting weights? Cleaning and deloading your bar is a part of your cool down. You are still moving things but at much lower intensity.
Finished a run? Gradually slow down to a walk and keep walking until your heart rate reduces.
Finished a CrossFit workout and then need to head home right away? If you walk to the gym, that walk is a part of your cooldown.
When training for general health, cool downs don’t need to be complicated. It’s unlikely you need any crazy foam roller, lacrosse ball or stretching routine. You need to move on to the next thing in your life. If you are spending a good percentage of your “training” cooling down, it's very likely that time could have been spent in better areas.
Cool downs become more intricate and important if you are a competitive athlete that needs to repeat their competition at regular intervals. But that is such a small percentage of the population.
What’s your cool down? Comment below.
Weight ≠ Pain
Is weight the source of pain?
You’ve been dealing with back pain. It’s been on and off for years.
You’ve been told you should lose weight.
But is it your weight?
That person that told you to lose weight, do they know that you’ve been trying with little success, and are still dealing with back pain?
That person did they assume you needed to lose weight based on your BMI? The Body Mass Index was created by a mathematician in the 1800s who knew little about weight loss. Can we stop using dated information?
That person who told you to lose weight, did they assess how your body moves and the tasks you want to be able to do pain-free?
There are so many possibilities for why someone could be experiencing pain.
Let's say you start to make some changes. Maybe you do it by eating different foods, maybe in different quantities. Maybe you start sleeping more. Maybe you start to exercise more. You start strengthening your body.
Those can all be great achievements.
So was your weight the sole reason you were experiencing pain? I really doubt it.
Maybe you stopped experiencing pain because you improved your body's strength and tolerance to activities. Maybe it was because you fuelled your body more optimally and improved your recovery.
It wasn’t your weight. No one can be sure of that as a cause and no one should shame you or place blame on your weight. You are more than a number on a scale. People need to acknowledge that.
So how would I address that pain?
We would assess your current abilities.
We would assess your current lifestyle (sleep, stress, work, nutrition)
We would identify the low-hanging fruit that is limiting you. (It’s probably not the weight)
We customize your training to get you the results that you have been looking for.
Pain can be complicated. Training and your path to results doesn’t need to be.
Are You Out of Shape?
Are you out of shape? What is “in shape”?
“I’m so out of shape”
This is a phrase I have heard so many times in the gym.
Whether it’s a person's first exposure to a training program or if they’ve been training their entire life.
So here’s the question: What is in shape?
In shape for what task?
In shape based on what standards.
Let’s use the Olympics as an example. There are multiple events and sports. Take Olympic Weightlifting, marathon running, and gymnastics as examples.
Athletes who participate in those sports all have different body shapes.
So are any of them out of shape? Absolutely not. They are in the ideal shape to perform their sport.
What if your body shape is someone else’s goal? And they hear you say that you are out of shape. How would that affect their mindset toward that goal? Unlikely that it’s helpful.
Want to change the shape that you are in? Go for it! Find the best version of yourself.
But you are and will always be in shape.
Soreness ≠ Progress
Do you need to be sore to progress?
Do you need to be sore to make progress?
Short answer: No
Can soreness be a part of your training process while you make progress? Absolutely.
But you don’t need to be sore after every workout.
Soreness does not need to represent how hard you worked in the gym.
In training I want the results to speak for themselves.
I recently had a client mention that they were concerned that they weren’t working hard enough because they weren’t waking up as sore as they usually do.
But in two months they were able to double the number of pushups they can do, which is one of their goals. All while not being as sore.
That’s progress. And working hard.
This can be a challenging mindset to change. Society can often preach the “No pain no gain” mindset. That if you aren’t rolling on the ground afterwards, you didn’t work hard enough.
But why put yourself through pain if it’s not necessary. You can achieve results without pain.
I like to train smart. Training to improve your life and your health is a lifelong process. Let’s make that process as enjoyable as possible.
Could you be sore after a workout? Absolutely! That’s a normal outcome of the training and recovery process.
Do you need to be sore after every training session? No. If you are, this could be an indication of a recovery and training process that could be improved.
This is not to say don't work hard. Just work smart.
Spending Time
How effectively are you spending your time in training?
It’s called spending time for a reason.
Time is finite. We only have a certain amount.
Like money, we only have so much.
Unlike money, we can not make more.
Your time can be an investment that pays you in results.
So how do you spend your time in the gym?
Are you spending 20 minutes foam rolling, but not seeing any results?
Are you spending an hour of your day in a fitness class but not seeing any progress with your pain or limitations with specific movements.
How do we spend our time better in the gym?
First, think about what is important to you. Think about what you would like to prioritize in the gym. Do you want to feel less pain? Feel less stressed? Accomplish a specific movement?
Second, identify the low-hanging fruit. Find what things get you the most out of the time that you are spending.
Is that 20 minutes of foam rolling the most cost-efficient use of your time if you only have 1 hour to train. Very unlikely that it is.
Not sure what your low-hanging fruit is? That’s ok! That’s the role of a coach. To learn about you and assess your needs and goals so we can find a starting point.
Missed Workouts
What happens when you miss a workout?
So you missed a workout.
Does this mean you failed? Does this mean you need to catch up?
Absolutely not.
To me, it doesn’t matter if you had no reason to miss that workout or if you had the best reason in the world.
The response is still the same.
It’s OK. We move forward.
There are 365 days a year. No one is perfect. To expect perfection is unreasonable.
For any goal, consistency will lead to results with a thought-out process. Just because you missed one day does not mean you are inconsistent. It doesn't need to define you.
Missing a day could mean that your body needed rest.
It could mean that life happened.
And for me as a coach, it means the next steps are important. And dwelling on the past isn’t a step I want us to make.
Sure, let's learn from the past if we need to. But we need to move forward.
Moving forward means we continue the process that we have already committed to together.
That process doesn’t include trying to add more to your plate because of something that happened in the past.
Gendered Workouts. Why?
Why are there gendered workouts?
Does your gym or training program have gendered workouts?
Does your gym or training program say that they are for everyone?
To me those two things, if both true, are at odds.
Some will use gendered workouts to assign a prescribed weight or volume to an athlete. It is said that if you cannot yet do that weight or volume that you can scale or modify to meet your ability based on gender. For some this could be motivating and give them direction for progression.
Not everyone fits into the mould of being male or female. As such gendered workouts are not for everyone. They are for those that identify as those genders.
We need more inclusive gyms.
When we assign genders to exercise, we exclude those that don’t fit a bias.
Sure progression is important. But that is the role of coaching. Progression isn’t writing a weight for a gender and saying this is what you can eventually get to based on your gender.
Progress based on goals, not gender.
How can you indicate the difficulty or intensity of something without using genders?
I use RPE or Rate of Perceived Exertion. It’s completely individual because everyone perceives events or tasks differently. It’s how difficult something feels to you on a scale of 1-10.
There are other ways to do this. It could be % of a previous lift. It could be a pace based on a previous measured task. It could be based on heart rate or breathing.
It just doesn’t need to be based on gender.
If we are going to say we are for everyone, let’s make sure we aren’t excluding anyone.
The Roadmap
This is the roadmap to results.
You’ve hit a fork in the road. There is an obstacle in your way. Your training isn’t progressing the way you want it to.
This process is for you. This is how we achieve your goals together.
Step 1: Locate.
What good is a map or GPS if you have no idea where you currently are? Maybe you can see the end destination but you have no idea where you are. This gets us nowhere or even going in the wrong direction.
So we assess. We look at your current abilities and other factors that play a role in your progress (lifestyle, stress, sleep, food, support, etc). This is our starting point.
Step 2: Move.
We chart our course. We address the roadblocks that you have. Sometimes this requires taking 1 step back to take 2 steps forward. We find the most optimal course for you. This is the direction that we feel the most confident in being able to execute on.
Step 3: Cruise
We continue making progress. Some goals take longer to achieve, while some can be achieved rather quickly. We trust the process and find our cruise control. No need to push the limits if we don’t have to. Very few goals require a rushed process.
What to know more? Comment below!
Going Low Enough?
Are you squatting low enough?
Are you going low enough in your squat?
It's easy when watching a video or seeing a photo of someone doing something to quickly jump to criticism.
Maybe it's done in a way that is different than yours.
Maybe some coach has told you it will lead to injury.
Maybe you don't think the technique is correct.
But the first question to ask is: why might they be doing it that way?
Sometimes we aren't going low enough. Sometimes we need coaches or tools for accountability.
Sometimes going low just isn't beneficial for the performance of a task or sport.
Sometimes going low isn't something our bodies are prepared for. Yet.
Sure in multiple competitive sports (powerlifting, CrossFit) that depth would not pass in competition. But is the person competing? Are they missing sufficient hip/knee or ankle range of motion to go lower? Are they working through an injury and want to gradually reintroduce depth? Is their training sport specific (volleyball, basketball, hockey) where they want to get strong in sport-specific positions?
Sure this depth meets competition standards for powerlifting and CrossFit. But this depth is likely lower than needed for an athlete to maximize performance in powerlifting. For athletes who want to compete in olympic weightlifting this is a great position to develop.
Sure this squat is low, but at what cost? We can tell this athlete to go low to meet some standard, but is their body capable of that standard? Do they have the range of motion to get into that position? Do they have the breathing and bracing mechanics to remain there safely? Won't know without assessing.
When Does Recovery Start?
When does your recovery start?
What do you do immediately after an intense workout? What is your post workout routine?
Do you stretch? Do you roll around on the ground? Do you hunch over and lean on your knees? Do you chug a bottle of water? Do you contemplate your existence?
Any of those things could make sense assuming there is intention to it.
When that workout finishes, when that last rep is done, when the clock beeps, what I often notice is what could be described as chaos.
That chaos often lacks intention.
When your workout stops, don’t stop.
Don’t stop functioning. Start recovering.
This means breathe, this means move, this means lower your heart rate.
Your cooldown starts as soon as your workout finishes.
It’s fine to lay down on the ground on your back or hands and knees after a workout. That’s assuming there is intention to it. Those positions are actually the easiest positions to work on your breathing mechanics. Get back to nasal breathing as soon as you can.
It’s fine to stretch after a workout. Maybe you have any area of your body that you know needs some additional attention. Maybe it helps you relax and calm down. That’s intention.
Workout ends, recovery starts.
For most of us, we are TRAINING to be healthy and fit. If we are in a position where we are consistently incapable of focusing on our recovery after a workout ends, we are likely regularly overtaxing our system.
Now if you are COMPETING for an Olympic medal (or insert athletic competition), do whatever you want, you’ve earned it.
70%>100%
When is 70% better than 100%?
Yes that math doesn’t add up.
But what if the conditions for you feeling 100% are as rare as winning the lottery.
If you have 70% to give, give it. If you have 55%, give it.
If you aren't feeling 100%, that's ok! Who ever actually feels 100%?
If you wait for the perfect conditions, you will likely be waiting for a very long time.
Give what you have and you will set yourself up for progress.
Want to move the needle? You need to start somewhere. Wherever you are at is a great place to start.
Concept inspired by: @erinruppertfitness
Stress Is Best
Is stress bad for you?
Is stress bad?
Stress is commonly associated with being a negative thing. But is it?
It’s fair for people to be confused with stress or to give it a negative association, as the definitions out there tend to be a bit confusing.
Definition 1 (Meriam Webster): a state resulting from a stress.
Well, that’s not helpful. Basically says “X is a result of X”.
Definition 2 (Meriam Webster): a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation.
Well, that sounds awful. Disease causation sucks.
Definition 3 (Hans Selye): Stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand.
Now, this is more helpful.
Demand>Response>Stress
Stress is positive when we have a positive response.
Stress is the reason people get stronger, fitter, more resilient, and reduce the likelihood of injury or disease. That improvement came out of adapting to that stress.
Stress is also the reason people can become burnt out, injured or sick.
It’s a double-edged sword.
So how do we improve this?
Recover. Stress our bodies to levels that we are capable of recovering from. If we are not recovering we are not adapting to the stress. Results require adaptation.
Improve stress responses. When you are feeling elevated levels of stress, how do you respond? Does your heart rate increase? Does your breathing change? Do you get sad, angry, quiet, loud? Does your response match the situation? Sometimes we respond in ways that may not be favourable.
Adjust what you can. Sometimes we ask or are demanded too much. This may require asking for help.