Try this exercise to improve your swing. This will develop rotational/twisting strength which will help actions like swinging an axe, bat, racquet or even closing a heavy door with one arm whilst carrying bags of shopping in the other.
Difficulty Level :
Beginner
Muscles :
Abdominals
Obliques
Core
Modality :
Strength
Equipment :
Stability Ball (SB)
Band/Tubing
Progressions :
1 Leg
Benefits :
Twisting core strength.
Pre-Requisites :
Must have no current complaints of pain in the spine prior to loading rotation.
Preparation :
Sit "tall" in neutral spine.
Perform "active sitting" by lightly contracting the glutes.
Movement :
Rotate as far as active range of motion allows (do not compensate by arching or rounding the back).
What’s the #1 reason people visit the family doc? The common cold.
What’s the #2 reason? Lower back pain.
80% of adults report lower back pain at some point in their lives and 10-15% of all sports-related injuries involve the spine. Low back pain accounts for more lost person hours than any other type of occupational injury and is the most frequent cause of activity limitation in those under age 45.
Thus, it’s important to understand what the spine is, what it does, and — most importantly — how we can keep it healthy.
What is the spine?
Along with opposable thumbs that we can use to work the TV remotes we invented, one of the things that distinguishes us from many other animals is our spine. The spine provides structural support for our bodies, protection for our central nerves, and facilitates locomotion (aka movement).
The spine is made up of 24 semi-rigid presacral vertebrae (seven cervical, twelve thoracic, five lumbar) separated by discs. Five sacral vertebrae fuse to make up the sacrum, which helps transfer upper body weight to the pelvis through the sacroiliac joint. The coccyx (tailbone) makes up the bottom of the vertebral column.
The natural curves of the spine
Intervertebral discs hold vertebrae together, act as shock absorbers, and allow dynamic spinal movement. These discs measure around one centimetre in height and consist of a gooey center (nucleus pulposus) surrounded by connective tissue (annulus fibrosis). (Think of an Oreo with the disc as the filling and the vertebrae as the hard cookies.)
Bony projections come together along your mid-back to form the spinous process, which you can feel and see.
The cervical spinous process
Ligaments run along the spine and provide stability, helping the spine protect nerves extending from brain to body.
Spinal muscles and their roles
Several muscle groups attach to the spine or play a critical role in spinal health. Problems with these muscles can cause back pain. (For more on how this works, see the next section.)
1. Iliopsoas (psoas + iliacus) complex
These lie deep within the abdomen and hip, connecting the lumbar vertebrae and the iliac crest to the top of the femur. They’re major movers during bent knee leg raises and sit ups.
Aggravated with: Lots of sitting/driving, lots of kicking (martial arts or soccer), long bike rides in bent position, and sleeping in the fetal position.
2. Paraspinals
These are like the spine’s “suspenders” and help to control rotation, extension and bending. This group includes the erector spinae and multifidus along the spine.
Aggravated with: Sudden spinal overload, repetitive movement with poor technique, hunched posture, tight abdominal muscles, and lots of sitting.
3. Rectus abdominis
This sheet of muscle is your “washboard abs”. It runs between the lowest ribs and top of the pubic bone, and helps stabilize the torso. Excessive training of the rectus abdominis (at the expense of posterior chain muscles) can diminish the ability to carry weight overhead (think jerks, snatches, overhead presses) and lead to lower back injury. So: fewer crunches, more swings.
Aggravated with: Too many crunches (especially without posterior chain training), over-exercising, excess abdominal fat, reliance on weight training belts.
4. Gluteus group: maximus/medius/minimus
Aka the booty, these are the muscles that help bring your thigh behind you (think: donkey kicks), rotate it, and bring it to the side.
Aggravated with: Prolonged sitting, sleeping in fetal position with knees pulled up, sitting on your wallet, standing for long periods on one leg, sleeping on your back with feet splayed under the weight of a heavy blanket.
5. Piriformis
This small muscle lies deep within the glutes and connects the thigh to the pelvis near the sacrum. It rotates the thigh outward and swings the leg to the side when the thigh is flexed.
Aggravated with: Distance running (repetitive overuse in general), prolonged contraction (such as driving a car), sitting with one foot underneath you, walking with duck feet (toes out), sitting too much.
6. Quadratus lumborum
The “QL” lies deep in the side of the torso around the kidneys. It helps to bend, rotate, and straighten the torso from bent position. It also helps with exhalation (coughing, etc.), which many folks discover when they strain the QL and then live in fear of sneezing.
Aggravated with: Structural imbalances (one leg longer, uneven pelvis, etc.), habitual leaning to one side, slouching, always sleeping on one side.
7. Hamstrings
These big leg muscles run along the back of the thighs, attaching at the hip and the knee. They bend and stabilize the knee.
Aggravated with: Pressure from chairs, prolonged sitting, bed rest, overload (e.g. lots of sprints when a trainee isn’t used to sprinting).
8. Soleus
This deep calf muscle assists with walking, jumping, and pointing the toes. When irritated, pain can radiate to the sacrum.
Aggravated with: High heeled shoes, rigid/tight shoes, bedding that weighs down toes, standing still for extended periods, prolonged driving, sitting on chair that is too high (so the feet don’t touch the floor).
What can lead to spinal problems?
Usually, spinal problems are multifactorial. Predisposing factors include:
Poor mobility in surrounding muscles
Bad biomchanics
Poor posture
Weakness of supporting musculature
Muscle imbalances
Sedentary lifestyle, sitting, and immobility
Poor mobility in surrounding muscles
The pelvis is the foundation for the spine. Decreased mobility in the hips, hamstrings, ankles, and thoracic spine can lead to overcompensation at the lumbar spine and excessive pelvic tilt. This problem is particularly common in women — in part because of higher heels, but also because the connective tissues of an average woman’s spine are usually looser than the average man’s.
Bad biomechanics
Back pain only gets worse with poor biomechanics.
Most spine injuries that occur during training are muscle strains or ligament sprains, usually due to improper loading and technique. A common error is lumbar flexion during movements like good mornings, situps, deadlifts, and rows. Excessive lumbar extension is also dangerous and can lead to vertebral fracture (e.g., finishing a heavy deadlift).
The safest position for the lumbar spine is a neutral position — a natural but not exaggerated S-curve (double check the spine image at the top of this article for reference). You can find a neutral spine by flexing your lumbar spine, then extending it and trying to find the midpoint between the two, or by standing tall and taking a deep breath. Use a mirror to check.
Nice neutral spine
My disc just herniated looking at this picture (too much spinal flexion)
It’s important to get good at the movements you regularly do. If you’re always lunging and twisting for martial arts or your plumbing job, get good at lunging and twisting. Don’t just go home at night and do situps hoping to preserve your back.
Poor posture
If your posture sucks, your back sucks.
Poor posture means higher levels of shear stress on the spine. When posture is appropriate (proud chest, natural lumbar curve, tight core, retracted shoulder blades, etc.) – then we’re able to handle higher amounts of compressive force. Oh, a big gut and high heeled shoes can negatively influence posture. Try to avoid one or both as much as possible.
Weakness
Many people assume that strong abs help them bend and twist. This is true, in part, but most often the core’s role is stability rather than movement — in other words, preventing motion rather than initiating it. Too much flexion or extension at the lumbar spine, usually caused by weak core muscles, can lead to injury. It’s also biomechanically weaker. You can throw a lot farther or punch a lot harder when your hips and shoulders are involved than when you’re just twisting at the waist.
Reliance on weight lifting belts can lead to torso stiffness and weakness.
Imbalances
Folks with chronic back pain often neglect the posterior chain (i.e. the muscles that run along the rear of the body from neck to ankles). This is especially true for gym rats who do too much bench pressing and not enough pulling or hip extension. This keeps back problems in full force (plus said gym rats end up looking like light bulbs).
Single leg exercises help develop the lower body and immediately challenge the lower back and hips, building stability and function. We tend to be weak and imbalanced on extension movements because we do them less.
Not moving
Doctors used to recommend bed rest for back pain. Now they usually recommend movement. And, as you can see from the list of muscle problems above, “too much sitting” factors into a host of back problems.
When we sit or lie around all day, intervertebral discs absorb fluid and become tighter, allowing less range of motion and promoting injury. Introduce yourself to regular movement (warm ups, yoga, and dynamic joint mobility, along with walking and swimming).
Other common problems
“Spondylo”s
A collection of spinal dysfunctions known as the “spondys” can result from spinal fracture, overtraining, and/or over-extension/twisting of the spine. They’re common, for instance, in gymnasts and yogis who repeatedly bend backwards. They can also occur acutely in high-impact sports such as rugby.
Spondylitis is an inflammation of the vertebrae.
Spondylosis is osteoarthritic narrowing of the vertebral space.
Spondylolysis is a fracture, usually a stress fracture, of the pars interarticularis. It can lead to a spondylolisthesis.
Spondylolisthesis, which can occur after a spondylolysis, is the forward slippage of one vertebrae on another. Think of a stack of books in which one book is pushed forward.
Excessive flexion, extension and rotation are bad news for anyone with spondylo-situations. Work on building mobility of the hip flexors, hamstrings and ITB.
Prolapsed disc
This occurs when intervertebral disc material bulges from its normal confines. Minor tears to the outside of discs can lead to inner disc leakage.
The key is to never let the problem start. Translation: build core stability.
Treating and preventing spinal dysfunction
Get moving
As mentioned above, movement is good, and inactivity can cause/exacerbate back pain.
Resistance training helps build strength and endurance in the supporting musculature, and help activate weaker or inhibited areas.
Mobility training helps improve active flexibility in tight areas.
The intervertebral discs lack blood vessels. The only way they can absorb nutrients is through spinal movement. If you want to deprive your discs of nourishment, lie down and sit around a lot.
But before you randomly start lifting, running, twisting and jumping, think WWDMD (What Would Dr. McGill Do)? Spine biomechanicist Dr. Stuart McGill encourages the following approach when it comes to exercise design:
Do necessary corrective exercises
Groove appropriate movement patterns
Build full body joint mobility/stability
Increase core endurance (rather than maximal strength)
Build full body strength
Develop speed, power, and agility
How many people do you know that start at #1?
Spines & squatting
Squatting with poor mechanics will result in injury.
Squatting with added weight puts compressive forces on the spine. Why don’t we see more spinal blowouts at the gym? Luckily, our spine can adapt to compressive tolerance. But our spines need time to adapt. Take your time and allow this adaptation. To assist the process, build up your paraspinal muscles with exercises involving spinal extension and stabilization.
Double check squat form:
Take a wider stance (at least shoulder width – if not wider)
Use natural foot positioning (similar to other athletic movements)
Keep heels in contact with the floor
Gaze forward or slightly up
Maintain lordotic curve in lower back — don’t round
Focus on hip extension — drive from the glutes and hips.
Intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) can help to stabilize the spine during squats. Momentarily stopping the breath and stiffening the abs to make the spine go rigid (think of what you do when you sneeze, or when you know someone is about to punch you in the gut — if you make a little “ungh” sound, you’re probably doing it right) will generate IAP.
Stabilizing the cervical spine
Neck muscles work isometrically to stabilize the cervical spine. A stable cervical spine is critical for contact sports. Thus, folks with greater musculature in the neck and shoulders have a better chance of withstanding cervical impact.
Forcing the cervical spine into excessive flexion or extension with resistance can lead to breakdown of joints and discs.
To build the cervical spine, try incorporating the following exercises. Hold for 10 seconds each, and do 1-5 sets:
Isometric neck flexion (forwards)
Isometric neck extension (backwards)
Isometric lateral neck flexion (right and left)
Isometric neck rotation (right and left)
Mobility warmup
Here are some sample mobility drills that can keep the spine mobile yet stable in all the right places. Cat/cow spinal warm up
Foam roll the thoracic region (from 1:30 to 2:10 in video)
Thoracic mobilization
T push up
Stretch hip flexors
Reverse bridge with back on Swiss ball (for intermediate and advanced folks, begin alternating legs “marching”)
Squat to stand with reach
Finishing with spinal health movements
To promote spinal health, add some of the following to the end of your workout
McGill curl-up
Stir the pot
Side bridge
Bird dog (move the leg and arm laterally to make it harder)
Pallof presses
TRX back saver (from 0:58 to 1:40 in video)
To promote spinal health, try the following between workouts.
Instead of bending at the lumbar spine to pick something up from the ground, try the golfers pick up (unilateral deadlift):
Instead of squatting to get down on the floor, try going into a lunge and keeping your spine neutral.
Mix in some yoga
Yoga may help improve posture through development of extensor muscles and thoracic mobility. Vinyasa yoga is likely the best option for back health due to its dynamic nature. Try to focus on a neutral spine when statically stretching.
Balance
Standing on an unstable surface (like a balance board) recruits stabilization musculature.
While on this surface, assume a position of slight knee and hip bend while contracting the lower torso muscles. Then flex your arms in an alternating fashion while maintaining position. Try this for 1 minute, 2-5 times through. If this doesn’t help your spine, at least you’ll now be known as the balancing flailing loser in your neighbourhood.
Source: Kolber MJ & Beekhuizen K. Lumbar stabilization: An evidence-based approach for the athlete with low back pain. Strength Cond J 2007;29:26-37.
Summary and recommendations
Spinal health comes from a complex interplay of mobility in some areas and stability-strength-endurance in others. Many muscle groups are related to spinal health — ensure that you aren’t prioritizing the “beach muscles” (aka chest and abs) over the more important structural supporters like spinal extensors and glutes/hips/hamstrings.
Sitting is bad news for your spine. Get up and move. If you’re always sitting around, take time to get up, walk, bike, and stretch. Do what feels good and listen to your body.
Extra credit
Between ages 7 and 17 years, the spine can increase in length by about 26%.
Only performing “aerobic” workouts doesn’t seem to build spinal stabilization.
Tightness in the ITB and piriformis can limit pelvic movement.
Spinal compression is high during situps.
Lumbar flexibility tends to increase throughout the day.
Lateral deviation of the spine is known as scoliosis (when viewed from the front/back).
Schoenfeld BJ. Squatting kinematics and kinetics and their application to exercise performance. J Strength Cond Res 2010;24:3497-3506.
Lee J, Brook S, Daniel C. Back Pain – the facts. 2009. Oxford University Press.
Manire JT, et al. Diurnal variation of hamstring and lumbar flexibility. J Strength Cond Res 2010;24:1464-1471.
Kell RT & Asmundson GJG. A comparison of two forms of periodized exercise rehabilitation programs in the management of chronic nonspecific low-back pain. J Strength Cond Res 2009;23:513-523.
Sauer S & Biancalana M. Trigger point therapy for low back pain. 2010. New Harbinger Publications.
Kolber MJ & Fiebert IM. Addressing flexibility of the rectus femoris in the athlete with low back pain. Strength Cond J 2005;27:66-73.
Howley ET & Franks BD. Health Fitness Instructor’s Handbook. 4th Ed. 2003. Human Kinetics.
Article by Amelia Burton of www.ameliaburton.com
13 November 2011
Do you have ‘Portion Distortion’?
Many people eat more than half of their daily calories after 4pm. I liken it to the movie ‘Gremlins.’ During the day, you’re hunger is like a cute little Mogwai, easy to tame and keep under control. But once the sun starts to set, boom – out comes your inner Gremlin and Whoosh, you’ve inhaled over half your daily calories and looking for more.
The hormone Ghrelin, is your inner Gremlin
Our hunger hormone has the name Ghrelin (Coincidence – I think not!). It’s what stimulates your appetite, giving you the rumbly tummy before a meal, and it tends to be very time based. It’s almost like an internal clock that says ‘Well you ate at this time yesterday, so it must be time to eat again!’ It’s also a greedy little bugger, and the more you feed it the more it wants. In fact if you feed it high fat, calorie dense meals, it actually craves more.
If you skip breakfast – be warned!
This is a vicious cycle to fall into, as most people who skip breakfast eat more later in the day. Late afternoon is when your metabolism starts slowing down for the day. When you wake up you’re not hungry because you’re full from the night before, so you skip breakfast and the cycle starts all over again. You’re trapped in your own horror movie renamed ‘Ghrelins!’ A good way to break the cycle is to force yourself to have breakfast, even a light fruit salad and make sure you’ve finished eating for the day by 8pm. This WILL help you break the cycle.
How to break the cycle
To get started, focus on your three main meals and eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper. You can only have two snacks during the day – one in the morning and one in the afternoon. And try to avoid staying up too late, as when the midnight munchies come around, we can’t resist as our willpower is at its weakest when we’re tired.
Use a food diary to keep track of what you eat and make sure you keep high salt and high fat foods to a minimum to help ward off cravings. Get your portions right with salads, soups and healthy snacks.
Soups
Soups are a great option for portion controlled lunches and dinners. One big cooking effort creates multiple servings, making it cost effective and perfect for when you’re busy. Soups are nutritious and delicious and it has actually been proven that they keep you fuller for longer. Most soups are low in calories so having a piece of bread is fine if you’re maintaining your current weight. However, if you’re trying to lose weight, bread is not recommended.
Stick to broth varieties like minestrone soup and lentil soup, and if you’re having pumpkin soup, make sure it hasn’t been loaded with cream.
TIP: Keep satchels of miso soup on hand for a quick and easy snack.
Salads
When putting a salad together, stick to two heavy ingredients. A heavy ingredient is meat, cheese, avocado, nuts or oil. That way, you won’t be weighing your salad down with foods that are high in calories.
Great ingredients for salads:
Capsicums are high in vitamin C and you can roast them in the oven.
Legumes to make you feel fuller and increase your protein count.
Chickpeas, lentils and tuna in tins so you can always have them handy.
Seaweed and baby spinach for their high iron count.
Chia Seeds are high in Omega 3 and a great antioxidant.
Quinoa for high iron, protein and fiber.
Don’t be afraid to combine ingredients like this delicious beetroot and chickpea salad recipe.
TIP: Mix ¼ lemon, 1 teaspoon of olive oil and some cracked pepper into small bowl and drizzle over your salad for extra zing.
Snacks
Carrot sticks or capsicum dipped in hummus.
Celery sticks filled with low fat ricotta or cottage cheese, sprinkled with Goji berries or currents.
1/3 cup of low-fat yogurt with fruit and nutmeg.
Roasted chickpeas (Chic Nuts) or fava beans.
Fresh fruit and nuts.
Tins of tuna mixed with lemon and cracked pepper, spread on rice cakes or whole wheat crackers.
Protein shake using 1 scoop of protein powder, ½ cup of milk (almond, soy or rice) frozen raspberries and nutmeg or cinnamon.
1/3 cup of low fat yogurt, half a banana, berries and a sprinkling of nutmeg.
Strawberries or any fruit dipped in Greek style unsweetened yogurt.
Jarra hot chocolate in water . Mmmm – filling and yummy.
TIP: When buying fresh juice, go by my motto – two root and 1 fruit! I.e. choose 2 roots (such as beetroot or carrot) and 1 fruit (fruit has more fructose).
We all know exercise is good for our bodies. It helps decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke, manages our weight, decreases the risk of various cancers, lowers blood pressure, improves metabolism, improves bone density and enhances our immune system. But did you know physical “Motion” or exercise, affects “Emotion”?
According to fitness researcher, Michael Bracko of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the psychological aspect of exercise has been overlooked for some time now. Bracko states, “The psychological benefits of exercise are as important, if not more so, than the physical benefits. The physical needs and outcomes of exercise, whether it’s to lose weight, tone muscle, or address obesity dominates what we hear about, but lots of people who exercise don’t see stark physical benefits,” said Bracko. “The message needs to be rewritten. When you exercise you’re going to feel better. You’ll feel less stress and more relaxed, you’ll sleep better, and you’ll likely be more confident.”
Researchers, like Bracko, point to various studies that have shown physical activity and exercise reduce the symptoms of stress, depression, anxiety and improve mood to the extent of working as well or better than many popular medications.
But what works best for you? Below are a few “motion” tips to help you get started:
1. Choose activities you enjoy: To help reduce your stress levels through physical motion, be sure to select activities you enjoy and are fun for you. If you don’t like to jog, don’t jog! If you hate swimming, don’t carry your swim trunks to work in your brief case! Getting involved in activities that you don’t enjoy will only increase your stress levels. Discover which exercises you like to do and do them regularly.
2. Alone time: Exercising all by yourself could be just what you need to carve out a little space in your day to reflect, renew and recharge your batteries. Taking a long walk in a park, or jogging on the beach or swimming in the comfort of a lap pool or listening to some soothing music while on a stationary bicycle could become an important sanctuary to help you gain the vital strength to deal with your problem or challenge.
Quick Tip: Schedule time on your calendar for your “alone time” before the week begins. Write down on your day planner what time, where and what type of exercise you will be doing. If someone calls or tries to interrupt this time, tell them, “I am sorry; I have a personal appointment at that time - what time would work best to meet later?”
3. Need to connect: Research demonstrates the overwhelming power of support when confronted with stress. Being around others in times of difficulty allows us to share our problems as well as possibly divert our attention temporarily from the issue you may be struggling with. If you gain energy and strength from being surrounded by others, make it a point to exercise regularly with a close friend or family member. Exercising together will be beneficial to your body as well as giving you the opportunity to share your challenges or to laugh or to talk about something other than what has been weighing you down.
Quick Tip: Think about joining a netball, touch footy or basketball league. Or think about walking or jogging with a group who are training for a 5K or half marathon.
4. Moving meditation: Various exercises such as walking, swimming, and jogging are repetitive in motion and demand a consistent movement which can lead to a peaceful state of relaxation.
Quick Tip: Consider performing exercises which allow you the opportunity to relax your mind as you move such as walking, jogging, swimming, hiking, cross country skiing, kayaking or rowing.
5. Hit, punch, pull, lift or kick it out! If anger or hostility has been building up in your life, consider participating in activities that provide you with a healthy outlet for your emotions. Being involved in “higher intensity” activities such as weight lifting, martial arts, racquet sports, sprinting or interval training can provide you with the emotional as well as physical outlet you are looking for.
Quick Tip: Hitting a tennis ball, squash ball or attending a kick boxing class could be just what you need to express your emotions in a positive way.
6. Spice it up! For some, a lack of stimulation or goals to accomplish can lead to depression or boredom - a stress all in itself. If you find yourself in need of a challenge, exercise may be just what you need to spice things up in your life.
Quick Tip: To challenge yourself, consider signing up for a 5K walk/jog or marathon. Consider taking part in a karate or scuba class. Or participate in a golf tournament or cycling race or Boot Camp training. The very act of signing yourself up for an event could be just what you need to help you find meaning in your movement!
7. Take a breath: Multiple studies* demonstrate regular deep breathing aides in decreasing depression, anxiety, stress and psychological disorders, eating disorders, obesity, blood pressure reduction, heart rate reduction, relaxation of the nervous system, stimulation of the lymphatic system (helping your body rid itself of toxins), increased circulation and optimal oxygen exchange and increased energy
Quick Tip: Perform deep breathing anytime, anywhere; at your desk, when waiting in line at the shops or when stuck in traffic. Breathe deeply by inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth for a total of 1-2 minutes.
8. Stretch it: Stretching movements improve muscle flexibility, strengthen tendons and ligaments, increase joint mobility, improve body posture and body symmetry, decrease lower back pain, delay muscle fatigue, minimise muscular soreness after activity, decrease stress and increase blood circulation.
* Richard Brown, MD and Patricia Gerbarg, MD co-authored a review and analysis of breathing in the treatment of stress, anxiety, and depression which was published in Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine in February and August 2005.
Some time last year a diminutive young woman approached me to enquire about personal training. She said she had been watching me train an older lady (who I believe to be Wendy) and loved how much we laughed and how much my client appeared to be enjoying herself whilst working out really hard. She wanted some assistance with improving strength and fitness but above all needed to connect well with her trainer and have a good time.
So that was my first encounter with Katie. Since then I think we've burnt as many calories laughing as we have exercising, and luckily for me, Katie has a fantastic sense of humour that makes all our sessions fly by and be very enjoyable. Katie also has no fear about telling me what she needs and what she doesn't necessarily enjoy. This has enabled us to stay on the same wavelength, have great training sessions and foster a close trainer-client relationship. What I also learnt was that within this deceptively small body beats the heart of a beast and Katie often shows the boys up when she is in the zone. I won't say much more as I think this short clip of Katie in action will do more justice to what she's about than my descriptions. You may not see much of her sense of humour in this clip as she has her 'game face' on the whole time, but trust me, it's there. So after watching this clip, don't feel too afraid to approach her and say hello. :-)
So it's 2012 and we've all probably over-indulged and under exercised (me included). Personally I have no problem with going easy for a little while, particularly when you've been pushing hard for the whole year with work, personal commitments and exercise. The challenge then simply becomes getting back on track, getting refocussed, setting some goals and getting into great shape with some sustainable and healthy habits. Simple right?!
Since returning from my break in Bali back in September, I found myself struggling a little. I had been sick for 7 weeks leading up to the trip, then went away for 3 weeks, got a stomach bug and was a mess for another 2 weeks until the anti-biotics got rid of the nasties. I lost fitness, strength and muscle mass. Many regulars in the gym would have lost their minds if this had happened to them. Especially the heavy lifting, grunting types who live with a constant phobia of missing a session and therefore shrinking back in size to looking like a weed over night. So for me there was a good couple of months where I wasn't working out much if at all. Did I panic? No. I've always encouraged my clients to listen to their bodies and honour what they can deliver on a given night. Of course it's important to have a goal and plan and to do everything you can to stick to it, if you want to see results, but I've never been a proponent of the "harden up sunshine" approach to training, unless you never work hard or push yourself to a sweat and breathlessness, in which I case, "harden up sunshine". If your body is never pushed beyond it's limits, it will have no impetus to change or improve. Your body will believe it's fine how it is and stay in it's comfort zone. That's just a fact.
Most of you know that I pay close attention to how you feel when you roll up for a training session, and will actively adjust the intensity of the session accordingly. Always psyche yourself into having a huge session, but if you're fighting off a bug/ had a sleepless night/ were berated by your boss in front of others/ lost a pet etc, then smashing you into a pulp would not only have little benefit but would likely be damaging on some level. So still come to train, be honest with me on how you are feeling and leave the rest to me. I'll make sure you leave feeling better than when you came in. That's my job and my commitment to you.
So what's next? 1. Grab a pen, a piece of paper and cup of green tea. 2. Take 10 mins away from everyone and everything and think about how you would like your life to look like in the next 1, 3, 6 & 12 months. 3. Write down three areas of you life you want to improve. Choose from Family/Social, Vocation, Money, Personal Development, Emotional, Partner, Spiritual and make sure one of them is Health. 4. Write down in bullet point the things that come to mind for each of the 3 areas you chose. Be specific, make the goals measurable, they should require evidence of their achievement along the way, make you responsible, have a time-frame attached, be inspirational and emotional (i.e. you get excited at the prospect of achieving these things and can imagine how proud you would feel when you look back on the work done after having achieved your goals). 5. Share with me your Health goals so I can make sure we are in sync and you are getting out of your sessions what came for. 6. Have an awesome 2012.
If any of you need more support with goal setting or coaching in areas of your life that aren't health-related, then let me know and I can talk to you about the coaching process and how I can help.
Many of you are used to working hard and having me stand there near you looking relaxed and rarely raising a sweat. For those of you who want to see me working hard either for inspiration or to feel a sense of revenge, take a look at this video clip of Megan and I in boxing training with our coach Dave. This is something those of you who have done boxing training in particularly will appreciate.
