Happy Canada Day weekend for those who are observing it!

In preparation for the holiday, I’m writing this post a little early as I will be sans networked connection at the lake.  As of writing, I don’t yet have all of my sleep data recorded for June, so the typical sleep update will be delayed one week.

Instead, I want to briefly give some further health and fitness thoughts that I’ve been mulling over recently, in no particular order.

 

1. “I’ve put on some weight…”

Exercise was a bigger part of my life last year, but I’ve recently recalled that my gym habit waned in the days before heading off to Scotland in July 2016.  Prompted by the realization that July starts next week, I looked up my weight stats for this time last year.  Ugly truth time!

 

Needless to say, that’s a little disappointing.  Finding a system that I can stick to has been a challenge for a number of reasons that aren’t particularly compelling, and I’m disappointed in my progress so far.

 

2. Goal Setting with a Deadline

I realized that last Saturday was exactly 63 weeks away from our wedding day.  I’m hoping to leverage the not so far off wedding date as a concrete goal in my mind to spur action.  Every week that I do nothing in regards to exercise or fitness brings me one week closer to the wedding where I didn’t prepare.  With lots of lead-in, I have plenty of time to exercise safely to look good for my future-wife.

 

3. Tracking Excuses

I found a nifty idea on Reddit that I’m implementing in my notebook called the Excuse Log.   This will have the dual purpose of aiding purposeful reflection on why I don’t exercise when I plan to, and what I can do about it in the future.  In my notebook, I’ve penned in the table below:

Excuse	Legitimate?	Reality/Solution
*What is the reason why I’m not going to the gym?	*Is this a legitimate reason?  I.e. would a good friend or professional excuse my absence based on this reason?	*If the excuse is not legitimate, reframe the problem to better reflect reality for next time. If the excuse is legitimate, what solutions can you implement to help you in the future.

This will help me be more mindful of those times when I didn’t exercise as I planned because I let my baser monkey brain trick me (you’re too tired, YouTube is more pleasant, you ate too big of a lunch, etc.).

 

4. Enjoy What You Do

I stopped rowing, ultimately, because I don’t enjoy cardio exercises all that much.  While it might be true that I like rowing over running, I truthfully don’t like rowing or running that much as compared to lifting weights, especially when it’s the only exercise I’m doing.

Going to the gym to lift weights comes with a whole host of mental barriers that I’ve thus far proven to be weak against.  I give in to temptation when I’m tired, I don’t have the discipline yet to hit the gym in the morning, I’m still self-conscious around others, and I seem to have an aversion to sweating.  Stacked together, I’ve got a lot of friction to fight against just to do the right thing.

A trick I’ve seen consistently in the exercise literature and the self-help sphere is to pick activities you like to do, because you’ll be more likely to stick to them.  I genuinely enjoyed going to the gym when life was simpler a year ago.  Now, having been away for so long, it’s hard for me to build up to the same level where I can coast on the routine.  I need a catalyst to help push me forward.  I need something I enjoy to be the keystone habit/activity that will force me to exercise.  John Green talked about it recently after completing his first half-marathon on his 100 Days YouTube channel.  In the video, he takes the advice that sticking to your fitness habits can be aided by signing up for competitions that you need to train for.

Recently, I participated in a crash course introduction to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu with some friends.  To say that it kicked my ass is a bit of an understatement; I was a hot, sweaty mess afterwards.  As of writing I still have bruises and broken blood vessels marking my upper arms and chest, and in the days afterwards I felt as though I had been run over by a mid-sized American pick-up truck.

And yet, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.  In the past, I had also participated in a similar session for Krav Maga, and while I enjoyed it, too, the BJJ session was a lot more fun for me.  Despite what you may think about me moonlighting as a security guard, I’m not a big fan of striking combat.  I prefer grappling and restraint over throwing punches, so BJJ spoke to me on some level.

I’ve since looked up the fees and schedule offered by the recreation centre and I’ve been pondering whether I would want to join in on some of the drop-in classes.  To keep up and learn BJJ (or any martial art) would require me to improve my flexibility, mobility, and cardiovascular endurance; I’d also be more inclined to hit the weights to gain strength as well.  I haven’t made any decisions or commitments yet, but it’s something that’s been on my mind.

—–

Of course, this is all talk.  My problem is that I don’t translate talk into action.  All the best laid plans come unraveled when you can’t put the rubber to the pavement (worn cliched metaphors and all).  Or, as Mike Tyson has quipped, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.   In this case, lacking a solid fitness plan opens me up to the punches of day-to-day life, where every available excuse becomes a valid reason to not commit to exercise.

As I review this post, I realize the order I laid things out in creates a pretty good reflection of 1.) identifying the problem, 2.) setting a realistic timeline, 3.) anticipating roadblocks, and 4.) setting good plans of action.

I don’t know where this will go, but I’m curious to see what comes of it.

Stay Awesome,

Ryan