Inspiration from Familiar Places

Sometimes we all need to slap in the face.

Something to wake us up from our pursuit of mediocrity. A gentle reminder to say that we are only on earth ONE TIME. We get complacent from time to time, but today I want to share some things that have changed my thinking, motivated me, or just kept me in line. Inspiration can come from a lot of places, and it's important that we have things that continue to push us to new levels. Maybe they'll give you some direction too.

Photo Credit: Skitter Photo, Stocksnap.IO

The Homeless

One day I was walking through downtown Portsmouth, and I passed a group of homeless guys on the street. They were broing out, like they were buddies or something. Like they had some sort of common thread in society and took comfort in knowing that they all had been down on their luck.

Who knows what their situation was. Maybe they made a series of bad choices that led them away from a job or a family. But, it doesn’t matter, they were there. Standing in 20 degree, snowy New Hampshire weather.  

Well, part of me is not inspired by this. I’m a believer in controlling your situation, regardless of the outcome. Whatever happens, it’s on you to own it and get past it. But, with that, I was like man, two or three bad hands in life can land you in a dark place. It doesn’t take much.

However, I was inspired by the fact that these guys were just chillin’, enjoying each other’s company, even though they had only what they carried. It made me thankful for what I have, and gave me perspective in that moment. 

We can all learn from that.

My Clients

I am so lucky! People work hard for me- and for themselves! It’s so impressive. Sweat dripping off their face, coming in at the break of dawn, or staying late to work on technique. I love it.

When I coach, sometimes I get this shit-eating grin. Everyone knows what it means.

This is going to suck for them, but I know they can do it. Usually it’s during a hard AF MetCap circuit or something taxing like that.

For a while, I tried to deny it. But, whatever, I might as well embrace it. Yes, the grin means that whatever is coming next will be hard. It will test you. It will make you work for it. It’s not because I want to inflict serious DOMS on your body. To be honest, coaches that intend to make you super sore or make you yack up breakfast solely for that purpose are… not good coaches. They clearly don’t understand the whole consistency over intensity concept. Enough soapboxing for one day, though.  

Now, here’s why I smile like that. I get so amped when people are in the grind. Embracing the uphill like a boss. It’s inspiring to me, and to everyone around them. It’s the process of growth that I try to teach people to thrive in, and working on yourself in any facet is awesome.

Kids

Specifically, kids that have not developed the fear emotion. There are 4 year olds out there who will SEND IT off of any jump - touch any animal they encounter – or walk up to another kid and hold their hand. No fear of anything- injury, heights, scary animals, rejection, or the unknown.

They just play, and explore, and have fun. Something we all need to do more of.

That’s pretty inspiring in itself. When we have downtime, sometimes is okay to just detach. Turn the phone off and be present. Play. Act like an idiot. Meg says I'm always an idiot, but because you are reading this on the internet it’s okay, I’ll vouch for you.

While we’re crushing it at the gym, and working our way up the chain with our careers, don’t forget to find your center and be with it. If you forget, just go to the park and watch kids for a while.

Wait.

Don’t, under any circumstances do that. Ever. Unless you have an affection for police officers trying to arrest you. 

Teamwork

I don’t just mean sports teams or at work. More on the human to human teamwork. We sacrifice for each other all the time. We compromise and plan so that everyone can get to the gym or get a healthy meal in, all while making sure the kids get picked up on time. It’s all in the effort of progress towards getting what we want.

Finding the right balance can be hard. Sometimes people try to abuse their power and pull us in directions we might not want to go. Other times, we are to blame for our failure to uplift the team. Whatever your role is, teamwork is evident around you whether you know it or not.

For example, I have to do my job, cover my sessions, and help out others when they need it. If one of my team members can't cover a session, I try to have their back. My teammates do the same for me. Without the mutuality, the team bond cannot thrive, and eventually it will show up negatively. 

Another example, say for instance, you take a flight somewhere. Doesn’t matter, let’s say you’re flying to San Diego in search for the best fish taco on earth. If you've seen Anchorman, you know what the city name means.

The flight attendants and pilot ask you to follow directions, buckle your seatbelt, stay in your seat until after take off, and not smoke on the flight. They ask this of you so they can do their job to the best of their ability. And we comply because we want the safest possible flight, not 180 drunk and unruly passengers. There is teamwork in that.

I’m not hyped like CT Fletcher because of service on flights or anything, but I notice little pieces of teamwork all the time. People working to help each other succeed.

It’s pretty sweet. You help me, and I help you. 

The equation is pretty simple, isn't it?

Best,

Ryan

There is science; and then there is life.

The other day I watched a documentary called “Particle Fever.” It was recommended to me by a friend, Dr. Tyler Evans at Arete Chiropractic. The whole back story of the documentary is huge for the world of science, and involves a super team of physicists trying to prove the theory of the Higgs Boson atom. One of the main physicists in the doc, explains that, proving its existence “could mean nothing… or everything.” Fascinating.

While I’m not big into the world of physics, it was super interesting. You get from the very beginning of the film that this science is groundbreaking, and could lead to bigger and better things for the universe. It also got me thinking a little differently about strength and conditioning science, too. Particularly, when new studies are coming down the pipeline, how much application can we really get when sometimes people just need to... I don't know... get to the gym in the first place, stop binge drinking on every weekend, or eat something green once in a while.

I mean, think about that for a second.

When new articles come out about health (which happens every day), do they have application to your own personal barriers? While I’m certainly not bashing the exercise research field or anything like that, we have to continually look at application in our own lives when new information is available. There is a phrase:

“Life happens.”

So, I think it’s far more important to strategize around your own life, than new research articles that claim:

Photo Credit: Antonio Barroro

Wheat is bad.

Kale is the devil.

Kettlebells will hurt your back.

Only squat with your feet straight.

Bacon elevates testosterone. 

None of these are actually true, but then again, there may be some study out there to refute me. I’m not saying we should ignore new knowledge at all, rather use it in the context of your own health. How can you actually put the information to good use? It’s easy to jump the gun in application these days and end up doing some juice "cleanse."

While the research field has told us over the years a lot of different, conflicting things, we have to keep our own life struggles and barriers at the forefront of our approach. As I said above, new science is cool, but life happens to us every day. Long term adherence is impossible if you can’t shrug some dirt off your shoulder and continue to make good choices.

In a perfect world, we want to be able to strength train at full intensity all the time. And get our conditioning in. And our mobility work. But, sometimes you have to cut a workout short, or buy packaged food in the airport. Not ideal, but yeah, that’s how life goes.

The world of new research and science does not always include the variability of life. It is controlled, statistically analyzed, and then interpreted in six different ways by you and I. While I’m a huge nerd (I repeat: I actually watched a physics documentary), I’m also practical. We have to be. Life will inevitably try to mess up your day and force you to get chipotle for dinner, even though you had something else planned. Or you just, you know, plan to get chipotle for dinner.

Just keep in mind that while new science is fun to have conversations about, it may or may NOT fit into your plan. So don’t stress over whether or not you are doing the latest and greatest protocols. They will eventually be watered down, misused, and misunderstood.

With that said, don’t completely dismiss all new information, either.

Case in point: This article on Intermittent Fasting by Dr. John Berardi and the folks over at Precision Nutrition. Now, when I saw this come out, I was surprised. Precision Nutrition has always been pretty straight and narrow, emphasizing consistency and balanced meals. They’ve also been big proponents of eating breakfast in the past. But, I was impressed of the objective approach he took, properly laying out the pros and cons of IF.

While I didn’t change anything for myself personally when I originally read the article, something stuck with me about using it as way to mediate hunger signals, scheduling demands, and energy flow. As I transitioned to my new job in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, I was starting to get up earlier than ever. Three to four times a week, I’m up before 4:30 in the morning. Now that seems super early, but in perspective it’s about 1 hour earlier than I was accustomed to, and not as early as some of my new team members. 

Once I was in that position, I was reminded of Dr. Berardi’s piece on IF. He talks about a lot of things; traditional approaches, lifestyle patterns like whether breakfast actually works for you, and meal frequency.

Quote from PN’s Dr. Berardi, which is basically an ebook:

“I became intrigued with the idea that you could skip meals – and sometimes entire days of eating – without suffering lethargy, brain fog, and muscle loss. Even more intriguing was the idea that you could accelerate body fat loss and get healthier with strategic, well-timed fasts.
These claims run counter to today's popular nutritional recommendations, which assert that small, frequent eating – grazing, if you will – is the best way to control appetite, blood sugar, and body weight. As someone who's averaged 4 to 7 meals per day for nearly 20 years, I was skeptical at first.”

I was curious, too.

Situationally, for those early days, it made a bit of sense for me. I normally have 2-4 AWESOME sessions starting at 5am. From there, I choose to eat when I’m ready. I’m flexible. Some days it’s 8am. Some days it 10am. I don’t have a “breakfast time.” The rest of the day, I eat pretty normally, and make sure I get some post workout nutrition in after I train in the afternoon. Dinner happens after my night sessions and there, I pay attention to what my body is saying. Do I want a big meal or a small one? Pretty simple.

Photo Credit: Curtis Mac Newton

I think down the road, I’ll do a more comprehensive post on IF, but here I’m talking about it to illustrate the point of taking information and applying it to your own circumstance. My own schedule demands dictated a change with my eating pattern. Given my current fitness goals and routine, I didn’t see an immediate need for a meal in the morning, so long as my energy level stayed up. I’m not in full endurance training mode (shorter runs, little to no mountain biking, 3x/week strength training), and am pretty much trying to maintain my weight.

Also,  in the wee early hours of the morning, I value 30 minutes more sleep. It’s easier for me to grab some water, coffee, and be ready to get to the gym and start crushing training sessions with folks. It was an experiment I was willing to try, and so far, I like it. 

Do I think that this approach is the end all, be all, cure to ailments and illnesses worldwide?

No. Not even close. It’s just another strategy in the toolbox. But, for my situation, it’s working right now.

And that’s where we need to focus. On our own barriers. With each new study or breaking piece of content, it is another opportunity to add value and education to yourself; but it is another chance to create chaotic confusion about your approach.

Focus on your own goal and how you can personally optimize execution.

Best,

Ryan