Don’t Think About It; Just Do It

Ruminating makes you combat ineffective

Reflecting

Once you set out on a fitness activity, overthinking doesn’t help.  If I allow myself, I self-talk endless excuses and rationalizations, but am happier and more effective if I just act on my commitments instead of second guessing them.  Ruminating tends to get wrapped up in ego and prediction, both of which sabotage effort and happiness.  It doesn’t help to tell myself “I’m worried that I can’t do it” and it doesn’t help to encourage myself “I can do it!” (because maybe I can’t and that new thought will inevitably arise once my mind starts spinning). 

Instead just throw yourself into running or rolling or lifting so that you lose your illusory sense of self and simply become the activity.  You’re just someone who runs/rolls/lifts.  You don’t need to judge the miles or opponent or weight; you just keep moving because that’s who you are.  My legs aren’t aching; I’m a runner.  Runners run.  Moving becomes as automatic and ignorable as my heartbeat.  Verb over noun. 

If you’ve been pondering joining a running club (Sunday Runs or whatever is closest to you; I have other ideas depending on locale), just go.  Here’s a practical aspect of starting out that potential trail runners might not realize: there will almost always be someone at your pace and you probably won’t be abandoned in the woods to get eaten by wolves.  Why?  Because ultra-runners are constantly recovering from their last race or tapering for their next one.  Additionally, there’s some using the MAF Method running at lower pace.  Then groups tend to have specific opportunities for new members (for ours that’s Rookie Runners which starts at 7:00 for a shorter distance and easier pace this Sunday).  In short: chance of having fun with people moving your pace pretty good; chance of getting abandoned in the woods and mauled by wolves reasonably low.

Training

I’m shooting for 100 runs this year; #1 was 12 miles at 5 AM 1.1.2023:

I fail to understand what the point of climbing is if not to teach us, in sometimes brutally real ways, that risks exist and consequences arrive of them lest we voluntarily manage those risks through skill, competence, and a rational decision-making process, to the best of our imperfect abilities.

- Andrew Bisharat

CrossFit Norwalk was closed on New Year’s Day so after my run I went climbing at Beta Climbing + Fitness instead.  It is a wonderful place.  I bounce back and forth between Beta and Rock Climb Fairfield and recommend both. 

Wednesday is cardio day (groan); today’s white board: Tabata

• Echo Bike

• Ski

• Echo Bike

• Ski

The workout was named “This is Not What it Looks Like” which briefly lifted my hopes… only to have them dashed on the rocks of despair when I discovered that it was precisely what it looked like. 

Fueling

What do I drink after my caffeine cutoff?  Mostly San Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water.  I love their water and far prefer to drink from glass than plastic to avoid xenoestrogens.  I drink almost no juice, but occasionally have a tart cherry juice (sadly no glass bottle option).  

Supplementing

This is the last and lowest priority.  I would skip it until you are sleeping well, eating clean, and training hard.  Take every advantage with no cost or potential side effects before you explore supplements.  Then when you approach the vicinity of reasonable fitness goals – over 7 hours of sleep, under 15% body fat, consistent barbell form, and enough protein to support hypertrophy – consider prescription supplements.  But don’t hold out too much hope.  At best, this is just a little boost to the work you’re putting in elsewhere.

Measuring

I gave blood yesterday and am aiming for 6 donations this year.  You can find one nearby and book it here.  It helps those who need it, and also thins your blood and reduces iron.  Blood viscosity and excessive iron are two of the most underrated killers of men (less of a problem for women).  Donating/dumping every eight weeks addresses both issues.  In addition to healthier blood and lower all cause mortality especially mortality related to heart health, donating gives you a free bimonthly physical with data sent straight to an app.  This is useful data for everyone, but particularly helpful for monitoring diet and supplementation side effects for anyone on new or novel diets and pharma. 

Recovering

Sleep is a performance enhancing drug that makes you stronger, leaner, and happier.  Discipline is endlessly easier rested.  If you could charge for the performance enhancing impact of that seventh or eighth hour of sleep, it would be worth quite a lot.  I would not even think about turning to pharma for any performance enhancement until I first dialed in my sleep.  But it has another advantage: nothing is worth a literal 24/7 commitment because that starves you of the ability to ramp up in a crisis.  Don’t offer 24/7 on a regular basis.  Take a nine hour sleep opportunity window off the table.  Family plus work plus fitness plus all other priorities should get a combined 15 hours of your day.  That will force you to be more efficient and will give you a few extra hours beyond what was expected in an emergency.  Otherwise you risk redlining in an unsustainable way that could risk crashing and burning in an emergency that reveals you have no extra hours to give.

Closing

Want an annual progress measurement?  Here’s a simple objective test.  I love swimming/push-ups/sit-ups/and pull-ups; you can accomplish so much with these simple bodyweight exercises.  Everyone can do at least some, so this can be a good test to do as a family to measure annual progress.  If I added to it, I’d add 8 500 meter rows at your 2,000 meter goal (mine is 1:45/500 M) with 3:30 breaks in between.  A colleague suggested this rowing program and I love it. 

Thanks for reading.  Please share with anyone you think would be interested.