Let Me Clarify Something... Exercise is Tough on Our Bodies!

This is such a simple concept that a lot of us don't understand and if we can grasp this one thing in our life, we will be much 'healthier'!  Living an Active Lifestyle is hard on your body!  It's not easy by any means and can cause some major complications.  Cardiovascular training is repetitive pounding on our joints (knees, ankles, hips, shoulder, etc.).  Resistance training, Plyometrics, Bodyweight training puts major stresses on our muscles, ligaments, and tendons and in return can cause minor tears in the muscles (which is necessary for muscle growth).  Impact training and many sports can cause minor/major injuries upon impact. The key here is LISTENING to our bodies and finding a BALANCE!

Our goal needs to be to create a healthy lifestyle that can be maintained the rest of our lives.  Not an intensive Diet/Exercise plan for 4 weeks to drop 10 pounds before vacation.  (This is actually very detrimental to your body and metabolism.)  We need to create a Balance in our lifestyle that allows your body to RECOVER from all the hard work/stress you put on it!

This past year, I got my Natural Trainers Certification through Jon Hinds and the MonkeyBar Gym (www.monkeybargym.com).  This 6-day Intensive Course touches on this very thing and engraved the word BALANCE in bold in my head.  They call it the MBG 3 philosophy.  The workouts are designed to allow the body to focus on different types of training and to allow the body to be able to continue training without Overtraining.  Eischens Yoga is used for Restoration of the body.  And a Plant-Based diet allows for Recovery and puts proper Fuel into your body.

This is not something you just GET.  It takes work.  I am constantly working on this!

**My challenge to you is to journal for a week or two (yes this takes work but is SO beneficial).  Journal not just everything you eat but how you feel from these foods.  Journal your workout and how you feel from the workouts.  Start paying attention to your body.  If you are tired one day, try to take a nap if possible or go to bed early (our bodies need this for recovery!) Don't just ingest Caffeine and keep going all night!

Next go back and review the week, feel free to post questions as well here.  Our goal is to create a routine/plan that is achievable to you and that will allow you to keep going past your crash pre-vacation overhaul.

Engrave the word BALANCE in your head.  Now try applying it to whatever your health goals are. We all are different, there is not one book/workout out there that is the end all be all.  We all respond differently.  So start paying attention to your body!

Time for some recovery ;) Good night!