This weekend I managed to do a 100 pullup / 100 35lb curl session in place of back and biceps and a run through of Insanity Max Interval Circuit. I worked out in the cool late summer rain and was invigorated by the winds of change…
This time of year is a great time to start fresh, we are so well trained by the time we leave school that the cooling of the air, the fall breezes of September and the fresh cold mornings all bring thoughts of rebirth. As youngsters we get to go back to school with all our friends, trade summer vacations stories and catch up with all the summertime gossip. As we get older, September means new academic challenges, an end of monotonous summer jobs and the start of new athletic seasons. For me, fall and the start of school will always bring back memories of Western and the start of the rugby season, the chance to help influence a whole new batch of young students coming into residence and a chance to escape the chains of work and once again dive back into the pool of academia. Of course, that is just a euphemism for what used to be drinking my face off and partying with the new kids until someone passed out and got attacked with permanent marker. After 2 years of that, I quit drinking and started to take my health and my life a little more seriously. I got involved with aerobics, step class and rollerblading, had friends who were into fitness and health and started taking note of my issues with food. Each year that passed, I was more aware of the changes I could make with sheer volume of activity and I fell in love with September cardio classes. For someone whose background was strength this was pretty weird, I was doing step classes, playing basketball and was in the best shape of my life. However I was unaware of the weakness I was building into my physique. I continued to play rugby for Western and was faster, fitter and a better player than I had ever been but as my cardio increased, my weight decreased and by the following summer I paid the price. I was flattened by a Samoan with an attitude and separated my shoulder. That was a painful but predictable end to my career as a rugby player. But it sent a damaging message to me that I carried for years: Size beats speed.
Since it is difficult and time consuming for us to create new habits, especially as we get older, it’s of great benefit to take advantage of the habits we already have and although you may not know it, the end of summer brings thoughts of renewal to almost everyone. So it’s a perfect time to kick start your journey, whatever it may be, with some back to school spice! I am lucky right now that I am at the end of Round 7 and it looks like I am going to repeat this round since I seem to have missed out on almost every Insanity:Asylum workout and been a little lazy on the yoga side of things. With a little tweaking I think I can make it work, with RKC not just being a filler in case I get a few minutes before coaching.
So school is in. If you have kids, you will spend lots of time encouraging them to look forward to school, to make new friends and try new things. If you are going back to school yourself you may find that the challenges and changes you face are almost overwhelming, but guess what, that’s what life is like, and you should prove yourself by shaking up your fitness and health regimen also.
So what are you going to do about you? I propose you try something new. Buy a kettlebell, try a crossfit class, make some goals for once! Put yourself back into health school and change your diet, make a resolution for now until Christmas that you won’t fall prey to the muffin, the french fries or the chicken wings. We are about to embark on a wonderful time of year when everything in our lives seems new and exciting. Why let your old routines and habits weigh you down. If you have always wanted to move up in the activity class then get to it. Treat this September like you are going back to school, teach yourself some new tricks, see how much you can change your habits and activities and do something different for once!
But do something, because something beats nothing every time!!