With the Crossfit Open less than a month away (more importantly the Cfdc Intramural Open), it's a great time to take a moment to make sure that we are treating out bodies the best we can.
Further, we should make decisions that are beneficial in both the short & long term. For a decision to be "wise", there should be application today, but also tomorrow. May it please the court:
1. CHANGE how you VARY your TRAINING
You need to change more than just movements. Working out with unbridled intensity everyday (even with different movements, durations, & loads) can be too much of a good thing. You need both debits (high intensity) and credits (restorative workouts) to your physical bank account.
ACTION: ADD PEAK TO YOUR ROUTINE.
Attend group class 2-3 times a week and Peak 1-2 times a week. Get up, show up to the 6am class (Tuesday and Thursday) and leave feeling good: recovered, ready for the day and excited for the next day of higher intensity.
2. DOWN-REGULATE instead of DISCONNECTING
We don't know exactly what your day looks like but we will bet money that before you go to bed you do SOMETHING to 'relax'. Most of us choose something that is 'disconnecting' from the stress in our lives (netflix, zoning out on social media, consuming alcohol & hyperpalatable foods - or possibly, a nice cocktail of all 4!)
Disconnecting from stress isn't the same as dissolving it (aka down-regulating)
ACTION: 20 MINS TO TALK/OR LISTEN (INSTEAD OF WATCH/EAT)
After dinner & the customary evening routine, set a clock for 20 minutes & try one of two things:
Talk and listen to someone alive that you care for.
Find your favorite book of wisdom (proverbs, meditations, letters from a stoic, the wisdom of insecurity, whatever!) and read or reread for 20 minutes. Take the problems and troubles of the day and make the words on the page speak to you specifically.
Try this to dissolve your life stress for the day instead of just disconnect from it.
3. CLEAN UP your FOOD HYGIENE
What you eat is important but have you ever thought about how you consume your food? Riffing off of our natural desire to multi-task (mentioned above), here are two actions to keep your gut in check and improve the cleanliness of your nourishment
ACTION: BREATH AND CHEW THRU YOUR MEAL
Before you begin your meal, take 6 deep inhalations through your nose and expand your belly. These are slow controlled breaths that take 1min in total (10sec each). This will activate your parasympathetic nervous system (the one we use to rest & digest).
For at least 2 of your meals every day sit down and turn off devices. Every bite you take, place your fork back on the table and chew your bite about 20x before swallowing. You will need an extra 5-10mins for this style of eating and it will make a difference.
[Sound like the most obvious advice of all time (breath and chew!?) Count how many meals you eat standing up, with your phone in one hand, never putting your fork down with only 5 chews/bite and get back to us...]
Our worlds (in the gym and outside) are filled with stimulus: intensity, stress, deadlines, appointments, quotas, goals, volume, time-management & more! Take these three recommendations and arm yourself to combat the pre-open burn-out and the post open re-entry!