Don't Pace Yourself 2: No Excuses

As I'm sure you're all aware, based on this eighties-action-movie-style blog title this week, that there's more to say on the topic of motivating yourself in training. Truthfully, we could just write about this every week, all the time because there's always more to say on this. This week, however, I wanted to be more specific. Last week's entry spoke more to the lazy, negative person hiding inside all of us who doesn't want us to better ourselves. This time around I would like to address the logical, intelligent demon in there that is afraid of success. The part of us that will let us start on a new path, see some results and then convince ourselves that we've improved as much as we needed to. Even more dangerous than being lazy. Often times it plays out like this: you realize you could be training (or training more), you start pushing yourself, you see improvements and feel great, you use some negativity hidden in false logic to talk yourself into taking a break, you lose momentum and then end up in a worse place than before you started. No longer training and convinced that you are. This week, we take a look at 3 common excuses that I've both heard from others and have said to myself at some point. Make sure to put these fires out if they ever start up.

I Should Probably Rest 
Don't assume that you're an idiot. Treat your limits like they're your grand parents: know them well, visit them often and always respect them. Imagine that your limits are a line drawn on the ground a block away from where you're standing. Imagine that if you don't run to the line, it will start coming to where you're standing. If you cross that line you'll be injured, but, every time you walk to it, it moves a little further back. So if you just stand there, before you know it you'll be cornered. By pushing yourself toward it, it's now a block and a half away, giving you that much more freedom to move around. You can safely and intelligently push yourself all the time, knowing you can go before you hurt yourself. Even if you're not sure, you could always consult with a trainer and/or doctor. Either way, taking a break isn't the answer. You'll lose progress just as fast (if not faster) by constantly telling yourself that you're not good enough to keep going. Progress is the results of good habits, not some system of on-off binge training. That's how you end up injured because you lose track of where your limits are. I've learned this first hand over the years.

Deciding You Deserve Something
I hear this one a lot. Thankfully, I've heard it so often that I can quickly stop myself from indulging this thought too much. As soon as some people gain just a little momentum, they somehow convince themselves that they "deserve" a reward. This reward, for some reason, is often something counter productive to what you were doing so well. If going back to your pre-taining routine is so great then you wouldn't have left it in the first place. Making your well-being a priority, habit and lifestyle is the greatest reward you can give yourself and yes, you deserve it. Breaking your routine and calling it a "reward" is subconsciously telling yourself that what you're doing is something bad that you don't like. Be careful of this, you might start believing this line of "reasoning" before you even knew it started. Every day that you keep it up is a reward. That's what you deserve.

Negotiating Failure with Yourself
Sometimes we can talk ourselves into a strange, hybrid combination of the first two danger thoughts. When you negotiate a reward for training hard and focused, it's like giving someone a punishment for doing what they were supposed to in the first place. This further ingrains the subconscious mind into treating a regular training lifestyle as a bad thing that you would need a damaging "reward" for enduring.
"I did 45 minutes of cardio today so I guess I could take a day off tomorrow."
"I had a salad for lunch so I guess I can have a second desert after dinner."
I'm not saying you can't cheat on a diet or slack on some training, just as long as it doesn't come with hours of twisted logic and self negotiation. Acknowledge that you're human, admit what you're doing and move on. Stay positive.

I'm sure at some point you've heard someone say something similar to these three bad habits, or have said them yourself. Respect how far you can push yourself and enjoy it. If you're honest with yourself, you can safely keep pushing that limit further and further away, giving your health and happiness all the freedom they need to take the wheel. The reward is the lifestyle and how good you'll feel. You don't need a break from this as long as you rest well, eat well and stay motivated. If eating poorly or slacking off for an extended period the reward that you're wondering if you deserve, the answer is no. If living longer, feeling great and being happy is the reward in question, yes you deserve it. Keep it that simple all the time and sustaining a healthy life shouldn't be too hard. Anything else is just complication that you don't need. Enjoy.

Jordan Bill
Fight or Die

www.combatsystem.com
www.scrapyardfighting.com