Hibernate Competitively

Winter is upon us, and with it the yearly choice for competitive athletes: to workout aimlessly

in the gym or to spend the winter in hibernation mode. The truth is that most of us are some

where in the middle of the two extremes-allowing breaks in training while still maintaining our

fitness to some degree. Usually the winter see's triathletes and other outdoorsy folks spending

hours in the gym with no real goal or purpose other than knowing that we should be in there if we

want to be fit.

Well fear not. even the most erratic of winter workouts can be focused on improving.

Furthermore, if your a hardcore hibernator who hasn't broken a sweat since the temperature

dropped below 40, a few minutes a week contemplating your approach to fitness can revolutionize

the future of your workouts.

The following five concepts will be discussed in detail as the subject of future posts: mental toughness, self assessment, Fun, Intensity, and execution.

Have a productive and fruitful week.

Mental Recovery

Recovery is the current buzzword among fitness and nutrition experts. Everyone and their mother is talking about how yoga, recovery drinks, a paleo diet, cross training,taking a month off, or sleeping 14 hours a night has revolutionized their health and fitness. In fact, the current range of products and techniques for optimizing athletic recovery are incredibly complicated.

The following is a list of widely accepted recovery items or techniques: compression clothing, recovery drinks, organic food, antioxidants, protein, naps, amino acids, massage, yoga, ice baths, meditation, and stretching (or not stretching-depending on who you talk to). Surely I have omitted something also. The point is that if you consider trying all of these techniques you can spend considerable time and money on resting!

Don't get me wrong, many of these things can help both elite athletes and average fitness buffs improve their performance. But really folks, lets use some common sense before blindly throwing money and products and services. Seems to me the best way to recover from any given fitness activity is pretty simple. STOP DOING THAT ACTIVITY FOR AWHILE. So lets stop feeling guilty about days off and try to spend that time working on an underdeveloped athletic skill-listening to our bodies.

For the rest of the winter I'm going to concentrate on getting more in touch with how, and why my body reacts to rest, workouts, and other lifestyle factors (like yummy beer), in order to make a more informed decision about what type of recovery product (if any) I should be using. I hope you all have a productive and fruitful week.

The Biggest Looser?

This morning I opened my laptop and, in the company of my loving girlfriend, decided to enjoy a morning drinking coffee and browsing the internet. I surfed over to Hulu and selected the first episode of 2011s The Biggest Looser. Within five minutes i was, as always, engrossed.

Many people find the show difficult to watch, or simply consider themselves too in shape to be touched by a show about weight loss. However, I am astounded by this series' ability to capture the hearts and minds of both fit, and sedentary people. I suspect the genius of the show is that it is as much about the transformational process as it is about working out and weight loss. I Find the show instantly compelling because the contestants are facing the most self destructive parts of themselves.

In my view, the sheer willpower it takes to face one's underlying issues and poor lifestyle choices on national television is heroic. Furthermore, the fear of changing one's life so completely and abruptly would likely render 'yours truly' paralyzed with fear.

We all have aspects of ourselves that we don't like. We all have habits that undermine our mental or physical health, but most fit people have the luxury of not being confronted with our poor health daily. I would wager many of us have habits or fears as deeply seeded as those that drive biggest looser competitors to obesity.

This brings me to the gist of this post. Active people should draw inspiration from the biggest looser not just because of the workouts- which honestly, are impressive enough- but because of the decision to confront and change self destructive behaviors in ourselves. Many of us use exercise to cope with life's difficulties. Lets not forget to care about the other aspects of our lives as well. Because, really, whats the point of being fit, if we don't take the time to enjoy it.

Nbc, please don't sue me. I watched the show here: http://www.hulu.com/the-biggest-loser