3 Thoughts on Fitness & Nutrition (April Edition)
It’s that time again...that time where the 3 Things meets Purposeful Strength. That time where I look at my list of writing topics and see what never quite materialized into a full blown write up.
Without dragging this along, here are the 3 Things I’ve been thinking about in April.
Take a week off. It’s okay.
My buddy Mike Bouranis of Stoked Athletics has an amazing T-Shirt that reads “Some Days Off”. It’s one of the mantras at his gym, and he’s spot on. In a world where we are encouraged to “grind” and always strive to be productive with our time, I think it’s important to say fuck it for 7-10 days every once in a while (like three times a year) and just do your thing.
Fitness can and should be a part of your everyday life, BUT that can be achieved without a structured routine at a gym. Increasing your activity day to day by walking (the ‘ol 10K steps per day), spending time outdoors hiking, other recreational activities like skiing or biking, they all count. The act of fitness is to elicit a response in your body for the better, not engrain that going to the gym makes you healthy…
Habits > Numbers, but numbers help create habits
I love this conversation with new clients. When we start working towards a goal, it needs to be quantified. Weight-loss is a number. Strength gains is a number. Hours of sleep is a number.
It’s all quantified. This is so that we can track it and gauge improvement. It makes sense.
However, once you’ve created your metrics and have an understanding of what they mean, we look to create actionable habits that support our progress. If I want to lose those last 4-5 pounds, obsessing over the numbers is one not-so-glamorous way to do it, rather, I can focus on my day to day habits that allow me to remain consistent and chip away at that progress in a more positive circumstance.
Habits, habits, habits.
Find your triggers
This is a concept that I’ve talked about on the 3 Things Podcast before. During the shut-downs in 2020 a lot of people had troubles getting in their workouts. Largely, this wasn’t due to a lack of commitment or equipment, it was because their internal triggers were out of whack to help them “get in the zone”.
Think about it. When you’re getting ready to workout what do you do? Pack your gym bag, fill your water bottle, maybe eat a snack, even getting into your car sets off an internal reminder. All of these actions tell your body that it’s gym time. If those go away because you’re working from home, what do you do? Well, trying to replicate those triggers is a good start.
The bottom line, when you’re trying to create action or find consistency in taking action...think of the triggers that lead up to the action taking place. If you can be consistent with initiating those triggers you’ll have a fighting chance to keep that action consistent.
Hoping these 3 Things spark some change for you. You got this.
Have a great week everyone,
-Casey