Weekly Recap 6/14-6/20/2020

We have some interesting and motivating content for you on this Monday. Our first article covers motivation, the 4 types, and makes you think about what motivates you. The second article explains the differences between perfectionism, pursuit of excellence, self-kindness, and self-compassion. These are some great things to keep in mind when it comes to making any lifestyle changes. Next, we move on to an Instagram post from Claire Zai comparing expectation versus reality when it comes to training. And we wrap up this week’s recap with a Facebook article from Dani Tocci that helps to remind us to evaluate our priorities and where we are spending our money. If where you are spending your money doesn’t line up with where you want your priorities, then it is time to make some changes.

Articles of the Week

Motivation: Use the Motives that Move You, Right Now by Lisa Lewis

Dr. Lisa Lewis writes about the 4 types of motivation and has you analyze what motivates you to do something, such as lifting weights, competing in a sport, running, etc. She explains that there may be one type of motivation that drives you the most; however, in many cases, it is a combination of the different types. And, your motivation on one day may be different than another. What I enjoyed about this article was that it made me think about why I lift weights and what motivates me. Some days the motivation is easy to find but other days, I am dragging my feet to get into the weight room. This helped me to reflect on my motivations and will give me something to revisit on days that motivation seems to be less apparent. I hope you find this article just as helpful.

Perfectionism, Excellence, Self-Kindness, and Self-Compassion by Josh Hillis

This article is an excerpt from Josh Hillis’s book, Lean and Strong. I think many of us can relate when it comes to wanting be perfect when it comes to starting new habits or reaching goals we set. However, most often, the idea of being perfect hinders us from reaching our goals because perfection doesn’t exist. We are human. We are imperfect beings. There are going to be road blocks to our goals and creating habits or lifestyle changes. It what we do when we hit those road blocks that really matters. Rather than quitting because we couldn’t be perfect, we get right back up and keep trying day after day. As Josh Hillis explains, it is the pursuit of excellence not perfectionism that should be the real driver when it comes to making changes in our lives and bettering ourselves. He also goes into the role that self-kindness and self-compassion plays in our pursuit of excellence. Read this article or pick up his book to hear his explanation of these values and actions.

Instagram Post of the Week

Claire Zai hits us with another awesome Instagram post. She goes over expectation versus reality when it comes to training. We would love for training to always go smoothly and follow a linear progression. But if you have been training for any length of time, you know this isn’t how it goes. The reality is that there are many ups and downs in the weight room. Don’t get caught up in the bad days. Keep moving forward and continue to show up. The more consistent you are, the better off you will be in the long run. Your goals will come with time, but don’t expect it to be all rainbows and butterflies. This is especially important to remember as many of us are returning to the weight room after a quarantine full of bodyweight workouts or with less than ideal weight selections. Now that you are underneath the barbell again, give yourself time to get back to where you were and go from there.

View this post on Instagram

Expectation Vs Reality:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Going into training we want everything to go well. We want to put weight on the bar every week. We want to have a never ending upward trend with the weight we will put on the bar.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ But inevitably progress will stall, plateau, and decrease and while our expectation is that we will easily overcome these challenges, the reality is different.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Going into training, we will best be served by understanding how training should progress and understanding that sometimes things don’t go according to plan.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ You are not a robot. You will not respond to training in a input/output style. Allow yourself to drop weight when you need to without guilt. Your training is not made in a day.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Training is not the outcome of how many days you crush the weight. Instead successful training is the culmination of consistent training day after day, month after month, year after year.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Your training today is not the end all be all. There will be ups and down and it may take a year to reach the weight your are working toward.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Understand how you adapt to training (see previous posts) and understand how life can impact training but most of all be patient. Try new ideas but give them enough time to stabilize before you throw them out.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ When you enter training, check your ego at the door. Train with the intention of hitting your RPE and train consistently. If the weights are down one day it is just a bit of noise that will be filtered out with time.

A post shared by Claire Zai MS | Strength Coach (@claire_bullzaistrength) on

Facebook Post of the Week

This post from Dani Tocci is a great reminder about our priorities. Yes, getting a good quality coach and spending money on quality food is going to cost some money. We often hear people complain that they would love to work with a coach to help them reach their goals or they want to eat healthier, but they don’t have the extra money to spend on those. However, these are the same people that buy coffee at Starbucks every day, go out to eat for multiple meals throughout the week, etc. If those are your priorities and that is where you want to spend your money, then absolutely go for it. It is your life and your money. But if you want to invest in your long-term health and wellness, then maybe it is time to rethink your priorities and reallocate where your money is going to on a monthly basis.

Paul Milano