Year of Push 3.17 Supple Leopard

by | Jun 7, 2017 | Blog

If you listen much to the Primal Potential Podcast, you know that I’m always asking people to evaluate if what they are doing works for them. It’s a huge mistake to blindly follow a way of eating that doesn’t give you the results you’re looking for. Like I said yesterday, it really doesn’t matter if it works for someone else. It doesn’t matter at all. All that matter is if it works for you.

While this is an important thing to keep in mind related to what, when & how much we eat, it’s also really, really important related to how we move.

I would dare say that the majority of people who workout don’t ever really evaluate what is working for them and what is not.

Are you getting stronger?

How do you know?

Are you getting leaner?

Are you getting more mobile?

Are your pains & discomforts improving?

Too many people just go through the motions of working out the way people go through dieting. They’re following someone else’s strategy, or rules or program without paying attention to their own bodies.

Guys. Working out is not the endgame. Improving your body is.

If you have pain or discomfort, you should be working to resolve it, not to ignore it or power through it.

If you have limited mobility, you should be working to improve it, not to avoid it.

If you have a weakness, you should be looking to improve it, not just endure it.

I talk about this a lot more on tomorrow’s podcast (episode 345) but please do not spend more attention on working out than you do on body work.

Everyone, whether they workout or not, needs to prioritize body work.

What’s body work?

Working on YOUR body. Not for aesthetic gains but for healing, mobility, flexibility, alignment and stabilization.

I’ve shared before that I go into the gym 30 minutes early and work at home on my body every day. This has nothing to do with my workout. It has to do with my body work.

I work on breathing exercises. I work on flexibility. I work on my posture and alignment.

If I have pain, I work to fix it. If I have weakness, I look for the root cause and monitor my improvements.

I’ve recently been re-reading Becoming a Supple Leopard by Kelly Starrett (it’s very textbook like, for those of you who are considering it) and it’s a powerful reminder that we will not drift to optimal health.

You can’t just show up at the gym and do what you’re told and expect to live in your best body.

Honestly, I think body work should be prioritized over working out because your workout benefits will be minimal if you aren’t taking care of your muscles, joints, pelvic floor, alignment and breath control.

Where can you start? Posture. Stretching. Foam rolling.

I am not a body work expert and I don’t play one on the internet but my point today is this: is what you’re doing working for you? Is your mobility increasing? Are you becoming more flexible? Are you resolving your pain? Is your stress incontinence going away?

If those things aren’t happening, it’s time to make a change.


Today is a crazy day. My schedule is all out of whack and I’m getting things done later than normal. I’m kinda bummed…this is the first day that I’ve been in town and unable to get to the gym. While I could focus on the obstacles and not workout, I choose to focus on the opportunities and get a workout done at home.

In addition to lots of stretching & foam rolling, I did 5 rounds for time (RFT) of the following:

  • 20 med ball thrusters
  • 20 push-ups
  • 20 cal bike

I would have preferred to get to the gym, but even when there’s a lot I can’t do, there’s even more I can do.

 

On the food front:

Since I worked out later in the day, I had more of a “breakfast” meal today – a shake made with collagen powder, almond milk, cacao powder and greek yogurt.

I was feeling pretty hungry around noon time but had a couple of conference calls and wasn’t able to eat right away. Per usual, the hunger faded and I was far less hungry after the calls than before. I love noticing those things. I think it’s really empowering & helps me be less reactive to hunger. When I had the chance, I had steak frites (with sweet potato fries) from Paleo Power Meals.

A couple hours later I had a mini meal of grilled chicken and my early dinner was a cobb salad. My preference is to be done eating as early in the day as possible to maximize that overnight fasting window. Today I was done eating around 5:30pm. I love that!

PS: If you’re new to these posts, listen to this podcast episode to get the scoop on what changes I’m making in my life and you can start back at my first daily post here.

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