I have only gone as far as very light squats on my legs, but I have been pushing at about 80% on the bike, and they feel okay the next day. I am doing my usual thirty minutes on the bike, but I am not putting quite as much resistance as normal, as often. Cardio sucks at the best of time for me, but what I do is put on a track list and cycle pretty fast, but for all the chorus parts, up the resistance a lot and stand. Combine this with being able to switch off my mind almost completely, and it is a pretty effective exercise to finish off after the strength training.
I just need to stop inhaling candy, and I would be in okay shape.
Do you think designers plan things to look like faces?
Pareidolia.
Speaking of seeing faces, I like going to the gym, because there are so many different types of people that come together. They generally don't know each other, but over time they nod to the familiars and get on about their business. As I am a night exerciser, I see many of the same people regularly and I also see how they change over time. I am not sure if everyone looks that closely as I don't think people care what I look like, but I like being inspired by the people who are working out hard, and getting results. Some I have observed for a couple years now, and it is pretty cool to see what people have managed.
It also makes me disappointed in myself.
Disappointed might not exactly be the right word for it, as I am also appreciative that despite the many challenges over the decade, I have been able to maintain some kind of physical condition. I will never run a marathon or climb Everest, nor will I play much sport. But, I am on okay condition, considering. And that is saying something.
I had a client session today and I was telling her of a conversation I had with my daughter the other night, where Smallsteps asked "why adults have to go to the gym". She knows all the reasons why, but she was curious as to why adults don't just do what kids do, and move more. A pretty salient question, really.
But it got me thinking about it a bit more deeply as to the transition from childhood to adulthood, and why suddenly "exercise" becomes an event. As a child, it is just part of daily life (or should be), but as more draws on our attention arise and responsibilities fall into our lap, we have to make time to exercise. And I think that especially now with all the passive digital activity, this is important to recognise.
As a kid I played organised sports, meaning that there were trainings and gamedays in the schedule, and this meant there was time allocated to practice. But, it wasn't the same as going to the gym, as there was a different "why" for it. But, as we get older, unless we have created the clear habit of "exercise" into our schedule, it means we are going to have to build a habit from scratch. For me, I transitioned pretty easily from childhood play exercise to adult exercise, but my wife did not. The difference for her is...
She was naturally petite.
As a young adult, she always looked in shape, regardless of what she did, or what she ate. She needn't go to the gym to look different, nor did she want to put on muscle. However, now that she is a little longer in the tooth, things are different, as her body doesn't behave as it did, nor recover as it did. But, she doesn't have the habit to go to the gym regularly, because she didn't build the habit when she was young. So while she struggles because she has to learn a new habit, I don't because it is part of my daily activity.
This is a theory.
And with the growing obesity epidemic/ crisis, it makes me wonder if part of the reason that people are getting much larger, is that there is less continuance between childhood play exercise and adult exercise. Instead of a smooth transition, kids are not only doing less, but as adults, they aren't doing anything until the are forced to. Like my wife has to force herself to go to the gym. So then, if we wanted to start reversing the trend, what we would need to do is start introducing children to "intentional exercise" as a component of their play exercise. It isn't about getting stronger, or looking better, but just to build the habit for future health, like brushing teeth or showering.
And this reminded me of when I was much younger and the seven year old sister of my girlfriend was interested in me going to the gym, and asked what kinds of exercises she could do to make herself healthier. Being so young, I set her a "routine" of something like ten star jumps, ten sit-ups, and ten push-ups - on school mornings. She did them almost religiously. I saw her about fifteen years later when she was singing in a band to pay for her way through medical school, and she reminded me of this workout, and how every morning she goes to the gym, she thinks of it.
The habit stayed.
We are our behaviours, and habits make or break us. So we really should work on building good habits that support our health, as young as possible. That means parents have to play a key role in modelling a child's habits - not for convenience, but for future wellbeing. Otherwise, once that child becomes an adult, it becomes very hard for them to change.
It definitely is for me.
I have the habit of going to the gym, but when it comes to many other habits I formed in childhood, they are far from healthy and do not help me improve my life. Instead, it is a constant struggle to stop doing things, instead of having an easy path of *doing the right things first. Bad habits create unnecessary tensions that push and pull and crush us down. If we can release our future selves from having to deal with a lot of the unnecessary tension, we will have far more energy to spend on the things that actually matter.
I think I will talk more to my daughter about this, and see if in the mornings, she wants to do a mini workout with me. Perhaps it will help her, perhaps not - but I do think that we would have a good time doing it together. And that matters too.
Taraz
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