Tag Archives: exercise

The double dip

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A few months back I started doing my meditation on my treadmill. It started because I was in a writing slump and my blog post writing was taking too long to write… Not leaving me enough time to do 20-30 minutes of cardio, meditate, and do a full weights workout on one body part before work. So I started to double dip and do my meditation on my treadmill. (Yes, I close my eyes, I hold the handrail and also wear the emergency stop clip… not that I’ve ever needed it.)

I actually find this a great combination. I do a walk with a weighted vest on incline, so holding the rail I’m very stable. I get a really good (Zone 2) workout, it’s not like I’m taking it easy. And I find that with my body busy, I’m better able to focus my mind on the guided meditation. And the bonus is that I’m getting two great things done.

Today I was struggling to write, very distracted, and decided to exercise first. I thought I’d double dip and write while on the exercise bike rather than treadmill, where writing would be awkward. 15 minutes into a 30 minute ride, I realized I wasn’t going to write anything while riding so I put on a 15 minute meditation to get me to the end of my cardio workout.

Five minutes later this post came to mind and I spent the next 10 minutes of my meditation and ride bringing my thoughts back to the meditation and away from writing this in my head. Essentially I made the meditation almost impossible to focus on.

This is the first time in a couple years that I’ve tried to meditate before writing, and I totally remember now why I do them in the order I do them. I can’t meditate knowing that I still have to write. I need the sense of accomplishment of my post to help clear my mind for meditation.

Essentially, I can only double dip in the right order, with a physical and a mental activity, but there is no triple dipping! Nor is there double dipping of two mental activities. I’m the poster boy of ‘there’s no such thing as multitasking’. For me meditation while I’ve got a blog post to write is an invitation to completely ignore meditation, or to inconveniently and ineffectively task swap so that I do neither task well.

Write first, then double dip exercise and meditation. That’s my lesson for the morning.

It’s good for you

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A new study shows the benefits of creatine for women, (Study, TikTok summary). We already know the benefits for men, it’s nice to see specific research for women, and specifically menopausal women, who tend to be under-researched.

I’m not a medical doctor, I don’t pretend to be one. But I’ll share three suggestions that I have followed, based on my research, that can improve long term health.

  1. Take creatine.
  2. Take far more protein than is suggested in daily recommendations.
  3. Exercise regularly, for both cardio and strength.

These are all things that are good for your health… and the health of your brain. But don’t take my word for it. Look into to these things yourself. Check out doctors Rhonda Patrick, Peter Attia, and Gabrielle Lyon. Oh, and when I went to Instagram to make sure of Gabrielle’s first name, the first video that came up was her talking about women increasing protein intake.

I love seeing how the science of healthy living is becoming mainstream.

Remembering Rest Days

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I looked at my workout tracker yesterday and realized that I haven’t missed a day of exercise yet this year. While that’s great, it is important to recognize the importance of rest. Sure I don’t do long workouts, and I usually focus on a single muscle group after cardio, so my muscles do tend to get rest days in, (other than my legs for cardio). But there is something to be said about the value of a full rest day.

It’s a busy week and I’m getting up an hour later than usual. Today I give myself permission to take a well deserved rest day. And I need to remind myself not to wait this long to do it again. It’s easy to forget to take a day off when you’ve built a daily exercise habit. Instead of feeling like an important thing to do, it feels like cheating.

There is something really psychologically sound about internationally taking a full rest day. It’s medicine for the soul. There is a significant difference between choosing a rest day and slacking off; between being lazy and choosing to take a healthy break. But the framing of it (like o just did) is important. Because if I feel like I’m just slacking off then it feels more like a cop out than an important and valuable break.

It feels good to have such a healthy routine that I actually have to remind myself to take a break. That’s such an empowered frame of reference compared to having to convince myself to workout. And I know with full conviction that I’ll work out tomorrow. After all it has been over a year since I missed two days in a row.

But today I rest.

Do it anyway

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I love this video I found on LinkedIn, shared by Soren Harrison.

“Discipline doesn’t care if you are tired. ‘You’re tired?’

Do it anyway. Right?

Discipline says ‘Oh you don’t feel good.’

Well do it anyway.

Discipline says ‘It’s raining outside and it’s cold. It’s windy.’

Do it anyway.”

It was miserable out today… an ‘atmospheric river’. There is flooding all over the Vancouver Mainland. My buddy Dave and I did our walk anyway. Our 149th Coquitlam Crunch since January 2021.

Excuses are easy. Discipline is doing it anyway… no matter what gets in the way.

Coaching matters

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I mentioned yesterday that I’ve been struggling to push myself in workouts. Today I went to my friend’s gym with him and I did his routine. First of all, having a workout buddy is a great motivator. But also, we did exercises I haven’t done before and he coached me through them. He even coached me on bench press, which I’ve done quite a bit of before.

I can’t stress how valuable it is to get good coaching. Subtle changes in body position can make a huge difference in working the right muscles, and performing in a way that’s more efficient, effective, and safe. And when you are trying to work a muscle and you actually isolate it such that you aren’t cheating using other nearby muscles, you are bound to see better gains than doing the same reps and weight but with poor technique.

Good coaching really matters and today I got to push myself harder than I have in a while. So much so, I think I need a nap to recover.

Keeping with it

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Habit versus motivation: habits win.

I am lazing around on holiday. There’s nothing outwardly wrong with that, if only I could feel better about it. Yesterday my wife and I did a walk up a big hill in 33° weather (91° for my Fahrenheit friends). It was hard, but rewarding. I was impressed with my wife who had us jogging down the hill, when I would have chosen to walk.

Today it feels hotter, but I procrastinated all morning and now I still haven’t worked out yet and it’s mid afternoon. I have no idea what I’m going to do for a workout, but I know I’m going to work out… it’s just that my motivation in this heat is very low. Our tent is a steam room, too hot to stay in, and I’m sticking to the chair, sweaty, as I write this in the shade.

I have no problem working out regularly at home, it’s a habit. I wake up, start my morning routine, and before going to work I’ve worked out, meditated, and written my blog post. Meanwhile I’ve been here 3 nights, missed one workout, and didn’t blog or meditate until after 9pm 2-out-of-3 nights so far.

It’s simple: Habits are easy, motivation is hard.

I’ll need to figure out some new routines because I’m spending a good part of my holiday thinking about and avoiding things I usually get done before 7am. As for right now, I’m going to do a meditation and push myself to complete a workout despite the heat. I want it to hurt today, to motivate me to not wait until this time tomorrow. In the world of motivation I’ve learned that I prefer the stick to the carrot… the avoidance of pain rather than the promise of reward.

With good habits, I can just avoid the need for motivation altogether.

Wear and tear

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I have shoes that I only use in my basement to go on my treadmill and stationary bike. The shoes have red soles. Yesterday while stretching I looked down at my treadmill and I saw two red lines on the track belt where my feet land when running.

They are a bit hard to see in the photo despite playing with the colour contrast, but they are quite visible when I look for them on the belt. I don’t know why, but it didn’t occur to me that I would be wearing down the treads on my shoes just running on a treadmill. Thinking about it now, it does make sense. I’ve been using these same shoes for five and a half years… of course they would have some wear and tear as I walk and run on a treadmill 4-6 times a week.

But had my soles not been red, leaving their marks on my treadmill, I probably would have ignorantly ran in the same shoes for another 3-5 years without replacing them. It’s funny how we take objects for granted, expecting them to work, not thinking about repairing or replacing them until they just don’t work anymore.

You aren’t likely to replace a kettle or toaster until it stops working. Your favourite jeans remain your favourite until they tear. That 5,000 hour light bulb was not something you ever thought would need replacing until it just doesn’t turn on.

While our bodies age and show signs of wear and tear, we don’t always think about other things that do until a repair or replacement are needed. But these worn down shoes can actually affect my stride and cause me issues before I realize they need to be replaced. They can affect my personal wear and tear.

What’s something you just expect to work until suddenly it doesn’t anymore?

What are you showing up for?

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I wrote this back in April 2022:

We live in a society now where there is so much pressure to do well; to be your best; to shine. It’s not easy. But sometimes the message doesn’t have to be ‘you are awesome’, ‘you have so much potential’, or ‘push yourself’. Sometimes the message of ‘just show up’ is all we need to hear.

  • Don’t plan an hour workout, just show up at the gym.
  • Don’t worry about how much you have to do, just start.
  • Don’t create a huge ‘to do’ list, pick 2-3 things you know you can get done and check those off… even if showing up is one of those things!

It’s easier to act your way into a new way of thinking, than thinking your way into a new way of acting. ~Richard Pascale

Just show up!

In a coffee shop with a friend today we were discussing the value of ‘Just showing up‘, and he asked the very rich question, “What are you showing up for?”

Two things come to mind and they are related:

  • For the habit; and
  • For the accomplishment.

When your attitude is ‘just show up’ you often end up doing more than you expect. A perfect example is exercise. “I don’t feel like working out today” is not showing up! But “I don’t feel like working out today so I’ll just walk on the treadmill for 10 minutes…” This is ‘just showing up’! And if you only do 10 minutes, that’s great! You weren’t feeling up to doing anything and you accomplished a short workout. Fantastic!

But what also might happen is you could finish that 10 minutes and add another 10 minutes because now you’re feeling pretty good about it. You could decide you’re just going to do a walk and then you end up doing a run. You could finish the 10 minutes and then do 15 or 20 minutes of stretching that you wouldn’t have done had you not got on the treadmill in the first place.

So instead of not showing up and skipping the workout you have both maintained the habit and you’ve also accomplished something to feel good about.

What are you showing up for? Consistency: Habit reinforced; Accomplishment achieved.

Fit for life

I listen to a lot of podcasts about healthy living. It’s amazing how some key topics keep coming up again and again. it’s like there comes a point where collective knowledge just compounds and evidence piles up to support some key ideas. Here are a few things that I have been hearing repeatedly, which all suggest ways to live a long and healthy life. (Not in any order of priority.)

1. Eat more protein. We don’t tend to eat enough, and we tend to eat less as we grow older, but protein is important for both muscle and brain health.

2. Do cardiovascular exercise regularly. At least 5 days a week for the rest of your life. Don’t like to run? Then don’t run! Find something you like to do, spend a minimum of 20 minutes doing it. It doesn’t matter if you like intense cardio, or if you prefer low intensity, what matters is staying active and getting your heart rate up. It’s also important for burning calories, especially if you like food a bit too much.

3. At least once a week get your heart rate up to about 80% of your maximum. This can be done in bursts, like sprinting for 2-3 minutes then slowing down for 2-3 minutes and repeating a few times, or just pushing yourself with a consistently faster pace, or maybe walking on an incline on a treadmill. One thing that really matters for healthy longevity is your maximum VO2 (the max amount of oxygen your body can absorb during exercise). This is maintained and improved primarily by pushing your body past this 80% mark.

4. Do some sort of strength training 2-3 times a week. Constantly remind yourself body that it is not yet in a period of decline. Remind your body that it is a muscle builder. Do this by pushing at least one muscle group completely to fatigue.

5. Take creatine and vitamin D. I’m not a doctor, and you should seek medical advice for supplements, but these are two supplements I feel safe to recommend because they both have tremendous upside and are extensively researched with no downside unless you are an idiot and take extreme doses. Creatine really helps with muscle soreness and seems to have many other upsides too, including for menopausal women. This is not the ‘bodybuilding guy’s supplement’ people think it is, but one everyone can benefit from. Vitamin D is both a vitamin and a hormone used by your immune system. And unless you live in a tropical climate, 90+ percent of the population is low in vitamin D, or at the very most not at the highest levels recommended by health experts.

6. Reduce sugar intake. Our bodies crave sugar. An interesting thing that I heard recently is that this might be something ingrained in us from our monkey heritage. Fruit goes bad, and so when fruit ripens, it’s important to get a lot of it before the fruit rots. Therefore when our ancient ancestors had access to sugars, our bodies made sure to crave more while the supply lasted. Whether that’s true or not, we currently have convenient and continuous access to too much sugar and our cravings for it are unhealthy. I’ll leave you with a simple public service announcement: processed sugars are food for cancer.

7. Stretching and balance are important. It’s not enough to do the same exercise 5 days a week and not work on your overall flexibility and balance. Falls are more common as you get older, and stiff joints don’t help. Breaking a hip vastly shortens life expectancy. Keep nimble, and do things that challenge both flexibility and balance.

8. Self image is important. If you see yourself as someone who exercises regularly, you don’t have to work to get a workout in. To build a habit of good habits, create identity based habits. I am a person who works out regularly. I stretch as part of my routine. I make healthy eating choices. I enjoy doing things that keep me young.

9. Meditate. Find time for gratitude and awareness. Find time to focus on your breathing.

10. This one hasn’t been in on the health podcasts, but it’s a great place to end: Seek laughter. Find joy. Spend quality time with friends and family. Explore new ideas, and keep learning. If you are not finding ways to appreciate the life you have, you aren’t adding value to the life you are trying to extend.

The power of protein

I’ve listened to a few people like Dr. Peter Attia and Dr. Rhonda Patrick, who are both looking at the recommended daily allowance of protein (for healthy people) and questioning it. In this video they discuss, “The longevity benefits of proper protein intake and strength training.

I already start my mornings with a protein shake, but now I’m looking at ways to increase my protein even more. There are risks around eating things like too much red meat, and after watching ‘The Game Changers‘ on Netflix, I could see myself moving to a vegetarian diet at some point (not too soon, I just love animal meat too much).

But for now I’ll blend my intake of protein between meat and vegetables… and I’ll increase how much of it is part of my diet. I remember when I did 6 weeks of the Keto diet. My body loved it, but my social life didn’t. It’s too restrictive, but I do recall just how good I felt when I was consuming a lot more protein than I do now.

I also loved the book, ‘Younger Next year‘, and I’ve shared it and suggested it to more people than any other book in the last few years. The reality is that I may be 56, but I’m not done building muscle. I’m on a path where at least 5 days a week I will work a minimum of one muscle group to fatigue and remind my body that it’s not going down hill and degenerating. Instead, I’m giving my body the message that it is still young and growing. And what I also need to do is give it enough protein to keep my body healthy… and that’s more protein than I currently eat.

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*I am not a doctor and I don’t play one on the internet.
This is my plan and please do your own research and
consult your own doctor about diet changes…
especially if you are not already healthy!