Remember last summer’s vacation and your pledge to “work out every day”?  You packed resistance bands, workout shoes and a notebook filled with gym and body-weight programs to follow. And did you?

Yesterday,  one of my clients and I were discussing the challenge of sticking to exercise over a holiday period. Interestingly, she was very quick to identify me as her motivation to exercise. “Whew, quite a responsibility!” – but I’m guessing that her definition of motivation is not quite the same as my dictionary’s:

mo·ti·va·tion

Motivation is something that we all have to muster in varying degrees throughout our day, but for exercise, sometimes it takes digging a little deeper than Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Case in point.

On a cold & wet Monday morning, it would be a safe bet to say that more people feel motivated to get up extra early to go into work than to head outside for a 5 km run or over to the gym to lift weights.

Why is that?

In his book The Sixty-Second Motivator, Jim Johnson (Physical Therapist) describes 2 important elements that must be present to cultivate motivation, and in turn to instigate behavioural change.

1. Importance.

In my example of getting up early for the office instead of going for a run, it is generally conceived that work time has more importance in our lives than exercise time. Certainly there are many psychological aspects of that discussion, but it is quite apparent that increasing the value, or importance, of a behaviour change is necessary to generate the motivation to successfully make that change. (e.g.: a post-heart attack exercise program, or a back-on-the-dating-scene diet)

“Logical reasons, no matter how much sense they might make, will quite often fail to motivate you to do things. On the other hand, finding a reason that gives you something you really want, will always increase importance, and in turn, motivate you to do things.”

2. Confidence.

Combined with increased importance, an increased level of confidence greatly improves motivation to make behavioural change.

Returning to the example, there is understandably greater confidence that one will stay warmer and dryer by going to the office than by heading out in the rain for a run (or walking to the gym).  However, it is also a fact that running can keep you warm; and that technical clothing can keep you dry. Thus, by elevating confidence in your running skills and in your equipment, there is a corresponding increase in motivation.

“Having little confidence that you can actually succeed in changing a behaviour will set you up for failure, no matter how important it is to change. On the other hand, arming yourself with the proper tools, skills and know-how to succeed will increase your confidence, and in turn, motivate you to change.”

If you get a chance to read Jim’s book, I highly recommend it. It’s a short and easy read. Perfect for your holiday.

Best to you.

Each week I dedicate time to researching and reading new information about exercise physiology and personal conditioning. Sometimes though, nothing beats hands-on workshops and lectures presented by some of the top minds in the fitness field to really provide an attention to detail that otherwise might be missed.

That’s why I also take time to attend conferences and workshops whenever I can.

I’ve just arrived home after attending a national Health and Fitness conference here in Vancouver. Two 10-hour days over what I would otherwise have called my weekend.

At most conferences there are a few sessions that really stand out for me, and it’s from those that I’m able to expand my knowledge with sound, science-based principles that I can closely associate with the work that I do.

So here I now sit with a binder jammed with annotations, stick-man sketches, handouts, notes and great ideas that I can (and will) be able to apply to the personal exercise programs that I design. Additional skills that I can use to help individual clients work out even more efficiently and more effectively – thus helping them to achieve their fitness goals and a better quality of life.

Here is just a few of many though-provoking statements that I took away from this past weekend; each of them unlocks a whole treasure chest of discussion:

1. “Pay attention.” vs. “Be careful.”
2. “Restricted Mobility is a hardware issue. Instability is a software issue.
3. “Sets and reps should be your least important variable.”
4. “Training for postural control is like training for a marathon.”
5. “The #1 obstacle is Motivation.”

and my favourite,

“Exercise is optional. Movement is essential.”

(Thanks, Chris.)

Testosterone has been getting a lot of press lately, and not all of it is good.

With hormone replacement therapy (HRT) increasingly prescribed to all types of men—young, old, gay, straight—who just want to maintain their strong muscles and lean midsections, a variety of medical groups have started waving red flags about the many potential pitfalls of testosterone supplementation, from permanent cessation of the body’s ability to produce testosterone on its own, to drops in the “good” cholesterol that promotes heart health.

Increasingly, leaders in the medical community have begun pushing to establish guidelines to use HRT only when it’s medically needed, not as a pharmaceutical fountain of youth.

Read the rest of this entry »

Here on the We(s)t Coast, a record cool, wet spring has really been bringing people down. Even the Stanley Cup playoffs can’t allay the desperate need for a few sunny, warm days.

Many people are complaining that their Spring Workout plans also washed away under the longer-than-usual season of hoodies and raincoats. They’re having a tough time mustering the motivation to shed their winter fat layer and to beef up those underlying muscles that T-shirt season usually inspires. Read the rest of this entry »

During an average week, I spend at least 30 hours in a gym.

Of course, most of those hours are spent working to assist clients achieve their personal fitness goals. The other hours are those that I spend staying true to my own.

On any given day I see a number of regular gym goers, as well as a few infrequent visitors. And on occasion, I see a gym patron who really knows what they’re doing.

Whoa!  Did I say “on occasion”??

Yes, I did.

Read the rest of this entry »

It’s tax season here in Canada – which means taking stock of financial matters and setting strategies for the future.

During this annual ritual, we don’t think much of the time that it takes – lots of it – to meticulously collect and code receipts, to assemble T-slips, to organize deductions and to be sure to put all the right numbers in all the right boxes - just in case we receive that randomized Revenue Canada notice: “Your personal tax file has been selected for Audit“.

Now, go stand in front of the mirror and imagine receiving a similar message, this one from Health Canada, informing you:  ”Your personal FITNESS file has been selected for Audit“!

Read the rest of this entry »

Simple, smart inclusions to each day in your busy life:

1. Engage in some sort of exercise
2. Eat vegetables and fruits
3. Eat breakfast
4. Get a restful night’s sleep
5. Drink plenty of water
6. Control stress in your life
7. Maintain a supportive social outlet of friends and family
8. Take a multi-vitamin
9. Brush your teeth and floss
10. Get outside

I fail at #4 and #6 most often.
I excel at #2, #3 and #10.
I make my living with #1.
I appreciate #7 the most.

How about you?

Consider this statement that I recently read on a colleague’s blog:

“Once you accept how HARD it is to lose fat and /or gain muscle, then it becomes Easy.”

Whaaaat?!!

Read it again. And think it through – do you understand what it means?

Compare it to saving for your next big vacation… once you understand and accept how much discipline it takes to save that money, then it becomes easier to do. When it’s important for you to achieve… it just seems to”gets done”.

So, it’s the same with your fitness goal… once you accept that it’s HARD to achieve it, then your realize what you must do – and it becomes easier.

How?

1. Plan, shop, and prepare in advance how you’re going to eat for the week… I spend time each Sunday doing exactly that – and I actually look forward to doing it. Menus. Cooking. Storing. A 2 hour investment of time.
2. Do at least three high-intensity workouts per week… prioritized based on your fitness goal – muscle mass and /or fat loss.
3. Keep yourself active on off days and avoid sitting in front of the TV or computer for at least 30 minutes less a day… in our house, it’s “All Screens Off” no later than 9 pm, at which time we usually go for a short “family walk”, or you could gently stretch those muscles you worked out.
4. Develop strategies to avoid bad night-time eating habits… keep some crunchy fruit or vegetables handy to settle cravings. If you’re on a “muscle-up” program, try protein powder mixed into plain yogurt with some nuts. Just lay off those empty carbs… (which I see that our cupboards have filled up with over the winter!)
5. Set strategies to overcome every sabotage behaviour that gets in the way of your success each week… notes, scheduling, whatever.

Now, it’s almost 9pm – time to abide by my own rule.

Doug