Faster, faster, legs burning, last mile to go of your 8 mile run, which concludes your week of over 50 miles of training. Exhausted? More like beyond exhausted, muscles fatigued, begging deeply for a break. The legs say I can’t run anymore, yet our minds say heck yes, we have to. We pride ourselves for getting ahead or maybe just meeting society’s standards of hitting the daily workouts hard.
Not strapping on those running shoes, but bag packed, key in ignition, gym ready? Let’s go! If you’re not out there running, most certainly you’ve fallen captive to being a frequent gym rat. Everyone’s going to the gym, clearly I have to be there too. Did you renew your gym membership this year, sign up for those spin classes and private sessions with the trainer?
At what expense do we push ourselves beyond what us humans are designed to do? It’s a matter of abusing our bodies to boost our egos. Egos are running the show, taking over our bodies’ human abilities, telling us we can do more, push harder and over train.
Did great- grandma workout at the gym 5 times a week, run unrealistic distances or make fitness routines a time slot in their day? I think you and I both know the answers to those questions. For one, life was different- yes. They didn’t have distractions (laptops, ipads, gaming systems, etc) that would keep them sedentary for most of the days. Their jobs and tasks involved a great level of movement, not forced movement, but lifestyle movement- natural ways to keep the body healthy. Working and running intensely was not a prioritized fitness concept.
Are you fueled by Ego or are you fueled by the pure inner determination and pleasure of training? I mean ask yourself, why are you training hard anyways? Because everyone else is? Because I want to be healthy? We chase looks and desires over real health.
Beyond running, think hard core training, body building and martial arts. By 30 years old many experience wrecked bodies, striving to recover, but never able to return to optimal health because their bodies were abused through training too hard, too often. We are told to focus on the now, be in the moment. We sacrifice long health for short term gains. Maybe you’re a weekend warrior who isn’t able to get much activity during the work week, but train intensely on the weekends only to exhaust yourself come Monday. Physically, we may be strong and rather fit, but inside our bodies hurt, are pained, pleading out for help.
I just can’t do it anymore!
When those long workouts and endless runs are chasing us, do we think about our hearts, our bones, and our internal organs when we push our bodies beyond the max? Maybe some of us do realize the strain, but maybe we realize it just a bit too late. Heart failure. This is what happens when our egos take over and dominate our entire beings.
Did you know marathon runners have an increased risk for cardiac arrest in the short term? According to the data, when running at marathon pace, the likelihood of a distance runner to experience cardiac arrest increases dramatically. A scary thought.
But now you’re probably saying, Too much exercise? Are you kidding? Don’t we need to move more and get off our bums? Common no pain, no gain!
Okay let’s back up. Yes. Yes we need exercise, we need to move, we are made for movement. BUT we were not made for such intense workouts, that we tell ourselves we will get through because we have to.
So you have abs, strong thighs and have achieved a lean tone look. You’re fit which means you have great energy, sleep well, have optimal levels of vitamins and minerals present in our bodies. Eh no, more like you experience trouble sleeping, have an overstimulated immune system and gut issues. Many of the foods we ingest for muscle building torture our bodies instead of heal and help. Think about it, there’s no way a naturally- occurring food would have an excessive amount of proteins and inorganic minerals all combined for the “perfect protein boost”. The supplements are most likely lab produced and chemically manufactured. But I’m using an all vegan blend. Great! But that doesn’t clear you from chemically crafted power protein concoctions. The protein powder and supplement industry is worth billions of dollars. These man-made chemicals are unnatural for the body in which come in as little toxins and invaders. The body immediately wants to get rid of these guys because they aren’t recognized as natural food. The time your body takes to deal with the ingested synthetic vitamins, is time it doesn’t have to help boost immunity, heal the gut or run natural cycles that would lead to a healthier you. Of course the products are enticing and seem like a great idea, but that’s exactly what these companies want. They want for you to believe their marketing efforts in hope you’ll buy their supposedly amazing products. Actually we don’t even need the insane amount of protein that companies make us think we do. Oh and don’t get me started on all the free radical floating around in the body from over exercising, causing muscle and tissue damage ultimately causing premature aging…
If your body is being beaten down inside, I bet its taking a toll on your physical health! How are those knees and ankles? I bet they feel amazing and better and better each time you run the long miles or hop off the training bike! Just kidding, yeah thought so. Your body needs rest. It’s exhausted. Emotionally drained, as well. The mind needs a break from the back and worth war of physically not feeling able to workout, but mentally forcing ourselves to finish the workout day after day.
So does exercise really seem to crack up to what they make it out to be? Are you actually healthy?
Each of us has our own definition of health, but for me it’s about being able to fully enjoy life to the fullest, not just surviving, but thriving. It’s about avoiding crippling, painful and lengthy battles with disease, having a clear mind and being emotionally resilient.
What if at the end of the week you felt a sense of energy, you had time for family and friends, and laughed so hard your stomach hurt (natural abs workout)? I am, by no means, telling you to stop working out, running, or training. They can be enjoyable ways to incorporate exercise, but just evaluate how much you allow your ego to run you. It’s okay to step back, take a break, allow your amazing body to recover and heal. It’s now a matter of rewiring our brains to think about exercise and training in a new way, not detrimental to our health. When making some much needed changes, remember it’s your future self you’re doing this for and oh my, your body is thanking you now! So cheers to change and a good, all healthy living!