Wednesday, September 7, 2016

The Bad Days Make the Good Days Possible

I haven't written in over a week.  I completed all of my scheduled workouts and actually hit some personal bests on a set or rep, here and there. It was one of those weeks where I just felt depressed and overwhelmingly tired before I got to the gym, most of the time, yet pressed on, nevertheless.

I often tell my gym-mates that the bad days are the ones that make the good days possible.  Even when you're tired and just don't want to do your training, its usually best to get dressed, show up, and start.  Once you get going, things may turn around and even if they don't, you're making some inroads that will result in positive gains.

That said, I think it requires a very good degree of body awareness and experience to know when you are actually verging on over-training and need a rest.  Some of the newer wearables claim to be able to correlate biometric data like temperature, heart rate, and respiration against performance markers and then provide guidance on whether or not to throttle back or put the pedal to the metal, but I believe there is no substitute for well considered experience.  Long-term success absolutely requires you to know your own body and how it responds to both short-term and long-term training and potential over-reaching.

If you're just starting out, you will make mistakes and that's okay.  Just pay attention and make sure you learn from them.  Also, it's important to bear in mind that the formula that works this year, may not work next year.  You're body is constantly changing and you have to be fully aware and change your approach accordingly.

 

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