The MSP Fitness Index is a monthly blog post covering the extracurricular things both Michael and Taylor have been reading, listening to, processing, or just really digging at the present time. As MSP’s Head Coach and Assistant Coach respectively, Michael and Taylor trust this month’s Index will be insightful, transparent, and inspiring as they share glimpses of what’s going on between their ears.
Michael:
“HOT 7”
At our gym, to help guide new clients towards learning intensity within both their weight training and conditioning sessions, we use an intensity scale of 1-10. 1 being what I call a level that’s so easy you’d question why you’d pay money for it, and a 10 being a near death experience. You get the drift yes?
When it comes to new clients, coach them towards what I call a “HOT 7”. I always say, “a HOT 7 should mean something”. Be enough of a challenge to matter, to peek your mental and physical interest, but allows room to learn and listen to all that’s going on. Reason being is when things start to tip towards that 8 -> 9 -> 9.5, there is no listening, there is only DOING. At this point you’re in near survival mode, versus, a point of conscious competency. More over, I’d prefer a state of unconscious competency with what you’re doing or simply put, you’re rolling the dice. I don’t like those odds…not for me, and especially not for my clients.
The goal being that we want our clients to learn for themselves what a quality challenge is or isn’t. To listen to their body and hear what it’s saying, helping to guide their performance in a smart, calculated way. This is a process. Some students of ours are very in tune with their body, and understand this very quickly, and others it takes some time. There is no clock on this. You get it when you get it. What’s key is you need to know if you get it or not, and if you’re not sure follow this adage.
“Lift today so you can lift another day”
Taylor:
You know what really grinds my gears?!?
Do you ever act like an armchair quarterback on social media? I know I can every once in a while. I’ll run across a video on Facebook, or an inflammatory post on Instagram, and I’ll start barking at the computer screen as if my words are the breath of fresh air the world needs. When my initial reaction isn’t the most appropriate, time tempers the fog of my spite and something much clearer comes into view. Thank goodness for time right?
So. Who do you become when a sensationalistic media piece ends up in your feed? Skip sensational. Who do you become when something you disagree with hits you in the feels?
As we walk though this socially connected frontier, the opportunity to spout our opinions is ever-present. Now, I can’t ask you to never spout off on the internet again — that’s not my place. Instead, I’d like to give you a challenge. When you find something that really burns your biscuit — something that really revs you up — don’t let those momentary emotions rule your life.
Instead of allowing the animosity to build, boiling over into some comment section, ask yourself:
“Why am I experiencing such a strong reaction to this?”,
“Can I add to this conversation in a meaningful way?”,
or even, “Is my silence on this more important than my resentment?”
By asking yourself these simple, actionable questions you’ll be acting directly opposite of the social media norm. And by doing so, you’ll be standing out from the usual malevolence found all too often on the interwebs. It might seem counter intuitive, but by withholding your initial emotive response, you will gain positive attention from others. People will notice your calm, cool, collected demeanor online and they’ll be more attentive when, or if, you post about some thing you’ve got beef with.
So the next time you read or watch something that really gets your goat stop, breathe, and channel the emotion towards other, more productive, outlets.