Just putting it out there... putting out how I really feel right now... putting out something personal... yep, putting something out there just to get it off my chest... maybe you can relate.
Where do I fit in? I have gone through life feeling this need to be a part of something, a group, or a movement. I thought it would somehow define me, give me purpose, help me gain self-worth. If I was just simply me, how could anyone appreciate me for me? I could be malleable and just roll with the group, I wouldn't have to expose the real me, that would be too painful if rejected. Who would like my quirks, my flaws, my bad habits? If I just roll with the group I'll find my identity and purpose.
I never stumbled upon my identity by being a part of something, a group, or a movement. I found it by being me, by accepting myself, flaws and all. I found it in the solace of running, being only with myself, forced to find what I am truly made of in moments of weakness. I found that I was a pretty cool person, I didn't need an identity outside of who I really am.
Here is what I have learned to accept: I sometimes put my foot in my mouth, I can be inflexible, I have a voice of a 13 year old, I have a quick temper, I sometimes don't think of others enough, I'm really bad about sending thank you notes for gifts, I'm loud, I have freckles, I don't have the curvacious body I always dreamed of having, I'm almost over the hill, I tend to be insecure, some people think I'm disingenuous, I've become my mother.
Here is what I know: I love to talk to people even if the words don't come out right, I'm a structured and routine person, my voice keeps me sounding forever young, I don't stay mad, I would give anything to someone in need, I at least call when I forget to send the thank you note, others can hear my loud mouth really well, I can laser my freckles off, I'm slim and in the best shape of my life, insecurity makes me vulnerable but I love deeply, most people think I'm genuine, my mother is a beautiful, amazing, and loved woman.
I'm cool with being me.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Monday, November 5, 2012
Supercompensation: Gaining fitness through rest
Rest? Heck, I'm not scared to rest! Rest feels good! So why don't I do it more when I should? You know you don't either! You know you feel like if you just keep training harder, especially when you feel tired, you will miraculously become a rock star athlete! Well... it just doesn't quite work that way. (Trust me, I'm knocking on my own noggin about this!) Most of us want to keep making physical gains with strength, speed, and/or endurance, but we tend to plateau and training harder doesn't bring the desired results unless... we train smarter NOT just harder. This doesn't mean taking the easy road, it means push hard when the time is right and allow the body to build rather than drive it into the ground!
I came across this article, Supercompensation, and loved the explanation and graphs that make it easy to understand supercompensation - the post training period during which the trained function/parameter has a higher performance capacity than it did prior to the training period. Because the body is an adjustable organism, it will feel the need to adjust itself to a higher level of fitness in anticipation of the next workout session. This applies to beginners to elite athletes. It is important to educate yourself in what you are doing to maximize your best results. You can't lose your weak if you are in a constant state of fatigue, allow your body to find its strong!
(I can't get the dark background off the graphs below for some reason. So, just click on the article to view if needed.)
Exercise does not make you fit, it's the rest that follows exercise that makes you fit. The importance of rest is often overlooked. This is how a single bout of training impacts your fitness:
1 Adequate Rest
Ideally, you will get sufficient rest so that you recover from the training stress and get the maximum benefit. This would mean starting the next training session near the peak of supercompensation, as shown below.
2 Insufficient rest resulting in stagnation
Without sufficient rest, you may start your next training at the end of the period marked ‘Recovery’. This means that you have not benefited from the training, just barely recovered from it. This can carry on indefinitely, with no improvement in fitness.
3 Overtraining
Without sufficient rest to recover from the training stress, the fitness level starts to decline, with each training bout further reducing fitness. Sadly, the response to this is often to increase the training stress, creating a positive feedback cycle.
4 Intensity and Supercompensation
Different intensities produce different levels of fatigue and resulting supercompensation. In the diagram below, the blue line shows insufficient intensity, producing only a small amount of supercompensation. The orange line is too intense, requiring so long to recover that little supercompensation occurs. The red line shows far too much intensity, resulting in an inability to supercompensate. The black line shows an intensity level resulting in injury rather than supercompensation. Thus it is important to work out the right level of intensity to produce the required level of supercompensation. This is a 'Goldilocks' situation, where too much or too little intensity produces a negative outcome. For each individual, there is an optimum level of exercise and recovery that produces the best supercompensation. The most common problem in highly motivated athletes is when they are working too hard with too little rest, they understand that they are not improving, but they adjust the wrong way and try to work harder. Exercise is not a situation where 'more is better'.
References:
http://fellrnr.com/wiki/Supercompensation_and_Why_exercise_does_not_make_you_fit
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supercompensation
I came across this article, Supercompensation, and loved the explanation and graphs that make it easy to understand supercompensation - the post training period during which the trained function/parameter has a higher performance capacity than it did prior to the training period. Because the body is an adjustable organism, it will feel the need to adjust itself to a higher level of fitness in anticipation of the next workout session. This applies to beginners to elite athletes. It is important to educate yourself in what you are doing to maximize your best results. You can't lose your weak if you are in a constant state of fatigue, allow your body to find its strong!
(I can't get the dark background off the graphs below for some reason. So, just click on the article to view if needed.)
Exercise does not make you fit, it's the rest that follows exercise that makes you fit. The importance of rest is often overlooked. This is how a single bout of training impacts your fitness:
1 Adequate Rest
Ideally, you will get sufficient rest so that you recover from the training stress and get the maximum benefit. This would mean starting the next training session near the peak of supercompensation, as shown below.
2 Insufficient rest resulting in stagnation
Without sufficient rest, you may start your next training at the end of the period marked ‘Recovery’. This means that you have not benefited from the training, just barely recovered from it. This can carry on indefinitely, with no improvement in fitness.
3 Overtraining
Without sufficient rest to recover from the training stress, the fitness level starts to decline, with each training bout further reducing fitness. Sadly, the response to this is often to increase the training stress, creating a positive feedback cycle.
4 Intensity and Supercompensation
Different intensities produce different levels of fatigue and resulting supercompensation. In the diagram below, the blue line shows insufficient intensity, producing only a small amount of supercompensation. The orange line is too intense, requiring so long to recover that little supercompensation occurs. The red line shows far too much intensity, resulting in an inability to supercompensate. The black line shows an intensity level resulting in injury rather than supercompensation. Thus it is important to work out the right level of intensity to produce the required level of supercompensation. This is a 'Goldilocks' situation, where too much or too little intensity produces a negative outcome. For each individual, there is an optimum level of exercise and recovery that produces the best supercompensation. The most common problem in highly motivated athletes is when they are working too hard with too little rest, they understand that they are not improving, but they adjust the wrong way and try to work harder. Exercise is not a situation where 'more is better'.
References:
http://fellrnr.com/wiki/Supercompensation_and_Why_exercise_does_not_make_you_fit
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supercompensation
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