Most people live fairly sedentary lives. We sit for breakfast, we sit in the car on the way to work, we sit at work, we sit on the way home from work, then we go to the gym and train like a maniac. Jumping, hopping, burpee-ing, kettlebell swinging, and doing tons of other high intensity demanding work…then we leave and sit at home, and go to bed, and repeat.
What is wrong with this picture?
Lots of things.
First off, people just sit way too much. Leading to tight hips, tight backs, tight upper chest muscles, weak glutes, and weak un-conditioned core muscles.
Then, you take this body and try to go totally ballistic at the gym. Do we see where the problems lie?
This point was reiterated on the Renegade Radio podcast episode with my friend Dr. John Rusin.
In the podcast, John stated – to paraphrase – “most people live in a seated and sedentary life, and then have this crazy bio-psycho-social approach to training – going all out, and thinking every workout must be all or none. These same people who live in a seated position train balls to the wall until they get hurt or burned out. This turns something positive and beneficial (exercise) into a negative, injurious experience”
This couldn’t be any truer.
Many people think that the sign of a good workout is to feel completely obliterated by the end, and feel like they got hit by a Mack truck for days after the workout.
The Solution
Instead of always thinking that you need to be pushing it to the max and going all out – listen to your body and train smarter, and recover even smarter.
If you sit all day, make sure you are taking time DAILY to mobilize your hips, stretch your hips, stretch your chest, and strengthen your abs and glutes. This doesn’t have to be anything crazy, just a simple little circuit.
When you get to the gym WARM UP! A warmup is NOT walking on the treadmill for 3 minutes, doing some arm circles, and then jumping right into your heavy set of bench pressing.
A warmup should consist of three main things that can be accomplished in 5-10 minutes:
- Mobilizing tight muscles (dynamic stretching, foam rolling, active mobility drills)
- Priming the working muscles for the workout (if you plan on doing bench, prime the pecs, shoulders and upper back with some band work for example)
- Getting the heart rate up…you know, the actual WARM part of warming up!
If you are feeling run down or beat up, take it easy at the gym. Focus on high-quality strength training, and don’t think that you need to do the latest burpee challenge or 1000 box jumps.
Lastly, on your off days – don’t spend the whole day laying on the couch. Do some mobility work, and go for a nice walk – even just 30 minutes will do wonders for helping you feel better.
Need a sample recovery day workout? Want to know why I think burpees are the dumbest f****** exercise in the history of ever? Subscribe to the MG FITLIFE insiders and you will find out on Tuesday of next week 😉
If you need help getting started, look no further than online coaching. Training and nutrition! Let me help you find the best plan for you – from anywhere in the world.
For more information, click HERE!
Like what you read? Want to get even more weekly wisdom, training tips, and nutrition nuggets along with up to date blog posts sent directly to your email? Sign up HERE!