Day 16: Corporate Challenge is More Than a Race In Central Park

Thursday, June 16, 2011

During the past several weeks my work/life balance has been close to non-existent.  One side of the circle has been more than a little lopsided.  Since June 1, I have been making sure that I take at least two tiny actions that remind me that I am living MY life.  Yes, let us revisit lesson numero uno:  accountability.  For the past 16 days, I have been making my first action in the morning a completely selfish one.  I eat an unprocessed piece of fruit or veg, and I work out.  These simple actions set the tone for my day.  Tone set means that I need to tone up, so I workout in the wee hours of the morning.

This morning I hopped on the scale, and it moved.  I was at 215.6 today.  WTF!?!  Can I say it again?  WTF!!  It made the 5:15 am apartment departure to workout a little easier.  Actually, the loss made the working out quite a bit easier.  A little extra movement and sensible eating habits work, and I have managed to maintain my healthy habits under extremely stressful conditions. Well done, me, well done.

Starting my day with a workout really does seem to set the tone for the rest of the day and is complete blog fodder for another day.  I am going to use the last two paragraphs to rant about an exercise instructor who could use a little constructive feedback.  In fact, this might be useful to anyone who has never struggled with a few or a few hundred extra pounds.

Three tips for any personal trainers or group exercise instructors who have never struggled with weight.

Tip 1:  Don't assume that your modifications actually work for certain body types (e.g., obese or morbidly obese).  In fact, sometimes extra weight makes certain postures unattainable and a modification for someone with an injured knee is not the same for someone with a second fat roll.  It may take a personalized modification to ensure that the obese individual is using the proper form and technical.  What???  A personalized modification???? Does not compute.  Does not compute.  Think outside the box, but within safety limits, and come up with a modification that will benefit your client and your professional development. 

Tip 2:  Strap on a 30 - 50 pound weighted vest and spend the entire day in it.  Walk around, head to the office, eat your dinner, and workout.  Just try it.  It will tone your tush and will probably shape your attitude toward your morbidly obese clients.  It's exhausting carrying around weight in general.  Now think how difficult it is to put on a 30 pound weighted vest and then do 60 minutes of intense cardio.

Tip 3:  If you see a fatty struggling in your class do not make snide comments about their level of fitness and  do not speak to them in S U P E R  S L O W speech patterns (i.e., Just because I am physically slow doesn't mean that I am mentally slow. Although the general population does seem to believe that my IQ does seem to increase by a few points with every pound that I lose.)  It's annoying.  You might be able to do more push-ups, but I can squash you with my critical mass. 

In addition to my morning class, I ran the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge.  I did a fine job.  I finished.  Do you know why I finished?  I didn't want to look like a loser in front of my colleagues.  When can't isn't an option, then anything is possible.