Lexington, KY - When it comes to fitness, I used to believe that more equaled better. A self-proclaimed workout junkie, I ran, cycled, taught group exercise and walked my dog. It was a tough schedule, but I enjoyed it.
But I always wondered why those pesky five pounds never went away, and why I was always tired. Like so many other people, it never occurred to me to do less. I just figured I hadn't quite reached my goals yet. The notion that less is more is not a popular way of thinking in American culture. More, more, more is what we want, and so we think pushing ourselves harder will get us the best results.
Eventually I ended up being a burnout with an overuse injury, exercise boredom and that frustrating little waistline pooch that should have gone away, considering how many calories I was burning.
Little did I know, much of the training I was doing was not only unnecessary, some of it was counterproductive. Molly Galbraith and Jim Laird at J&M Strength and Conditioning helped me realize that simple, functional training would not only better prepare me for life, it also would improve all of my other workouts and overall physique by focusing on muscles that actually help us live better --
like the upper back for posture, and the core and glutes for overall stability and strength.
Heading into my first workout with Molly and Jim, I remember thinking that my glutes must be in good shape --
after all, I was a runner and had done many workouts to target that rear end. As soon as Jim corrected my alignment on the particular exercise we were doing, it was like someone took away half of the muscle stability in my backside. Guess all of those leg lifts were not making me strong after all, nor were long hours at a desk for work.
Molly said 99 percent of people have glutes that literally do not work properly, and that when she walks into a mall all she sees are weak glutes and misaligned pelvises wreaking havoc on posture and spinal health in particular. I typically don't focus on glutes when walking through public places, but it is an interesting point -- we're generally lazy and misinformed about what is healthy, even for our glutes. No wonder so many people suffer from back pain.
Planks and lunges are another story. I thought I had those in the bag years ago. I could hold a plank for two minutes without a whole lot of trouble, until I learned the correct way to do planks and actually kept my shoulders from hunching over, bearing the load of my body weight. My abs and shoulders were screaming at me after only 20 seconds. Same with the lunges. By simply tucking my hips in, engaging my abdominals and dropping straight down toward the floor to prevent my lower back and knees from taking some of the weight off, my legs were shaking.
After a few sets, combined with some cardio, I felt like I had worked my body out efficiently and effectively -- it was much quicker than my normal workout routines.
The point is -- why spend time doing dozens of reps to tighten, strengthen and tone muscles? Instead, learn correct form and try doing fewer reps, taking up less of your precious time.
Which brings me to another point. For me, stress and "overdoing it" in life were leading to excessive cortisol production. (Corisol is basically a stress hormone that essentially fattens up your gut -- lovely). Sleep more, do less. Or at least find some relaxation somewhere in a busy day. If your body is begging you not to get up and go to the gym at 6 a.m., then maybe you should listen.
"You've got to recharge more than you charge," Jim said.
Jim described health like a checking account. We have to put in more than we take out. Put in more relaxation and social time, more sleep, more healthy, original human foods and smarter training while taking out less energy for exercise and activities that you might think are making you a stronger, healthier person. Less is more.