From the Bottom of the Bucket

Stretch Yourself...............

On my recent semi-annual visit to my neurologist, we discussed my exercise program, which includes forty minutes of cardio work and 40 minutes of strength training.   She asked what I was doing for "flexibility" and I told her I was't doing anything.   She suggested I add something to my regimine that would help my suppleness.

I have always been facinated with the practice of pilates.  It seemed to offer a structured approach to something I have always had trouble with-stretching. I had discussed the exercise last year with a friend and that motivated me to start looking.  As if by magic (fate?), a new studio opened up just two blocks from my gym, so I could add studio visits to my workout and walk to both places.

I have been going for two months now, and some wonderful things are beginning to happen, but more on that later.

 

Just what does flexibility add to your life experience?  Apparently, it is part of the growth process.  Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz in their  book The Power of Full Engagement, make a strong case for paying attention to how you come to things as much as  what things you come to.  They state "Energy, not time, is the Key to High Performance and  Personal Renewal.  It is the fundamental currency of high performance."  I refer to this  as "Vigor".

 

My pilates trainer says that my exercises should cause discomfort, but not pain.  Loehr and Schwartz say "we grow at all levels by expending energy beyond our ordinary limits and then recovering."  Those statements got me thinking.  It seems they are the same thing.  When we engage in actviites that "stretch" us beyond our comfort level, but within our capabilities, we are activating flexibility's power to maximize our potential-simply put - to grow.

 

In pilates, the growth is tangible as your spine begins to elongate and your posture improves.  The range of your motion extends as your muscles loosen and relax.  You strength increases as you begin to engage core muscles that have been ignored thru compensating actions that seem easier (like using your arms to get out of a chair), but actually are more harmful.

 

In life, we often take comfortable shortcuts, there by shortchanging the opportunity to increase our mental flexibility, which in turn stifles your creative thinking to see new possibilties.  In Loehr and Scwartz's  words we do not become "Fully Engaged".

 

I recommend both the book and a review of your exercise activites.  Here is a link to their tool:

 

 

 http://www.performanceprograms.com/self-assessments/personal-development/energy-profile/

 

Until next month, I wish you fulfillment.

Bob

 

 

 

 

beyond