Why isn’t this working for me?
My wife, Christine, was an excellent high jumper in high school, able to jump six feet, which earned her an NCAA Division 1 scholarship to Illinois State University. In high school, Christine also ran and trained for the 400-meter sprint. A big part of Christine’s high jump technique was her ability to generate speed as she approached the bar, so a sprinting practice kept her fit and helped her speed, both of which made her a better high jumper. But when she got to ISU, which, in the mid-90s, was a big NCAA program with little individualized training, her coach focused solely on jumping. He didn’t want his jumpers to do any running. For some of the jumpers, doing no speed work or any conditioning worked well. Their bodies responded nicely, and that’s what they needed to thrive. For Christine, this approach didn’t work. She needed speed work and conditioning to stay at her peak. She didn’t improve without it and struggled to jump her previous heights.
Different athletes need different ways to train so that they thrive. What worked for one athlete might not work for another. Some people can’t run, but they can bike. Some people need more strength-driven workouts, while others need more cardio. This is why group fitness and training apps, where everyone does the same intervals for the same amount of time with the same intensity cues, don’t work for everyone.
If you want to thrive and eventually see change, even as you age, you must consider age and gender, hormones, tolerance for intensity, time for recovery, and purpose of training. You’ll need to consider why you like what you like in your movement practice and why you fear or dread the things you avoid or are unwilling to try. Fitness is emotional. It can be scary to work out. It can be intimidating to walk into a gym. It can be frustrating dealing with injuries. But fitness is also a great place to get to know yourself and understand who you are, what drives you and what keeps you connected. Understanding your limits–the point at which you fail–is part of the process, and yes, that can be scary, but it’s also exciting.
Are you willing to take a close look at who you are–to look under the hood, so to speak–in order to embrace your fitness journey in a meaningful way? When you actively participate in your fitness and the decision-making process for yourself and your wellness, you will be able to solve the problems keeping you stuck and get to know yourself better in the process.
Want to learn more? Let’s talk about what is keeping you stuck.
Schedule a free consultation with me.
See you in the gym,
Aaron Leventhal CSCS, PN1