Yin vs YangThe Battle for Success in Life

For those of us that workout, our goal each time is to push the limit of our stamina. Whether measured in reps, minutes, or miles, most of us continue to push the limits of our body. But what if I told you it was not your body setting those limits? What if I told you it was really your mind?

The mind is a very powerful tool. It is so powerful, that it’s greatest trick is making us forget it exists at all. We run as far as we can. As soon as we start to breathe heavy, sweat, and our limbs tire, we know we are pushing the limits. But again, the limits of what? Have you ever just kept going when you think you can’t any longer? The trick is, you can, and you know it.

During exercise, we utilize a lot of our body’s energy. Our body naturally sends warning signals to let us know that we are using this energy. Those signals come in the form of sweating, tiring, and heavy breathing. This makes us think that our body is trying to tell us to stop, when actually it is just your mind interpreting your body. The key is to understand what your body is telling you. It is saying that you can not continue much longer this way. Well, here is 1 simple way to keep on going and increase your stamina during workouts….

Breathe.

That’s right. Just breathe normally. Sounds crazy? Maybe not. When we reach our supposed limit, it is not because our body can not take it anymore. It is because our mind thinks it can’t. Part of the reason is because of the way your mind is interpreting those warning signals. Your mind sees that you are breathing heavy and translates that to mean you can’t go any further or do anymore. All of a sudden, that doubt creeps into your head, and you begin to rationalize why you have done enough.

The key to increasing your stamina is to ease your mind. The way you do this is by breathing. By inhaling and exhaling at a normal pace during heavy workouts, you put your body & mind at ease. Now, I know when you reach your limit it is not easy to breathe. However, you have to force yourself to breathe correctly. Take deep inhales through the nose, hold it, and exhale through the mouth. Do this 4-5 times, or as long as it takes to steady your rhythm.

What happens is most people’s breathing starts to match their heart rate during exercise. That is why you are out of breath. You need to breathe normally, even when your heart rate increases. Slowing down your breathing rhythm is the best way to ease your mind. As you start to breathe normally, your body releases some of its tension, and all of a sudden you have the energy to once again continue on.

Now, when lifting weights, or sparring in boxing, muay thai, or brazilian jiu jitsu, the same technique applies. Instead of breathing only when you exert the energy, try to control it. Be aware of the breathing pattern you have. If it is not a normal breathing pattern, I guarantee you will tire quickly.

In boxing for instance, during sparring, many guys tire quickly because they are trying to hit hard. What happen is their breathing starts to match their rhythm. So when they throw a punch, they are throwing it will all the tension and muscle they can, because they are not breathing correctly.

This is why you will see a more advanced guy look fresh after a few rounds, and a less advanced guy trying to quit 2 minutes into the first. People all like to say it is their cardio or they are not in shape. This may be true. But it is also their breathing. When they gain experience and become more comfortable, they start to breathe regularly during the sparring sessions. All of a sudden they think their cardio is 100x better when actually it is their mind that has grown accustomed to it. Instead of being tense, their experience allows their mind to be more relaxed and comfortable, which helps their breathing.

Inhale……..Exhale. It’s that simple. Try it next time, and see if you can pass the boundaries your own mind has set.

Many of us have already taken the step to put some sort of exercise routine into our life. If you have not already, I would highly suggest it. You don’t have to go out right away and be Rocky. You can simply start off with a healthy walk. However, this post is for those of us trying to balance our workout with our life.

I train in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, and MMA (Mixed Martial Arts). It is a very demanding workout each time I train, but there is much to be learned from pushing your body like I do. The most important thing I learned is how to take care of it in order to avoid injuries while still getting the most out of my workout.

The 3 keys to get the most out of your workout are stretching, mixing in the full body (core), and only working out for about an hour. These 3 keys can make a big difference in your routine. I was a semi-believer in these till i read the book ‘Superfit’ by Royce Gracie & James Strom. This book broke down routines and taught me a lot about what it means to truly work out.

The 1st key I learned was how to stretch. I am an Italian Male and was not blessed with flexible muscles. I was not looking forward to the book’s stretching routine but I tried it anyway. WOW, is all I can say. I now incorporate this in every workout. What you should do is warm up for about 5 minutes. This can be by doing anything that incorporates the majority of your body (running, squat thrusts, box jumps, etc.). Once you break a light sweat, it is time to stretch.

Stretching is all about your breathing technique. I had trouble touching my toes in a regular hamstring stretch. What I found was my goal is not to touch my toes. My goal is to stretch. Once I relieved myself of the pressure of having to touch my toes, I was able to stretch a little further each day till I wondered how I never touched them at all. What you want to do is stretch each muscle while you are completely relaxed. When you reach your apex, breathe in really deep. On the exhale, try to stretch a tiny bit farther. Do about three exhales, stretching each muscle a little further for about 30 seconds to a minute. I like to incorporate every muscle in the legs, arms, neck, chest, back, and torso when I stretch. Finally, it is also a great help to stretch again after your workout is over. This helps push your flexibility even further.

The 2nd Key is to mix in the full body. Many workout warriors like to isolate muscles when they work out. Picture someone standing upright doing a bicep curl with one hand. While this training is great for looks and body competitions, it does nothing to get you in shape. The key to getting is good, healthy shape is to use the CORE of your body. The core of the body is a network of muscles underneath the muscles we immediately identify (chest bi’s, tri’s, lats, quads, etc.). The core is why gymnasts, dancers, and wrestlers have such a strong, compact body. Those sports all consistently use the core part of the body.

Working the core is pretty easy actually. Lets take the bicep curl example. A simple way to make that a core body exercise is to stand on one foot while doing it. It may sound silly, but standing on one foot forces you to use your core to maintain balance. Another great way is to replace any solid bench with the exercise balls in the gym. So on your dumbell press, lay back and balance on the ball instead of the flat bench. This helps build a solid inside of the body, while also building a nice outside. When I started to incorporate more & more core exercises, I felt lighter on my feet during the day. It was if gravity was not pulling as hard on my body.

The 3rd & final key is to workout in under an hour. This does not mean you have to time yourself every day. Instead, I would just like to open your eyes to something. Many people take working out very seriously. There are people who spend hours & hours in the gym. If you are not a professional athlete, you may be wasting your time.

When you work out, you rip your muscles and then they repair themselves when you rest. Over-working these muscles takes away from the rest period. So you actually can do yourself a disservice by staying at the gym for long periods of time. A typical workout for me would be a light warm-up (5 minutes), stretching for about 20 minutes, then an all body workout consisting of about 25 minutes of power cleans, squats, dead lifts, pull-ups, dips, box jumps, etc. Of course, it depends on which muscle set I am focusing on for the day, but you get the idea. Finally, I finish off with about 10 minutes of stretching.

This type of work out really changed my life. I remember the first time someone introduced me to this. I was a hot shot kid with a nice bench press. My friend (BJJ Brown Belt Brian Katz: www.advancedbjj.com) asked me if I’d try something different. I laughed him off, claiming I came to the gym to go all out, not skimp out with some all body girl garbage. A week later I almost vomited about half way through the work out. I could not believe I felt like this using lighter weight & less reps. I certainly swallowed my pride that day.

Don’t be that hot-shot. Try incorporating more of your core, mixed in with some stretching. Do this in under an hour each workout and you will feel great for the week, I promise. For more info on working out, please check out the book ‘Superfit’ by Royce Gracie & James Strom. I do not get anything for promoting this book, nor do I personally know the authors. I just really enjoyed it and it is a great place to start learning more about your body.

Good luck and have a great workout!