"Finding your inner Wile E Coyote"

Let's talk about self resilience today or as I like to call it "Finding your inner Wile E Coyote"

What is it? Self resilience is the ability to deal with adversity, obstacles, stressful situations confidently and bouncing back from those setbacks. Let's look at Wile E Coyote..how many times has he pretty much killed himself yet there he is again trying something different to catch Roadrunner...he just never gives up.

We are all born with this ability. I have yet to meet an adult that still crawls around because learning to walk was just too hard and they fell too many times and just gave up.

Where some lose this ability is unclear. Could have been a negative adult in their childhood,etc.... We could probably have an hour long discussion on the philosophy of how it happens.

The important thing to realize is this can be worked on like any other habit.

---Always focus on the positive first. I guarantee you can find the positive in every situation but you have to look for it.

--Don't look at obstacles as roadblocks but as detours. They might take you off course on a longer route but you will still get to your end point

--Celebrate your victories even if they are tiny. Remind yourself of how far you have come.

--Don't look at your actions as pass or fail absolutes.

--Accept, embrace and reframe failure. We fail our way to success. The most important thing is to learn from it, dust yourself off and get back up.

--Remind yourself of why you are getting back up. For Wile E Coyote hunger was his motivation...find yours.

--When you hear your inner voice beginning to be negative. STOP IT! YELL AT IT!! TELL IT TO BE QUIET!! And fill your head with positive thoughts. We have COMPLETE control over our self dialogue! It takes mental muscle but the more you do this, practice it the more natural it becomes

--Realize that success is never perfect, pretty and linear...it is ugly, crazy, and bumpy!

Time to find your inner Wile E Coyote!! You will need it on this journey!

"I Can't" Re-frame Challenge

EVERY TIME you are about to say, "I can't" you have to stop and re-frame that into, "I choose not to"

For example:

"I can't eat that ice cream" to "I choose not to eat that ice cream today because I want to reach my goal"

"I can't eat broccoli" to "I choose not to eat broccoli because I don't like the taste, instead I will eat carrots"

"I can't workout early in the morning" to "I choose not to wake up early in the morning to workout"

Re-framing "I can't" helps clear your head and make you realize that what you thought was a genuine constraint is actually just a mental block you have created for yourself. You are actually in the driver's seat of your choices and decisions. Time to take back that ownership and control!

Taking Ownership

Do yourself a favor and read the following:

Let's start off by asking yourself: Why do you do want to train? Why are you in need of a coach? Why are you are seeking a gym? As a athlete or a health seeker, you know that nothing is more fulfilling than reaching your goals and finding fulfillment and success in your own life.

Additionally, like anyone seeking out to accomplish a goal or task we need to find a support group and expertise in that area in order to have success. By doing so we create our own success and in the process of accomplishing your goals, you will learn something about yourself that you did not know before....

Are you taking ownership of what you do? Or are you just like everyone else and doing the bare minimum?

Are you actually working towards your goals?

No matter what the goal, our success and failures are entirely on us. We create our paths in our lives.

Can we agree on that? So, why should we start to work towards something to only quit and fail?

Why should we settle failure? Instead, we should always be learning and striving to be better. If you truly want a change and want to make something a lifestyle, you need to immerse yourself into that mindset. To be a better you and to have success, you must continually work to be better.

#bitchwork

#bitchwork

                Plain and simple, it’s the shit that no one wants to do. No one wants to row 250 meters fifteen times. No one wants to run eight 400 meter sprints. Trust me, I know. Once I hit that fourth round my brain goes through the thousand and one excuses on why I should just quit now. “It’s too hot outside, I’m sure I haven’t gotten in enough water to keep me hydrated all day.” “I’ve already worked out this morning, I should give my legs a break.” “It says between six and eight rounds, but it’s been a long week, maybe cut it to five.” So why do I do it? No one is forcing me to.

Because the excuses get old.

                Being an athlete, I’m pretty well aware of the things I’m just not good at. We all are. The things you dread. The stuff that isn’t fun. The things that are hard to get through. For me, it has always been endurance training. Ask me to pick up a heavy barbell and you can’t get the damn smile off my face. But, you ask me to run half a mile and you couldn’t get me to stop complaining even if you put a $50 bill at the finish line. To me it’s not fun. I definitely don’t look forward to doing it, and I struggle to mentally get through it. I finally got to the point, like I said before, where that feeling GOT OLD. I decided to finally stop making excuses, and get comfortable with the things I hate the most.

                I originally had started asking around, trying to get some input on where to start, and then I realized that no one is going to do this for me. I needed to do the research on my own, and find the things that I knew were going to hurt. Things that would challenge me both physically and mentally. You want a challenge?! Sit on a rower with the timer ticking down from 30 minutes… that will test you. The beauty of it is, that no one knows me better than I know myself. No one knows which workouts scare me, and which ones I can attack with confidence. The real test, though, is pushing yourself to welcome the elements you fear. You can complain about them all day, or you can put in the work. No one is going to do it for you.

That is when the real #bitchwork begins. There will always be your specialists, but those who are well rounded really shine. It’s about minimizing your weaknesses… so get to work!

My Fitness Journey: Tricia Wadzinski

Prior to 2017, my fitness regimen consisted of playing volleyball competively in leagues and tournaments, walking the dog and working in our yard.  I did not have time to work out as life / work was too busy.  To me, I felt I was in shape based upon what I did.  However, the one problem I faced is that my weight continued to go up versus down and I didn’t know how to change it without dieting or exercising.  I blamed my weight issues on my age, the clothing manufacturers…everyone but myself.  I needed a change and had to take ownership of fixing my weight versus blaming everything else.

In January 2017, I joined the six week New You Challenge at Torque Strength & Conditioning and my life changed 180 degrees.  I was extremely nervous, but excited about the six-week challenge as our group was made up of all women.  I felt like we were all in it together as we had similar goals (lose weight, gain muscle, get healthier, be accountable, learn something new and above all have fun).  The one area that I was apprehensive about in the challenge was changing how I ate (we focused on Macro Management), because I don’t believe in diets.  If you tell me I’m going on a diet, forget it, I’m done.  However, I kept an open mind on the Macro Management technique and told myself to try…what did I have to lose because just maybe they might be right on how I could lose the weight I wanted. 

After day one of the New You Challenge, I learned that I was not in shape and I had work to do.   Within those six weeks, I pushed myself to do everything they asked of us and more because I wanted to do it.  Hands down, I believe that TSC has the best coaching staff around and without them cheering me on day after day it would have been hard to push myself.  I walked away from the New You challenge with a whole new outlook on fitness, eating and though losing weight was great, I learned that gaining muscle and losing body fat was even better.  All concepts that became engrained in my every day thinking. 

I officially joined TSC in March 2017 with the focus on getting stronger and better at all things, CrossFit.  However, I feel it’s important to join a Bootcamp or a TRX class occasionally for conditioning, strength and cardio.  There are many times I will walk away from a Bootcamp class more exhausted or sore than a CrossFit class – so build them into your fitness regimen if you can.  For most of 2017, my CrossFit goal was to learn how do the movements, get better at them and eventually move from doing things scaled to RX.  But the key takeaway is that things take time to develop and of course a lot of practice.  It was close to a year for me to be able to do a hand stand push up and even longer to do a kipping pull-up.  I participated in the CrossFit open this year and I had the best time ever competing against myself to see how good I could do.  Besides the exercise, I really began to focus more on what I ate, whole foods and that is where I truly saw the results kick in with weight loss and loss in body fat percentage. 

18 months later, my outlook on life is now focused on exercising and eating healthy.  My happy place is when I can be at TSC working out (5-6 days a week) and visiting with all the great friends that I’ve met along this great journey.  I still have a lot of work to do and I continue to set goals for myself to keep me motivated.  For example, when I came to TSC I hated to run.  Now, I’m pushing myself to be able to run 2 miles without stopping before the weather turns cold.

I couldn’t be happier on what I’ve been able to accomplish in the time I’ve spent at TSC and that is simply through a little hard-work, motivation and encouragement from all the great coaches and fellow members in the gym.  I’m happy to share that I’ve lost over 32 lbs., lost 19.1% in body fat and gained 11 lbs. in muscle.  I look forward to continuing my fitness journey because I know there is more I need to work on and of above all have fun doing it.

BEFORE

AFTER!

My Fitness Journey: Nick Puente III

Hello fitness community

I am writing this article to speak out to the people who are beginning or struggling their own fitness journey. If you are someone who is on the fence about starting your own fitness journey and looking for a life change, then keep reading. My name is Nick Puente III and I started at Torque Strength & Conditioning in December of 2016.  I started my own fitness quest to make a better me, but I had trouble with knowing what I was doing. With those struggles I decided to reach out and seek help, that lead me to Torque Strength & Conditioning. Going into it I already lost 48lbs and thinking hey I’m in shape. My first 2 weeks I was just doing body weight exercises like pushups, jump roping, burpees, etc. After just doing those movements I realized I was still not in the best shape.  From there on I asked myself “What do I have to lose,” so I continued my journey at TSC.  From there I lost another 30lbs and gain 12lbs of muscle in a year and I’m not the youngest of the members and I’m not the oldest member but the coaching staff have help me overcome any doubts of my capabilities.

Not only has Torque Strength & Conditioning help me lose weight and gain muscle but I have made a new family.  Without my CrossFit family I would not be where I am today.  Fitness should be fun not a downer and you don’t have to be the strongest to get in shape.  All you need to do is your best and give everything you got.  It does not matter whether it’s once a week or seven days a week anything is better than sitting on the couch letting life pass you by. For those of you out there wondering if this fake or real I’m putting myself out there and I have always been a big guy and now fitness is my life.  I love working out pushing myself to the limits.  I always wanted to be a hero and after starting and fitness journey, I know I have become just that, to my friends and family. Now it’s time to work towards something even greater; I want to become a Legend; you may ask why?  Well that’s because Legends never die. My story is a simple one of hard work and overcoming major obstacles in my life.  Love yourself and never give up.

For you non-believers here is a pic of my fitness journey over the years. Stay Strong My Friends.

Overcoming Upper Trap Dominance

Check out this article by our friend Dr. Sara Solomon! Great article and a fantastic read!

Humbleness in your Training

            Something that I notice when I look at a great deal of boxes training is that there is some sort of emphasis.  If the box owner likes is an Olympic Weightlifter you can see a great deal of that in the programming when they are getting ready to focus on a competition.  Similar to a runner in which they don’t emphasize strength quite as much but have longer timed METCONs multiple days per week.  What does this mean for you as a coaches and athletes?

            It means that you need to start being humble in your training.  There are many sports including CrossFit, Weightlifting, Powerlifting, Strongman have all created a system that is documented to create great results.  However, we often times tend to specialize in one area of the spectrum or the other.  Most training programs veer away from General Physical Preparedness and assistance work. They continue to focus on just the specific movements that pertain to competition.  Being humble in your training means finding a balance between different and complex areas to balance.  We must find a balance in our programming.  There needs to be variations in the movements that you are doing but they need to be repeated enough that your athletes know how to perform the movement correctly.  The second thing that you need to attempt to balance which I think is often misinterpreted is that you must find balance in the central nervous system.  Most CrossFit workouts are usually 5 minutes to 20 minutes long.  Weightlifters do primarily compound barbell movements draining the sympathetic nervous system. Very few gyms also incorporate bodybuilding, or GPP on a regular basis. Remember you must create a suit of armor; this is done by having balance in your training so that you can continue to grow. First we need structure, then stabilization, then specialization is possible. We normally think that “Elite athletes” can specialize, or your “average joes,” just need simple movements.  I argue this isn’t the case.  Yes, specialization is key for an elitist, but there is a time for stepping back and working on widening the base so that we avoid injury, and so that elitists can continue to grow their performance.  Yes, average joe’s can literally improve off of simple stimulus for a long time, but if we widen the base from the beginning with GPP and other simple movements besides just the barbell and gymnastics we can avoid injury and work on imbalances. 

            You have to be humble enough to identify that you cannot do all the things you like to do and we must do that things that we NEED to do.  As coaches we must do what’s best for our athletes and sometimes that’s not a popular decision, we must have an understanding of what our principles are as a gym and coach, not follow trends, because trends die and so will your business.  My last bit of advice is to attempt to seek out experts in fields that you may not be as knowledgeable in.  Taking bits and pieces from these experts and their training principles that are more “Movement Specific,” and putting them into your workouts can be a great attribute to your programming.  You have to constantly educate yourself so your members can keep growing and progressing to reach their goals in all areas of fitness. 

What is Your Goal?

What is Your Goal?

Often times when we talk about our training we know that there is multiple ways to get to your goal.  However, we often are trying to figure out the most efficient way to produce results.  We want to figure out the least amount of time to produce the most gains without creating injuries.  With all the methods that can be trained, at times we attempt to try and get better at everything at once.  We choose multiple specific goals because we want to be “more fit” which is a noble goal.  But the hardest thing about trying to multitask is that you cannot become better at what you need to work on the most.  This is why setting a goal and gearing your training around that specific goal is so important. 

                When you set a goal for a specific result and your training revolves around these specific goals you can make much greater leaps in progress in areas of weakness.  There are a couple different schools of thought on how to train your weaknesses.  This can be done by attacking them with a great deal of volume or hypertrophy type sets to make them grow.  This can also be done with certain emphasis on eccentrics and static holds that can benefit certain weaknesses of lifts.  Another simple thing to do is to work on a skill every day in order to get better whether it is a gymnastics movement, or just simply your start on a snatch. 

                The most frustrating part about training for your goals and weaknesses is that often times these are the things that we suck at and therefore don’t want to do.  When you hit a static point in your training where the PR’s don’t come quite as often one thing I tell people is to attempt to focus on one or two skills that they can do as “Accessory Work” or homework assignments.  This does 2 things. 

1.        Gives them something to focus on as a weakness. 

2.       Teaches them to commit to virtuosity and the process as opposed to just new numbers and strength gains. 

Often times we overlook the process of training that is the daily grind, you must find those simple and consistent victories. We want things to happen so fast that when we don’t we lose all sense of purpose in our training.  With establishing goals and trying to conquer them one or two at a time we begin to commit to the process.  This doesn’t mean you should lose all focus of your strengths either.  This also means to stick to your programming, but just make minor adjustments so you can add in your skill work or adjust for a specific technique flaw in your training. Pick a weakness and add some accessory work with the help from your coach that targets that specifically.  Find a movement you are not good at and do an extra 100 repetitions per week or work on it for 30 minutes that week.  Sometimes you may be surprised as to what “weaknesses” may turn into strengths later on.   Remember, training is a journey, so enjoy the process and earn a win daily!