You’re Nuanced

There’s what I call “the fire tower trail” in the next town over that I’ve been very much into lately. I park my car and hike a steady incline that’s in a wooded area, for about 10minutes. I then arrive at this tall metal structure that consists of 10 sets of 12 steep stairs, circling up and up. When I get to the top, there’s a panorama view and I can see for miles and miles on a clear day. The view is a nice reward! 

I take a few deep breaths and say some simple prayers as I look out at the world, and then go down the 10 sets of 12 stairs and walk the 10minute decline back to my car. Door to door, it takes me about 25minutes. The up is tough in one way. I always break a sweat and really feel the burn in my quadriceps.  The down, I find, is challenging in another way. It forces me to focus more mentally, to have control over my movements by engaging my core, and to be precise with my footing. The decline, coupled with lots of jutting bedrock and root action, makes it so each step can not gain momentum. I can’t be sloppy. 

This showcases how nuanced fitness is. Fitness tests don’t test for the subtlities. How many pushups someone can do in 60seconds gives us some data but it’s not the full story. 

How do we become strong in the subtleties of fitness? Oh, it’s very do-able – three steps: 
– move often
– move mindfully
– move in a variety of ways

Most regular worker outers do one or two of the aforementioned things. They move often, and perhaps they are mindful when the do, but the variety part is missing. They are not mixing things up enough. Their body and mind establish a sort of autopilot, coasting through workout after workout. 

Getting variety is easy – it just takes intention. You can change up the pace, you can change up the order, you can do different exercises, and you can change the setting (like I did, by doing a walk, run or a hike in a new location). You can ever change up the duration. 

Movement variety fortifies the body and enhances the mind/body connection. I like to think it helps the synapses in the brain stay fresh too! So do yourself a big favor,  keep moving and be sure to mix things up. 🤗