17 Ways to Flex Your Fitness Muscle
By Joe Carabase·
17 Ways to Flex Your Fitness Muscle
Inspired by how I became a meat head…
It was the summer going into freshman year and for the first time ever I started weight training; something I literally dreamed about since I was three and my mom and I dropped my older brother George off at the high school gym. I remember hearing loud music, hearing the constant clanging of barbells slamming together, and getting a whiff of hard-earned sweat. I had no idea what it was all about, but I knew I wanted to be a part of it.
Growing up, I idolized the film character Rocky Balboa, pro wrestlers, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. I couldn't wait to build my body, so I began with push-ups and sit ups.
When I finally got to high school, there was no way I was following the program and doing only two sets of each movement. Without letting my lifting partner know, I convinced him we had to do four sets of every movement. The funny thing is, despite constantly being the last duo to finish, he never caught on until the end of the summer and was angry because we did double the work load. Heck yeah we did--and we were also the strongest two in the weight room.
And Why Does This Matter To You?
That summer I developed a muscle that doesn't exist in any anatomy book. It's a muscle I call the "fitness muscle," whose prime function is to serve as an internal drill sergeant; pushing you to do just a little bit more than you have to as much as possible.
Like any muscle, the more you work your fitness muscle, the more efficient it gets.
Here's the best part – YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE MOTIVATED TO WORK YOUR FITNESS MUSCLE! I don't care how active or inactive you are, you can ignite your own fitness muscle by just doing more than you have to.
Here are 16 Easy Ways to get your Fitness Muscle Flexing:
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Mid set, when you want to stop and feel like you are about to collapse, do one more rep….then another
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Wake up two minutes earlier and do one stretch
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Turn your phone off and for two minutes just focus on your breathing
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Stand on one leg as you brush your teeth
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If at all possible, refuse to sit down when talking on the phone – walk around
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Trade in your office chair for a stability ball
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Get up once an hour and move a limb or stretch
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Eat your lunch as you go for a leisurely walk
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When you go upstairs for something, walk down and then go back up and down again.
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WALK FAST!
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Laugh at the cookies/doughnuts in the office as you walk by
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Foam roll as you watch TV
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Crank 5 push-ups as you are waiting for your water to boil
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Walk instead of drive to a nearby destination
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"Batman" as I call it – drop to the floor and crank push-ups. It doesn't matter how many you do.
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Park further away
Just as the motivational speaker Les Brown says, "Inch by inch, anything's a cinch!"
Focus on winning a bunch of small victories every day – STARTING NOW.
3-2-1 GO!