The Power of Art: The Fun and Cutting Edge Secret to Accomplish Your Fitness Goal

The Fun and Cutting Edge Secret to Accomplish Your Fitness Goal

“The key ingredient for success in life is the discipline of mind and body. Setting goals and making sure they are accomplished builds discipline. Whatever goal I set for myself, I will first get a mental image in my mind of exactly what it is I want to achieve, then I will be determined and persistent enough to overcome all obstacles that get in my way toward that goal. Finally, I will train or study accordingly until that goal [fitness goal] is accomplished.”  – Chuck Norris

Goal setting often falls short because of a lack of action.

In a world where living’s evolved into a constant stream of to-do list tasks, goals, and “if-only’s” – we are expected to prioritize our time, handle information, maintain focus, allocate resources, and constantly increase performance…and goals are the answer. How can we ditch the distractions and get things done? 

A fitness goal serves to fuel motivation and have been found to improve performance. A previously frowned upon and distracting activity has now emerged as the cutting edge of neuroscience and behavioral psychology.

The lack of action in fitness goal – setting is caused by a stall resulting from the constant data and stimulus overloading our brain and stealing our focus. BUT, when you draw a picture of what you desire…your chances of remembering it improve by 65%! Add in the body chemistry from imagining and drawing – a serotonin/oxytocin potion that guides your pattern-making brain into focus – and you have yourself a fitness goal – achieving master.

Even better – doodling requires no artistic talent (so don’t say you “can’t” draw!), expensive tools, training, or talent. The science-backed
key to scheduling in that workout, or simply knocking off a line on your to-do list is to physically write it out.

For so long, doodling has been criticized for its useless endeavor, but new research is supporting the clear, tangible effects on outcome and performance – particularly in the power of a tool for active visualization.

Mental imagery can have a very powerful effect on behavior, research found that participants who visualized a task before completing it performed better than those who had actually practiced it. At the deepest levels of the mind, the brain and central nervous system can’t actually distinguish between something vividly imagined and an actual occurrence. We see this utilized in professional athletes and sports settings such as with Michael Phelps who’s well known for applying visualization techniques to gain an edge over the competition and reach peak performance, in the process of healing injuries and managing symptoms, and for increasing actual muscle mass by simply visualizing an exercise routine.

“To doodle is to engage in an intellectual, creative, and physical act that recruits many neurological networks simultaneously. This makes it a strong force for chance and portal for imagining and inviting preferred realities” Sunni Brown, The Doodle Revolution

Not only does imagery create a motivating vision which allows us to take the necessary steps to fulfill it, but it changes the information processing in our brain at the earliest levels. As humans we tend to revise the same neurological pathways we know and get stuck in our comfort zones. Next week we’ll share the multiple and unexpected ways doodling serves as the fitness goal game-changer, allowing us to enhance what’s possible.

One Easy (and free) Way to Take Your Workout to the Next Level

One Easy (and free) Way to Take Your Workout to the Next Level

“The key to long-term success is a willingness to disrupt your own comfort for the sake of continued growth” – Todd Henry

This workout video of T-Swift doesn’t only have us laughing but now I’m finally reassured we aren’t the only crazy ones taking drastic measures to get pumped up for our workouts.

If you “hate cardio”, can’t wake up…maybe soreness kicked in or you straight up aren’t feeling it today…thankfully many tools exist to launch us into a great mindset and enjoy a productive workout. You can have accountability of friends, family, and coaches, triggers, goals, races, etc…but our personal favorite…

Music

For over 100 years, starting when an American investigator found that cyclists pedaled faster when listening to some tunes, researchers have been discovering the power of music in leveraging our workouts, mood…and even diet ?!

We all have those days when the last things you want to do is that dreaded long run…but music can override our physiological feedback that we would otherwise be focusing on..as well as change our perception of effort.

Try to tell me it’s not easier to run 8 miles when you have Eminem bumping in your ear. 

One of the leading experts on the psychology of exercise music wrote that one could think of music as “a type of legal performance-enhancing drug” and that it has the ability to “promote ergogenic and psychological benefits during high-intensity exercise”. 

I guess Drake’s been reading up on the scientific journals as well…”[finding] his tempo like [he’s] DJ mustard” is really what got him here.

When healthy individuals performed sub maximal exercise, they not only worked harder with faster music but also enjoyed the music more when it was played at a faster tempo. This is suggested to be an evolutionary effect of our brain expecting that whenever there was music, there was movement.

Two other savvy uses of Music…

The singing/rapping/talking test:

How hard are you really working? Can you belt out Kelly Clarkson’s bone-shaking high notes or are you huffing-n-puffing trying to make it to the end of the HIT session? This is a great judge of our effort and a helpful tip for measuring relative intensity and keeping us in necessary workout efforts. If you’re doing a mod-int workout..I should expect you to be able to talk, maybe rap…but not sing. Vig-int? Anything more than a few words and you gotta step it up! (except we always encourage you to sing or dance at the end..(Go Elena!)

Music makes brussel sprouts taste good:

Okay well I actually like brussel sprouts..but for the picky eaters out there – this is game changing.

News fresh in the world of music research – the music you’re listening to could greatly influence your taste perception.

A recent study linked background music to the enjoyment of food and sweet taste perception.

What went down: Participants who were digging the music while eating something sweet (like chocolate ice cream) experienced a sweeter taste. BUT when they didn’t like music, that same chocolate ice cream was nasty and bitter.  You don’t need scientist to confirm music elicits positive emotions..but they did…and they found it correlates with our perception of sweetness.

Put it to the test: Next time your forcing down the veggies or serving the kids dinner – crank up your fav jams… see if your experience enhances the sweetness of “blander” foods. So long dessert!

What makes you what to wake up and grind? How can we help you set in motion a course of action that will allow you to unleash your best and most enjoyable workout?

3 Simple Ways to Never Work Again

3 Simple Ways to Never Work Again

“I find that the harder I work, the less I call it work” – Thomas Jefferson

The more energy you apply to your work, the more meaning you place on that work.

“Workaholics”get a bad rap, but research has found a large difference exists amongst types. Typically someone with an uncontrollable need to be constantly working ends up burnt out, stressed, dreading what they do, and sick. This study found the opposite for some folks.

What was the differentiating factor between workaholics?

Enthusiasm.

Jefferson was right – the harder one is working and caring about what they are doing, the more engaged they become, and the less they consider it work. “Work” becomes something they enjoy.  Involvement, drive and enjoyment were directly related to positive engagement and health as well as decreased stress and burnout.

“An acquired positive expectancy, therefore, is related to positive motivations and health. This theoretical stress framework suggests that if the enthusiastic “workaholics” are enthusiastic due to positive outcome expectancies we expect low stress levels, low reports of “job stress”, and good health.”

“If the nonenthusiastic “workaholics” have low enthusiasm due to low expectancies of success(helplessness, hopelessness), CATS predicts higher stress levels, more complaints of “job stress”, and health problems.”

Our expectation of our experience, and further the motivation to “get work done”, is nothing more than our semantics and neurology – it doesn’t have anything to do with what we are actually doing, other people, the situation – rather, it’s the meaning and value we place and our interpretation of it. The research found that if we expect a positive outcome, and therefore go into the work with increased enthusiasm for that result, we respond accordingly.

This directly applies to YOU and the effect of this Monday Motivation. Sure, I can move you to action with these weekly newsletters (a girl can dream, right?) – but how you stick with it is up to YOU. Have you stayed discipline in your pursuit to make this the most manic and mad March you’ve ever lived? Do you see value in your work and go after your day with enthusiasm? This newsletter may be the start – but the rest is on you to make it happen.

It’s about having enthusiasm and a positive outlook on your “work”.

“I have to go to work”

“I need to work out”

“This is hard word”

Why do our days revolve around “work” that we “need” to do? The negative connotation of the word “work” itself often entails an arduous task – something forced upon us that will be spent in misery.

There exists three simplistic ways to drastically change our perception of “work”:

– Find value

• Blur the line between work and life…and make your life a piece of work! Create it, be in control of it, and have ownership in the choice that you have to make it your own.

– Establish a routine

• Establish a routine and this whole “motivation” thing becomes irrelevant.

– No more excuses

• Lastly, cut the excuses. Just be done with that option.

If you’re taking part in the March Madness Mania (and if not, I’m sure you’ve experienced this on your own) – you are half way through our challenge and by now you’ve found that getting to your workout is second nature. You walk up to COR, check in at the desk, set your keys down in the cubby, start foam rolling…the rest is history. The need for motivation goes away when you make this part of your lifestyle – yet you maintain enthusiasm and drive to continue.

Something can motivate you to action but to sustain that purpose, YOU must find the value behind what you are doing.

What are you doing this week to turn your “need to work out” to “I can’t wait to work out”? What about your work – whether it be your exercise fix, your job, or chore – fuels you?

Be More Effective, Enjoyable, Productive, & Profitable in 2016

Be More Effective, Enjoyable, Productive, & Profitable in 2016

“If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got” – Mark Twain

Do the same things, you can expect the same results.

You’ve probably heard Einstein’s expression – “Insanity = Doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.”
Since it came from a smart person…that makes it true, right?

Continual action sounds more like persistence, but in the context of improvement it’s simply ineffective.

Whether it be athletic performance, personal improvement, business, or life – I’ve yet to meet someone satisfied with the status quo.  Every thing wants (and has the potential!) to be better, more effective, more enjoyable, more productive, and more profitable.  Nevertheless, many of us seeking improvement continue doing the same thing we’ve done and just hope for a different result – insanity right?

How is this done in sports? When does improvement stop?

It’s fun to wonder – how long can athletes like swimmers continue to drop time? How much faster can we run a marathon? Eventually we can’t blink and be at the finish line, so when does it stop?

Competitive athletes reach the point at which they are willing to make any sacrifice for that inch of improvement. However, that “anything” is usually restricted by the ‘same-ol’, traditional norms that they’ve been taught.

These are the two hardest times to make improvements –

1. Getting started (my NY resolution folks)
2. Improving after ‘exhausting the limits’ (competitive athletes, professionals)

These two circumstances are also the most optimal for achieving improvements. Why?

They both hold the key to breakthrough: 

Doing what you’ve never done before

What are you doing this week that you’ve never done before? How are you changing things up? Keep it fun, keep improving!

You can experiment for yourself, or finish reading how here.

The discomfort, unfamiliarity, and risk of failure is trumped by the possibilities of success – explaining why we almost always neurotically continue. The journey is easy when you are reaping the benefits and riding the wave of success, but what happens when you are continually knocked down? When discouragement sets in and failure arises. When you invest every ounce and nothing is worthwhile. That time, money, energy put into your passion makes you question if it was a waste.

The balance between persistence and change is hard – but they actually co-exist.

Grow in a different way.

What does that mean?

• Doing the same exercise over and over again until you get injured
• Becoming frustrated and doubtful
• Following what works for everyone else
• Trying something new
• Recognizing the gains
• Trusting in the process and yourself

The most successful start to a new exercise regimen or habit is beginning with something you enjoy. Why do we change this approach to grinding out 30+ hours of training a week?
If we don’t make room for the things that are enjoyable (like this!) – it’s not sustainable. You need to either be 1. Having fun or 2. Improving

Our training model reflecting this relationship -“The fastest swimmers have the most fun”

Grinding out work is exhilarating when you recognize the momentous gains and enjoy the process. That moment when you learn a new skill, laugh with your training partner, make something a little tastier than before, feel better after a workout – it’s essential we pause and recognize the moments that make it all worth while – the tiny joys that are found in the fun, impressionable memories along the way.

As for improvements – we are made to think they are limited to gains in physique, finances, or championship performances. Don’t overlook the improvements found in the mundane but critical – sleep, nutrition, practice, attitude, and beyond.

Meanwhile, there are inner processes occurring:

• Physiologically, if you dig into the science of exercise performance improvements – countless changes are happening. In a 10-year, longitudinal study on a world-record marathon runner, many physiological factors were tested, and many changes occurred. The vast data pointed to the runner’s profound improvement in running economy as the key to her performance improvements. This is impossible to contribute to any single physiological adaptation considering all the changes she was making…but maybe that’s the point – for 10 years she continued changing, stressing and improving different systems more efficiently: more rest, quality over quantity, resistance training, periodization, better nutrition – all values COR emphasizes. There is no single change to credit her success. All we know is that we must mix things up…and there’s a science to doing that most effectively!
  • Approach: If you aren’t satisfied, maybe it’s time to look inward: Are you doing the same ineffective things over and over? Going to the gym and frustrated with the lack of results? Are you waiting for the circumstance to change? Or maybe the people around you?
  • You: If you’re stuck in a pattern that’s not getting you what you want, then it’s time to change the pattern. Which means changing the only part of the situation you have control over – you.

Instead of waiting for the circumstances to change, you must change them yourself. Don’t wait for a better future, create you own.

There is no specific list of tasks to becoming successful. Success isn’t formulaic. It’s personal. Studying a field that educates on the countless factors differentiating each individual human, I’ve learned to appreciate this. It’s not something that overwhelms me with impossibility of a formal answer – instead it provides a palette to pull from and inspiration to design the optimal personal experience catered to an individual.

Why?

We are unique. Not only in our inherent physiology and genetics but throw in our experiences, environment, and lifestyle – you’d think it would be impossible to know how to help others. Instead, you need someone who understands all these factors and YOU. Part of what makes success special is the personality you infuse into why and how you do what you do. Stop looking for the prescribed set of answers. Success is creating your own habits. Personalizing it to YOU.

4 Ways to Build Strength with Resilience

4 Ways to Build Strength with Resilience

Realizing you can handle life in the face adversity in only a thought away, and allows you to maximize a challenge. The growing interest in resilience among mental health care providers globally has created a need for a simple way to consider the complex interactions that predict adaptive coping when there is exposure to high levels of adversity. Ranging from performance plateaus, mental illness, violence, natural disasters, losses, and daily conflicts – un-ideal situations are inevitable. Rather than dealing with the repercussions and associated negative emotions, what if we were prepared to be more suited for our experiences?

Why are strength and resilience important and how do you get it?

We each experience our own challenges, and it isn’t the loudest complainer who has it the most difficult. Each of Fredrickson’s studies demonstrate resilient participants experience the same level of frustration and anxiety as those less resilient; their physiological and emotional spikes were equally high. This reveals that resilient people aren’t a rare human species, immune to negativity… they simply let go of the negativity, worry less, and shift their attention to the positive strength more quickly. Resilience serves beyond a reactive skill-set advantageous in the face of adversity, it’s these same characteristic traits improving our well-being, physical and mental health, and ultimately enriching our lives. The best way to cultivate this – experience.

1. Stay Up

Positive emotions are the most important predictor of resilience. Research concludes positive emotions can undo the effects of a stressful negative experience. This isn’t suggesting you acquire a delusional, brightness-blinding life, but rather have a positive outlook in difficult circumstances.  People who are resilient tend to be more positive and optimistic, better able to regulate their emotions, and can maintain their optimism through the most trying circumstances compared to those less-resilient.

2. Snap Back

It’s all about how quick you can “bounce back” from stressful experiences and effectively using those positive emotions discussed above to rebound from, and find positive meaning in, stressful encounters. The experience of positive emotions contribute to the ability to achieve efficient emotion regulation and find positive meaning in negative circumstances. Further research demonstrates that resilient people are even able to change their responses to match the demands of our frequently changing environmental circumstances.

3. Write Down

A conscious focus on blessings may have emotional and interpersonal benefits. A study conducted using subjects with neuromuscular disease were randomly assigned to either a gratitude condition or a control condition. Guess who thrived. The gratitude-outlook groups exhibited heightened psychological and physical well-being across several of the outcome measures relative to the comparison groups, including strength. These results not only reinforced the importance of a positive outlook, but also concluded that gratitude has a positive impact on optimism and goal-orientation.

4.  Build Out

The British Psychological Society suggested a strong link between confidence in yourself and resilience. Strong confidence yields greater resilience when a setback occurs, knowing you are capable of a better outcome. Developing resilience through youth sports can benefit a child’s overall success in academics and life, as well as in athletic achievements. Combine the involvement of attentive parents, coaches and mentors, with the increased intellectual stimulation from physical activity and skill-work, and it allows children who participate in sports to reap social and emotional benefits. Teaching children resiliency and strength within their athletic program at a young age can boost their self-esteem and future well-being. COR works with a range of ages, helping foster these in our KADP, high school strength program, and even our adult boot camp!

Perhaps we don’t choose to be in the current situation, but what’s more important is how we handle it. Treasure the challenges, and recognize these opportunities for growth that serve to your benefit.

WOOP: Oettingen’s Four Step Process for Improvement

WOOP: Oettingen’s Four Step Process for Improvement

All these motivational messages out there – whether it be the hippest Justin Bieber song, political campaigns, or my most recent cheesy quote – preach to “dream big!” and “be positive!”. The rare, gleam of positivity is unfortunately one of the most constructive influences we experience during our day. Provided the abundance of depressing headlines and negative media we are continually exposed to (whether we realize it or not), who am I to not advocate that as well? ….but is this fool-proof PMA effective?

Gabriele Oettingen’s (http://www.woopmylife.org) 20+ years of research on the science of human motivation reveals otherwise. The conventional wisdom supporting the no-fail, ruthless, positive thinking-phenomenon falls short by excluding one detrimental aspect in the terms of our processing.

The obstacle.

“The solution isn’t to do away with dreaming and positive thinking. Rather, it’s making the most of our fantasies by brushing them up against the very thing most of us are taught to ignore or diminish: the obstacles that stand in our way.”

“The obstacles that we think prevent us from realizing our deepest wishes can actually lead to their fulfillment.”

Mental contrasting – dreaming + obstacles. The main idea: If we can visualize our dream, face the realities, devise a plan, and gain energy to take action – we start WOOP’n!

WOOP: Oettingen’s Four Step Process

W – Wish

Ask yourself, what is the most important wish I’d like to realize and fulfill? Could be today, tomorrow, 10 years – take something that is near and dear, challenging but feasible. Formulate in three to four words.

O – Outcome

What could be the BEST possible outcome? I’m talking your perfect world. It could be an emotion, outcome, anything.Now imagine experiencing it. Seriously, let your mind wander.

O – Obstacle

Switchin’ gears on you – what stops you from fulfilling that dream, experiencing that wish? What’s in you that’s holding you back?
In less than four words write down this inner main obstacle.

P – Plan

What can you do to overcome that obstacle? What action can you take?

Think about that behavior you’ll take, and just as you did before formulate a plan in three to four words.

Fill in the blank – If ___(obstacle)__, then I will __(behavior)__.

Not only can you dream big but the power and any fear of obstacle resides in you. A positive thinker is free to think of new ways to solve problems because they are not limited by fear. This process allows you to put forth effort into your most promising endeavors that are both challenging and feasible.

1. Start with the positive fantasy
2. Discover the obstacle within yourself

This is applicable no matter the behavior (could be a mundane daily task or ambitious life goal) and any stage of life (3rd grader or grandparent). Oettingen’s studies proved that programming their nonconscious mind to get what they needed done determined how they acted in a problematic situation. We learned that if we can devote the mental energy before hand, while it might take some initial effort, we have a process in place and we no longer need to decide if we need to eat less or go for that run. The obstacle is linked to the instrument to overcome it.

If you’re striving to swim faster, lose weight, or run a marathon this process nonconsciously associates the future with reality and the obstacle with the means thus providing you the energy and mastery to overcome anything!

What is your dearest wish? What’s standing in your way of achieving it? An obstacle is nothing but a stepping stone!
Now, can I get a “WOOP WOOP”!?