Steps to Improve Your Daily Awesome

11/2/2017

The human body is a complex and incredible machine. From our brain to our bones, it is amazing how our body system work synergistically together so that we can function on a daily basis.

Paying attention to how we feel is important, but also knowing why and when we should do certain things within our normal day is equally important to finding and keeping your daily awesomeness on high day after day.

Since the beginning of our lives, the human body has loved routine. Ask any parent and they will tell you babies tend to be much better natured when on a schedule, or any elite athlete and why they stick to meticulous sleeping and eating patterns.

I know we’ve all been there with the dialogue of excuses we will tell ourselves: “I don’t feel like hitting the gym today”, “I’m not feeling energized enough for this workout”, “Why have I been sore for 3 days?”, and so on.

Well, there are a lot of things we can do to help make a healthy lifestyle something enjoyable instead of an obligation, and in result, transform our mind and body into unstoppable machines!

Find Your Chronotype

Take the following mini quiz written by Amy Ashmore of the American Council on Exercise. Disclaimer: I have no stake in the promotion of this quiz.

This will help you recognize your chronotype, or natural sleep-wake cycle and how understanding this can allow you to establish an effective routine that maximizes your training.

You have to do two hours of physically hard work. If you were entirely free to plan your day, in which of the following periods would you choose to do the work?
1. 8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. (4 points)
2. 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (3 points)
3. 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. (2 points)
4. 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (1 point)
You have to take a two-hour test. You know it will be mentally exhausting. If you were entirely free to choose, when would you choose to take the test?
1. 8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. (4 points)
2. 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. (3 points)
3. 3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. (2 points)
4. 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (1 point)
A friend has asked you to join him twice per week for a workout. The best time for him is between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. With nothing else in mind other than how you normally feel in the evening, how do you think you would perform?
1. Very poorly (4 points)
2. Poorly (3 points)
3. Well enough (2 points)
4. Very well (1 point)
We hear about “morning” and “evening” types of people. Which of these types do you consider yourself?
1. Definitely morning type (6 points)
2. More a morning than an evening type (4 points)
3. More an evening than a morning type (2 points)
4. Definitely an evening type (0 points)

Calculate Score

Add your scores together to get your total and compare your score with the table below to identify your chronotype. Your chronotype suggests your best time of day to train where overall fitness and pleasure are your primary goals.

POINTS	TYPE
14-16	Definitely morning type
11-13	Moderately morning type
9-10	Neither type
4-8	Moderately evening type
0-3	Definitely evening type

This may have just affirmed something you already knew or suspected about yourself, as in yeah this is for sure why I need that morning cup of coffee, or why you get a boost of energy in the evening time that makes you feel like you could take on the world.

Establish a set workout time

This is good for everyone to do, but especially if you are an athlete and wanting to maximize your training time.

Here's why: with repetition our muscles can actually start to anticipate an upcoming workout based on the time of day. Within each of your 600 muscles, there is a little biological clock, each of which are paying close attention to your eating and sleeping patterns.

When they get accustomed to a time of day for training, they will start to make little molecular adjustments in anticipation for training, kind of like your own miniature muscular NASCAR crew, thereby enhancing your performance during the workout. Pretty cool!

Find How to Make Your Routine Stick

Everyone is different, so what works for someone else may not work for you. Don’t force a workout in the morning if it doesn't fit your chronotype. Try changing it up and working out after work instead, or fitting it in on your lunch break.

The same holds true for the opposite, maybe your optimal time is in the morning and it’s time to stop hitting snooze and skipping your workout. If you can, enlist a workout partner, trainer, or group class to join.

Another motivated person is the best way to keep you accountable. I can almost guarantee that if you took 5 minutes to brainstorm a list of these kinds of people, you would come up with several names you could contact.

All changes will require some sort of sacrifice, so it's important you are ready to make permanent changes. Here are several other self-care strategies to make your routine stick!

Develop an Unstoppable Mindset

From supplement companies to diet programs and (some) workout plans and programs, we are being taken advantage of as consumers.

I personally distrust many people and organizations in the fitness industry, as they have found a way to make money off of our basic human weakness.

Think about it, do the contents of your refrigerator match the last fad diet you tried? You probably got tired of buying just raw foods or lemon and cayenne.

There is simply just no easy fix, and don't believe anyone who tells you there is.

This is where you need to reprogram your mindset to cut through the BS and start filtering out all the health misinformation that has bombarded our society.

If you are totally lost, it may be time to enlist the help of a trainer, dietitian, or consult with your doctor to get you on the right track.

Also, please don't hesitate to leave me a question or comment below! I am more than happy to start a conversation with you.

"Your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words. Your words become your actions, your actions become your habits. Your habits become your values, your values become your destiny." - Gandhi

REFERENCES
Schroder, Elizabeth A., and Karyn A. Esser. “Circadian Rhythms, skeletal muscle molecular clocks and exercise.” Exercise and sport sciences reviews, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Oct. 2013, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3866019/.

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