Link to Morning Live Class: we had some technical difficulties this morning so you may want to do a general warmup on your own. The workout starts around the 10:00 mark!Link to 4:30 Discussion of Vitality ChallengeSuggested General Warmup:20 Jumping Jacks10 Arm circles forward/10 Backward5 Pushup-to-Pike position10 Air squats10 Good Mornings10 Bootstrappersx3-4Todays workout is all about pace and speed. Monday was full throttle; yesterday we had complexity and moderate intensity; today we are challenged with more "basic" movements in an interval format. I use quotation marks around "basic" because I want you to think about the concept of virtuosity with this workout. What does that mean?Annnnnd here we go...Virtuosity is defined as "doing the common uncommonly well."What does this mean for us? It means that every time we do an air squat, we are checking our movement: am I balanced? Am I keeping my spine straight? Am I getting down to the "bottom" of my squat on each rep? Am I getting full extension with my hips? Am I activating the right muscle groups?... The list could go on and on. But the point is this. Even in movements we have done THOUSANDS of times, we can still find ways to improve.So assume you have the PERFECT squat: your mechanics are dialed in. We can then start looking at other areas: Am I breathing with the right cadence? Am I "pulling" myself down or letting gravity take me? Is there a way I could be more efficient with my movement? Is there a way I could break up the reps in a more strategic way? How is my tempo? What am I doing if I take a break in the middle of my set?Looking at our movement in this way requires a certain amount of maturity. It requires us to be willing to admit we have room to grow. It also requires us a fundamental belief that, as humans, we are capable of growth (growth mindset, anyone?)"But, Nick" I'm sure you are thinking "I can air squat just fine... why do I need to get any better at it?" That's a great question and I am so glad you asked! Here is my response:It's great that you understand the air squat! Seriously, not many people do - so take pride! I also agree that having a "perfect squat" is not that important in the grand scheme of life. IN FACT, it should be pretty far down your list of priorities. (Keep reading)What IS important, however, is the mindset we are fostering when we look at our air squats with a critical eye. If we let our air squat become "good enough," this will likely become the same mentality we bring into other areas of our life: our work, our relationships, our existence.We start settling. We stop growing. We default to "getting by" rather than by learning to thrive. To me, this is one of the great tragedies of our time.So, in todays workout, I challenge you to think about one element: how can you move the needle forward? Even if the benefit is marginal - the mindset you are building is anything but. In Al Pacino's famous speech from "Any Given Sunday" he says this:
"You find out life's this game of inches... The inches we need are everywhere around us; every break of the game, every minute, every second. On this team, we fight for that inch... Because we know when we add up all those inches, thats gonna make the difference between winning and losing. Between living and dying."
Ok, long narrative over! Here is your workout and a little video I put together showing you how a little thing (the tempo of your squats) can make a big difference in the outcome of the workout! I hope this helps. This workout should take right around 24-25 minutes but you need to move fast! (haha?)Catch class tomorrow at 7am on Zoom or watch the recording which will be posted here by 9am.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJi2TdN7apA
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