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Finding Balance, by Matthew Romans

We often hear about the importance of finding balance in life. This is often discussed in the context of juggling work and family responsibilities, school, extracurricular activities, and all the other things that life throws at us. It's not easy to achieve balance in life, and sometimes certain things need to be prioritized while other things are put on the backburner. If you feel as though you're not able to give proper focus to all the things competing for your attention, it might be time to reassess your priorities. Honest self-assessment is a sign of intelligence and maturity.

The concept of balance also carries meaning in terms of your exercise program. The Total Results exercise philosophy is built on a framework of principles from the classical sciences, but it's not a "one size fits all" approach. We use trial and error (especially when dealing with joint injuries) to find the right sequence and selection of exercises for your routine. It is desirable to have a balance of pushing and pulling exercises as well as upper and lower body exercises in order to develop symmetrically. If you do not have this balance, discrepancies in strength between body parts can occur and the risk of injury can increase.

As has been discussed in previous articles, we want to inroad (fatigue) the musculature deeply enough to create a stimulus without digging too deeply into our recovery ability and thwarting progress. This requires a balance. Exercise has a narrow therapeutic window, much like medication. Too little exercise will not create stimulus, while too much exercise has a toxic effect on the body. This is why we need to strike a balance between exercise frequency, volume, and intensity; in reality, we want the minimum dosage of exercise necessary to elicit the stimulus. Also factoring into your exercise dosage is the amount of activity you perform outside of your regular Total Results workouts. Additional activities that are physical in nature can certainly have their virtues from a stress relief and recreational point of view, but be careful not to overdo it. It is possible to balance both entities.

Striving to achieve balance is also relevant when we talk about dealing with the mental stresses that occur during a workout. Think about it: you're trying to process information from your instructor while moving slowly and carefully, and at the same remembering to breathe freely. On top of that, you're experiencing significant exertional muscular discomfort. This requires a calm demeanor and open mind; in other words, balance! Nowhere is this more evident than when performing the lower turnaround of any exercise. The key is to let off the force just enough to bottom out without unloading the musculature, while also avoiding firing out on the next repetition. This is something that requires patience, discipline, and a balanced mindset.

You can also use this balanced approach when incorporating intermittent fasting, selecting the foods you will consume, supplementation, exposure to sunlight, and your sleep habits.

Every Total Results client is different; that is what makes the job of exercise instructor challenging and interesting. No matter what your individual differences are, you can make a balanced mindset work for you in your quest to optimize your genetic blueprint. Total Results can help you achieve the balance that you need to safely maximize your results in minimum time. Don't put it off any longer!

Posted November 02, 2020 by Matthew Romans