Let's Get Going
Let’s Get Going
By Shane Sauer
Happy February! Are you hoping the groundhog sees his shadow tomorrow?
Personally, I am always torn. I do prefer the warmer weather, but hockey and snowboarding are two of my favorite activities and I don’t mind the cold as long as it is white outside. So when we get snow like this past weekend, I get pretty excited to go outside and play.
For many people, however, that is not the case. Trying to increase activity in the winter can be very challenging.
If that sounds like you, don’t fret. There are many things that you can do. But before you start increasing activity, we need to talk about stress. What it is and how it works.
How do you define stress? Is it good or bad? Is it the same for everyone?
My definition of stress is anything that has the ability to take you out of your comfort zone.
When any amount of “bad” stress is applied, your performance decreases. You can think of “bad” stress as the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
When a reasonable amount of “good” stress is applied it can help you improve your performance. That is what training does for athletes and the pressure of the game does for the great ones.
The questions you should now be asking are:
What are “good” and “bad” stresses?
What defines a reasonable amount?
The beauty and the challenge of these questions is that the ultimate answers lie with you.
To help you identify the “good” and “bad” stresses in your life, consider these generic identifiers:
Good Stress
Short-Lived
Infrequent
Has a Positive Connotation
Inspirational
Builds You Up
Bad Stress
Long-Lived
Repetitive or Constant
Evokes Negative Emotions
Demoralizing
Breaks You Down
Can you identify some stresses in your life that you would consider good and bad? Knowing this is a great starting point to designing the best activity increase for you.
Over the next few blogs, you’ll learn to identify your baseline stress levels and start to figure out what defines a “reasonable amount” of stress for you.
Once you know this for yourself, you’ll be able to get moving with the confidence that you are doing what is best for your body and your health.