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Shawn Phillips, Well-Being - Written by Shawn Phillips on Monday, June 1, 2009 9:04 - 76 Comments
Forging Your Strength for Life
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It’s time to begin the noble climb from out of the ordinary to the heights of extra-ordinary—an elevation few choose to pursue in their lifetimes.
Take the next six days to complete your preparation in Base Camp so that you’ll be rested and ready to enter your 12 weeks—only 84 days—of training.
4 – 21 Day Sprints
Your body is amazingly adaptive. Ask it to be stronger, and stronger you will become. Challenge it to go farther, and farther you will go. Coax it to be more limber, and more limber it will become. Allow it to mold into the seat of a recliner, and—you got it—a recliner seat it will become. Stretch it, push it, pull it; your body is like cellular Play-Doh® waiting for you to be its sculptor.
Think of the next 12 weeks as your training camp for a strong life. For athletes, training camp is a focused, intensive period of time specifically designed to transform them from their off-season condition to their peak in-season self, physically and mentally.
You’ll find that breaking the 12 weeks into four 21-day “sprints” is helpful in maintaining focus and managing expectations. Your experience will be unique, but, generally speaking, you will encounter each of the following stages:
Stage 1 (days 1 – 21): This stage is about momentum. These few weeks are both challenging and absolutely critical to reaching your full stride. This is the time to align your practice, creating your rhythm and rituals of training and nutrition. Take it one day at a time, for 21 days in a row.
Stage 2 (days 22 – 42): It’s common that people express some frustration or concern if they just aren’t feeling or seeing results at this point. When you’ve been in a good rhythm, doing all the right things, your body will resist change for a while, but then, suddenly, it will be almost as if it starts working with you. This reward is usually enough of a boost to finish this 21-day sprint strong.
Stage 3 (days 43 – 63): This third set of 21 days can welcome a slight plateau. Bolstered by the first spurt of results, you can get a little spoiled—and that’s when things slow a little. Now is your time to double-check your practices, make sure you’re reaching training peaks and hone your nutrition in preparation for the homestretch.
Stage 4 (days 63 – 84): In this final sprint, expect to question if you set your goals high enough. When a few weeks earlier you were filled with doubt, suddenly, it’s as if the force is with you. It’s not uncommon for these last 21 days to produce nearly 50 percent of the measurable results.
Beyond the Body
Approach the next 90 days as you would a great life adventure. Enter with an open mind and a light spirit—and seek to enlighten both.
Expect to be challenged, as life may conspire against you. Yes, that’s right. Things will unexpectedly arise, so be prepared and stay your course.
You will be a stronger person in nearly every way for having done it.
Let your ascent begin.
Shawn
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76 Responses to “Forging Your Strength for Life”
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Ab exercises are a perfect way to build confidence in your body as you can see the results happening. So many people have shame and a lack of confidence in their appearance.
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stomach workouts…
It is great to see a great post that is truly useful and informative. Keep them coming….
Well, I finally got out of base camp. It seems that just as the challenge was starting so many things went wrong. I wasn’t sleeping through the night, which is not normal for me. Not sure if the partial fast was the trigger for some of the sleeping disturbances but I believe my body has adjusted and I am now prepared for the journey. My kids are aware of what I am not to be eating so they help to keep me on track. I have made more fresh fruit available, so even they are eating more of those foods. Although no other family members are joining me in the challenge, my actions may rub off in the end.
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Here I go again. After reading Shawn’s “Strength for Life” I find I need to reboot - again.
Am I behind? Maybe. I am making gains, but am determined to get this right. I’ve been loading my plate with too many events to do justice to all of them. I feel much better and have lost more pounds in the prossess.
I can do better.
All the inputs from my fellow go-getters have inspired me to stay on track.
Thanks, and congratulations to everyone.
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My day 11 is off schedule but I am getting results. I don’t have Sean’s book - yet. However the copy of chapter 5 has me started. Meanwhile, I’m hitting the treadmill for anaerobic/aerobic based on Dr. Al Sears’ PACE workout in preparation for a fun run tomorrow evening in OKC… A nice challenge for myself and a coworker.
Am I going too fast?
I don’t have the proper tools to measure body fat, however, my BMI is down too 24.7 and resting pulse rate is down to 79 ppm.
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Hey Smitty, I have to agree with you about the book. The emphasis on putting mental intensity into each rep and really concentrating on what you’re doing, rather than just going through the motions, makes a lot of sense to me. It also requires discipline and commitment, something that doesn’t come easy in our busy lives.
My HIIT was a bit frustrating. I started off on this lame stair-stepper contraption somebody gave my wife. All it did was make my leg muscles sore, and it was a very unnatural movement. After about 2 minutes it was obvious I wouldn’t be able to use this thing, so I went to Plan B and did my HIIT walking/running through the neighborhood. I found it difficult to consistently alternate the intensity due to the ups and downs of hills, plus being way out of shape. I just pushed through it the best I could, and I’ll figure out how to do it better as I go. The main thing is, I’m doing it!
The ab workout was a killer (to me anyway) but felt good to be building that core strength!
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So those of us already through Base Camp: How was your HIIT today?
My danged heart rate monitor went bust, so I’m not sure how high my HR went, but I felt like I hit 3 or 4 good, chest hammerin’ high points. I’m a bit unsure about the accuracy of the level of my recovery minutes; I never quite caught my breath, but I was able to fire out pretty well, and give the next minute my all. Until about 16 or 17. Couldn’t quite push it as hard anymore.
We’ll see if that improves in the days and weeks to come.
I’m loving this book. I honestly didn’t get it the first time I read it. It seemed so much more… philosophical than the other fitness books I’ve read, including Body for Life. This is one fitness book to savor, and I’m finding new snippets of really good information with each read.
Here’s to Day 10!
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Mike…I meant Borders Book Store. Nat
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