Kids & Specialization

Dearest parents, your child will be best off if you assume that your little one is NOT the next sports superstar, and you let him/her lead a normal, well-rounded childhood.

I know it's hard not to put all your belief in your precious darling, but not one person has ever claimed parenting to be easy. Hard decisions are daily, are they not?

Dr. James Andrews, who has performed countless career-saving surgeries on top-level athletes and is perhaps the most famed sports surgeon on the planet, was recently quoted in the Orlando Sentinel as saying, “Don’t treat 6- and 7-year-old kids like they’re professional athletes. They’re not ready for that level of high-intensity training.”

He extended that message for youth athletes at older ages, pleading for time off between seasons and within sports to help curb the rash of injuries incurred by young athletes.

http://www.admkids.com/news_article/show/637413-fomo-and-youth-sports-specialization

On Movement

One of my faves, Krista Scott-Dixon, lays out why we move...and it isn't to whittle a six-pack.

As humans, we move our bodies to express our wants, needs, emotions, thoughts, and ideas. Ultimately, how well we move — and how much we move — determines how well we engage with the world and establish our larger purpose in life.

If you move well, you also think, feel, and live well.

As someone who was initially motivated to move by aesthetic reasons, but quicly transitioned to enjoying the movement itself, I wholeheartedly endorse everything she says here.

http://www.precisionnutrition.com/healthy-movement

You Are More Than Your Body (Fat)

Neghar, bless her smart heart, has a great post here:

In the last few years, I’ve had the extreme pleasure of fully regaining my worthiness and completely detaching it from my physique. A number of these universal truths contributed to that process.

I want to share five mindset shifts that helped me in my process, and that you might find helpful as well, whether you’ve just begun your journey to body acceptance, or you’re well on the way.

Great stuff: https://www.girlsgonestrong.com/your-body/

Three Big Rocks

Three simple, vital reminders on sleep, training, and recovery - a quick read, and maybe a very timely refresher:

http://whole9life.com/2015/01/3-things-you-should-know/

How To: MED

Two good posts regarding Minimum Effective Dose training, something I struggle with.

If you, too, want to do more more more all the time, please read & absorb the lessons shared here:

https://jmortontraining.wordpress.com/2016/04/28/how-to-minimize-gym-time-and-make-room-for-the-rest-of-life/

http://www.niashanks.com/doing-too-much/

A Cover Girl Lays Bare

This is heartbreaking. I suspect just about any model could have written this sad story.

Due to the stimulants of nicotine and caffeine, and the gnawing hunger pains, I rarely slept. Even when I tried to lie down I was jacked up and restless, barely able to shut my eyes. So I took pills to sleep. What a gnarly existence. So many vicious cycles they're impossible to trace. I slept about an hour a night. But sometimes I was so tired from partying, jet lag and an utter lack of nutrition, that I'd stay asleep for 15 hours straight. As you can see, insecurity and the endless desire to look perfect were the only consistent things in my life.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/lifestyle/fashion/the-truth-about-modelling-what-i-wish-i8217d-said-to-my-fans/story-fni0dflu-1226700441983

Fitspiration Takedown

Fitspiration is one of those many things that means well (I hope) but encourages unhealthy extremes and bullshit thinking and actually reinforces the same shit that society tells us: it's all about how you look. It's not how you feel each day, not the little daily-life things that get easier, not the energy you have to play tag with your kids.

No, those things aren't enough. You must beat yourself to a pulp to look like the cover of the magazine, only it's a fitness magazine, so, you know, it's better.

NO.

The fitness industry—from gyms to clothing manufacturers—collectively produces more propaganda than North Korea, a lot of it just as crazy.

http://reembody.me/2013/09/10/the-6-most-shockingly-irresponsible-fitspiration-photos/