Go Be Fit!

The body knows what it needs. Since recovering this past year from two knee surgeries, I am paying close attention to what my body is telling me. This used to be a challenge for me. Stretching was not something that I did as an athlete and active person. I was so used to pushing and going that slowing down to stretch was not an integral part of my lifestyle. Now it is – I have recently returned to my yoga practice. It feels like a homecoming. How could I have been so neglectful of my body – my temple? Sounds sappy but it’s so true.

Yesterday my left calf was aching, telling me to take a moment and stretch, which is what I did. Rather than ignore the signal, I heeded the call. Ah – yes – a gentle stretch brings such relief to the mind and body. The other day after a cardio workout my right TFL and IT band was tight, so I rolled out the band on my foam roller. I know the signs.

How often do most of us with our busy lives take a moment to check in and listen to our body? Take a moment to answer this question.  For me, stretching has become a daily routine. I begin my day with some gentle stretches. By the afternoon my muscles are tight and need attention, so I seize the opportunity to stretch once again. It’s like eating a delicious snack. My favorite part of the day is the evening, when I can lie on the floor and do a floor based routine.  

My clients know that stretching is an integral part of a holistic fitness program. Feel free to email me for some suggestions if need be, or better yet, listen to your body. Most likely it will tell you what needs stretching.

One of my clients happily greeted me at the door today with this welcome, “Beth, you’ve got to see my bone density report. I am so pleased – there’s major improvement!” (Great news for her upcoming 60th birthday!) I read the report and we both smiled proudly. We knew she has been working so diligently to reverse some mild osteopenia of the hip and spine. Bottom line – strength training pays off in a big way for both middle aged women and men. This client has made so many gains in the past two years – she’s fitter, stronger, and healthier.

An avid gardner, one Sunday afternoon I happened to see her lifting and hauling a heavy pot that must have weighed over sixty pounds. She lifted it with minimal effort like it was a feather. At our next session – I complimented on her great physical capacity. She said that it was all because of me and our consistent work together. I laughed and said, “It’s all about you!” Talk about applying strength training to real life activities like gardening, this is where being fit and strong pays off in a big way. 

My left-handed husband recently broke the middle finger of his left hand, during an attempt to remove an air conditioning unit. What ever possessed him at 1:00 a.m. to do this beats me. I was minding my own business as any tired woman would do at 1:00 a.m., sleeping soundly, until I was awoken by the screams of my dear husband. Trust me – my husband screaming in pain is not a pleasant sight to behold or hear – a rare one indeed.

The moral of the story is this:  a finger, a knee – all it takes is a fluke, one quick mindless or slow deliberate move and oh – no, injury rears its ugly head. His left hand is wrapped in a bandage for now and I am filling in for him, opening the tabs of his favorite soda (healthy of course), tearing the plastic off of fortune cookie wrappers, to even reading his fortune – “Something will happen in your life and you will have a new found appreciation.” He most certainly does for his dear finger, and his temporarily disabled and immobilized limb. Thank goodness that this too shall pass!

I am not referring specifically to my brain or yours for that matter, I am speaking about the bestselling book “The Female Brain,” by Louann Brizendine, M.D. I completed this book in record time and was deeply disappointed. For a highly credentialed  neuropsychiatrist, I had expected a riveting and informative read. On the contrary, this book was so poorly written that it was an insult to the female and male brains who would read it in the hopes of discovering something new about female gray matter.

Perhaps the author attempted to make the book accessible and marketable to the public, therefore she opted for a simplistic style, a breezy beach read, rather than a challenging late night read. Secondly, I felt that Brizendine stereotyped both men and women. It seemed that most of the women in her book were white, married or divorced upper class American professionals (like herself) who did not necessarily represent or speak to the experience of the rest of us women out there.  Where were the African American, Latina, or Gay women?  They were clearly invisible in this book. Are all of our brains the same – I’ll have one female generic brain to go please – could I get a side order of estrogen with it please??? Brizendine – how dare you infuriate us?

For example, she describes the typical female brain at adolescence to be so ditzy that it’s owner is preoccupied with shopping, talking on the phone, looking in the mirror and pursuing boys. I don’t personally recall this to echo my experience, although my adolescence was eons ago. Neither do I recall a similar experience when my daughter was an adolescent. She had poetry, music, soccer, and art on the brain….ok, I admit there may have been a boy here and there. Brizendine tackles a crucial and fascinating subject, yet falls short of enlightening the female or male brain for that matter! (No pun intended)!

Recently I was the target of blatant bias. I was defined, labeled and stereotyped in a few quick sentences by a female acquaintance/professional colleague who declared with absolute certainty and I will add absurdity, “When I met you I thought you were a Lesbian.”  I asked her why, even though I had a clear idea of what she was going to say. Her succinct reply was, “You have short hair and you’re buff.” I thought that she would stop there and realize her faux pas, but no such luck, she proceeded to claim,” I think you’re butch too!”  

Wow – I chewed on her thoughts for a brief moment. I wanted to spit them out right into her mouth like a wad of stale gum, so she could retract them and choke on her words. No such luck. However, thank goodness that I have a delightful sense of humor, which prevented me from doing or saying something that I would immediately regret.

Stunned and quite angry at the ignorance, stupidity and audacity of this woman, I calmly inquired, – “What are you talking about? Just because a woman has short hair and is buff doesn’t make her a Lesbian or butch for that matter! You’re stereotyping me and that is dangerous practice!” Her response, “We all stereotype and judge one another.” Maybe so, we are all human but that’s no excuse for stereotyping.

I thought: How dare someone draw conclusions or make assumptions about my sexual orientation based on my appearance. Yet, this happens all the time. People define others when they can’t even define themselves. They label, judge, assume for many reasons – fear, ignorance, hatred, etc. And yet, here was a smart woman, who I had previously respected, perpetuating a stereotype – and there I was – the recipient.

I realize that while others will label and make assumptions about me – I and only I can define myself. It’s true, I may be a buff woman with short hair – there is so much more to me. If you or someone you know is a target, speak out and fight back with your calm and wise words.  If you are stereotyping others – cease fire immediately and take a good look at yourself as to the reasons why. 

How many times have I heard women declare this to me. What’s the difference between bulk or tone? I don’t see one. I want muscle the real thing, just like the guys. I don’t want to settle for tone when I can have mass and lots of great mass. I retort quickly – “You won’t bulk up!” Bottom line – women need their strength just as much as men do. It is imperative that women maintain their strength throughout their life, particularly as they age.

I just turned 50 this year. I want to be able to haul, lift, drag, push, pull, heave and sweat for the remainder of my life! I’m not talking about lifting 3 or 5 pound weights for years on end, thinking that it’s making me strong. Women need to stop cheating themselves by lifting light. Why do we do this? Is it because it’s easy? It’s not feminine? It’s not safe? I can blast all of those myths: Most women are far stronger than they think or know. This is the powerful message that I deliver to women on a daily basis, whether you are 18, 32, 50, 76 or 90 – you need your strength.

Women need to lift heavy weight. Yes – you read it – heavy. For those of us who have picked up a fifty pound child on a daily basis, or hauled a 40 pound suitcase in one hand from one end of the airport to another – we call on our strength regularly and we know that our strength is invaluable. We are independent, healthy and strong – what woman wouldn’t want that?

Thank goodness that I don’t have a third or a fourth knee. If I were a four legged creature, I’d be in trouble! I’ve had two surgeries on both knees this year. That’s a record and I don’t plan on breaking any more this year. God knows that I’ve blogged plenty about my left knee. Now I’ll blog about the right.

Ok – here goes: A few days later and I can already feel a vast difference between the outcome of both surgeries. I can walk, bend my knee to almost 90 degrees range of motion, have no pain, or stiffness. This is a great sign that the knee joint won’t become arthritic, which means a quicker recovery. Trust me – the last seven months were challenging physically and mentally. As a result, I have a new perspective, a new relationship with my knees – my stability and mobility will never be taken for granted again.

I am elated and feeling great. I attribute this joy to my five months of hard work and preparation as I rehabbed the left knee in physical therapy and in my own training program. I went into this surgery far more mentally and physically prepared. I wish this for anyone who has minor or major surgery. Be prepared, which means being educated – know what to expect, ask questions, get a second opinion if need be. Do whatever it takes to aid in your healing. Bottom line – Be an active participant in your health.

I am strong, flexible, fit and healthy. Last Thursday, I felt like a beast who rose from the depths. Today, I am myself and I plan on taking good care for as long as I can. I hope you will too!

This has been my year for knee problems. I guess that everyone has their year at one time or another in their life. This is the first time that I have ever dealt with two knee surgeries, rehab, and chronic pain in one year! That’s a bit much to take for one year. In December I had surgery on my left knee, next week it’s my right. I spent five long months in physical therapy with the left.

50 years of pivoting, cutting, twisting, jumping, running and it makes sense that my right knee has suffered some. Let’s fact it, there is wear and tear on the knees and joints. The timing is never right for the news of surgery let alone rehab post surgery.

If you know me, you know that this has not been easy for me. Knees are precious. I need them especially because I am active, I rely on them for my life and my livelihood need I say more. So what do I do? Do I stop all activity and succumb to the necessity of limiting my activity? No – that is not a possibility for me. I am not one to give up. Do I remain active and make the necessary modifications? Yes – I have done it before and will do whatever it takes to heal.

The word heal is so crucial to my recovery. I hear so many clients and people who had had joint problems say, “Oh that’s my bad knee,” or “Oh, it’s just my bum hip.” I refuse to utilize the term bad. The knees are a part of my body. I will not reject them. Yes, they were injured, but they are not bad. They need my attention, my positive energy, not negative. So as I go into this surgery and look forward to recovering well, I will say and believe, “Oh, those are my knees – they are healing now!” After all, they are still my knees after 50 great years of service.

Last week while watching the brilliance of the Williams sisters struggling and shining at Wimbledon I pondered the path of the underdog. Serena was seeded low and Venus even lower. The juxtaposition of Serena clutching her calf as she writhed in pain and Venus adeptly hitting each shot from every location on the court was an accurate example of what great athletes face in gritty competition like Wimbledon. I hoped that one of them would win the championship. In the end, Venus prevailed and made Wimbledon history along with the greats. She fought back from being seeded at 23. This is the reason why the underdog is always the real hero.

How fortunate I was to be able to attend this incredible summit that was sponsored by Perform Better. The best fitness professionals in the industry were on site to present their own training systems. For example, there was Juan Carlos Santana – a fitness rockstar (not Carlos Santana), creator of the J/C bands, energetically demonstrating how to use his bands for great training efficiency. As usual, Santana rocked the house full of trainers, coaches and physical therapists.

Then there was Gray Cook, inventor of the “FMS or Functional Movement Screen,” which I learned is a simple and no nonsense way to assess clients by watching them move through a series of five to seven carefully sequenced exercises. This program gives trainers a snapshot of their clients and enables them to address the weak links in their system. Yes – we all have weak links as I discovered while doing this screening.

Clearly functional training is where it’s at! I’ve known this for quite some time. We don’t train or isolate body parts. We train the person – you, me, your mother, father or your great grandmother. We don’t train your mother’s triceps so they won’t jiggle. We train the whole system – all the joints and muscles as a unit.  

It takes brains and knowledge to do this for each client and humor and compassion of course! All of the presentations at the summit gave me plenty of tools and resources to process and to utilize in client programming. After all, I want my clients to be healthy and fit. I want them to enjoy life by making them stronger, more flexible, resilient – the list goes on.

I noticed a common denominator at this summit – every presenter and trainer I encountered was humble, smart, and had a great sense of humor. There was no ego. There was no hype or fluff. It was the real thing – training is not about hype and fluff! I highly recommend this summit and hope to be there next year.  I love the energy and vibe of a room full of fitness professionals. This summit is not for the faint of heart – trainers are hands – on, they experiment, they try it on – they laugh at themselves lifting heavy kettlebells, squeezing a huge med ball between their thighs or losing balance in a one legged squat. What the hell – we all want to perform better so it’s functional for the sport of real life!