A few months ago I received a question from Monica about some problems she was experiencing after her weight training sessions. She found herself sore and achy for days on end and she couldn’t figure out why. Since this problem could have several causes, I split my answer into several parts so I could address them all.
Since she is subscribed to the TPS newsletter, I assume she is following an intelligent strength training program. Two months ago, I addressed getting quality sleep, and last month I discussed ways to enhance her recovery like good nutrition, soft tissue work, and Epsom salt baths.
Now, I am going to address stress management.
This, believe it or not, is the GRANDADDY of them all. As we all (should) realize by now, the body is a system. I like to think of it like an assembly line, and I picture the hilarious I Love Lucy episode where when one part of the assembly line is disrupted, the whole thing turns into a big disaster.
Luckily, with the human body, things don’t typically go awry that quickly, but you get the idea. If you’re like most Americans, and you don’t prioritize stress management, your body could be primarily in a state of “fight or flight” (i.e., sympathetic nervous system activation) all the time. You see, your body doesn’t differentiate between different types of stress, so the reactions to different stressors are similar. For example, when you’re late for a meeting and stuck in traffic, fighting with your spouse, or bouncing a check, your body reacts similarly to when you’re being held at gunpoint, or being chased by a predator. Essentially, your body thinks you’re running from a lion trying not to get eaten ALL. DAY. LONG.
No wonder we are all exhausted.
Another important point to consider, is that we are the only animals who can create our own stress. We sit around all day worrying and stressing, often about things over which we have no control. We allow ourselves to be overworked and underpaid, we say “yes” too often when we don’t want to, and we spread ourselves wayyyy too thin (yes, ladies… I am talking to YOU). Check out this book for more information.
This is actually inspiring a whole other blog post as I type this, so I won’t flesh it out too much here or the post would take five hours to read, but here are the main points:
- Learn to chill. Whenever you feel yourself getting worked up about anything, especially if you cannot control it, stop and take 10 deep breaths. When you are done you will be more relaxed and focused, and hopefully have more perspective on the situation.
- Meditate. Whether it’s prayer, deep breathing, or just laying down and listening to your favorite relaxing music, take 5 minutes a day, once or twice a day to clear your mind and relax. It will be one of the most difficult, but important things you learn to do for yourself.
- Remove unnecessary stressors from your life. Do you HATE chairing that one committee at your children’s school and dread every meeting? Then step the heck down! Let someone else do it who gets enjoyment from it.
Do you have one friend who always calls and just unloads all of their negativity on you and leaves you feeling icky? Have a talk with them about their behavior and let them know that you care for them and want the friendship to fill you both up, not suck you dry. Who knows? You may be just the boost they need to make a change!
Commit to taking care of yourself, so that you can fulfill your responsibilities more fully and with more passion. You might do less overall, but you’ll do it well! - Be filled with gratitude. The other day I worked from 9 am until 11 pm, I was incredibly cranky because our internet was slow at the gym, I was starving because I hadn’t eaten much that day, I felt work piling upon more work, and I felt like everyone wanted something from me. I was about to lose it. I packed up my stuff, got in my car and headed home. On the way home, I started thinking about why I was so upset and I realized:
A) I worked all day because our gym is SLAMMED with new clients, effectively tripling my workload.
B) I was cranky about my internet being slow AT MY OWN DREAM GYM THAT I CO-OWN. Boo freaking hoo.
C) I was hungry at the moment, but my metabolism is healthy enough that I can go hours at a time without eating and not suffer adverse blood sugar reactions, plus I could have stopped at one of the wonderful grocery stores within a two-mile radius and gotten any type of food I desired with the money that was in my pocket. Pretty damn blessed when you think about others who do not have food so readily available, or who have to worry about how they will pay for their next meal.
D) Everyone wanted something from me because people LIKE MY WORK and want to work with me. They feel like I can help them and change their lives for the better. Man that’s humbling. I’m actually in tears as I write that statement. I love my job.
It was that simple. Thinking those thoughts was all it took to turn a stressful situation into an amazing situation. I instantly started chuckling at myself, and just started feeling grateful for my life.
It really *IS* all about perspective isn’t it?
As you can see, stress management is a vital to your overall recovery process and could easily keep you from recovering between strength training workouts. Implement at least one or two tips listed above, and you should start feeling better very quickly.
Molly Galbraith C.S.C.S.
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