The Pen Project Volume 1 Issue 2 | Page 42

why exercise ?

Exercise . A word that evokes so many emotions . Equal to the plethora of emotions , are the programs on how to exercise .
Here ’ s the deal , regardless of your emotion or your preferred flavor of exercise , your body was made to move . Movement is a sign of life ; dead things don ’ t move . So as part of having a ‘ living life ,’ we need to move .
My rules of exercise :
1 . Move . Do something . Don ’ t focus on what you can ’ t do ... Do what you can .
2 . Give it your best . It is easy to go through the motions and get through something . Let ’ s not do that with our exercise . How do you know if you are actually giving it your best ? One , you should be sweating . Two , it will be hard to carry on a conversation . If those things aren ’ t happening , then I think you have more in the ‘ tank .’
3 . Repeat and rest . Stay consistent and remember resting / recovery is part of your workout ( especially if you have given your best ).
I ’ d like to introduce a few principles in the next several issues of The Pen Project that help create a solid foundation for moving your body ( exercise ). My hope is that this will help you understand the why and the how about the exercises we will cover .
Principle # 1 . Your body responds to the degree of stress put on it .
Have you been doing the same workout for five years and noted you ’ ve plateaued ? Have you been overworking and under recovering in your workouts and seem to be riddled with chronic issues ? Are you wondering why you don ’ t have the same strength as you did 10 years ago ?
The key here is to understand that we need to stress our bodies enough to allow them to respond , but also without overwhelming them to point of inducing the damaging effects of stress . I think this is why God created a day of rest even for Himself !
Let me introduce to you - High Intensity Short Duration ( HISD ) movements ... Dare I say ‘ exercise .’
I think the best way to illustrate HISD movements is thinking about when you were a kid . Most things were all out for a short period of time : a bike race , a game of tag , or an arm wrestling match with your brother . Then you rested , caught your breath , and then back to the next big adventure of couch flips and crawling headfirst down the stairs .
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