Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Workout of the Day:
Four sets of:
Push Press x 4-5 reps
Rest 2 minutes
Clean Pulls x 3 reps
(perform these with PERFECT mechanics on first pull – chest up, weight balanced over mid-foot, then accelerate through the middle)
Rest 2 minutes;
and then,
Five sets for max calories/reps of:
30 seconds of Rowing (for max calories)
30 seconds of Rest
60 seconds of Burpees (for max reps)
Rest 2 minutes

Integrity is a Habit
Written by George Economou

When I was working as a physical education coach to high school students, I never saw myself as just the guy who was teaching them how to squat.  Maybe it was my seven years in the Corps, or four years at the Naval Academy, or the four years I spent at La Salle Military Academy – yes, I’ve probably been institutionalized – but I saw my chance to work with young adults as an opportunity to help shape more than just their posterior chains.  It may have been a bit unorthodox, but I liked to end at least two classes a week with a leadership discussion.  While those discussions were with a bunch of teenagers, some of the takeaways are just as applicable to adults.

One day I decided to call an audible for the leadership discussion.  We were planning to talk about judgment, but incidents surrounding the workout set us up nicely for a chat on integrity.  The workout was tough, with a fair amount of dumbbell front squats and kettlebell swings.  Several times throughout the workout you could hear kids yelling things like: “Hey, he cheated!” or “He didn’t go down all the way!”  After the workout, there was some back-and-forth between a few of the kids because one accused the other of not doing all the reps and still getting a faster time.  Tempers settled and I sat the whole class down.  I asked the students, “So what does integrity mean to you?”  There were typical responses: “Being honest”, “Doing the right thing, even when no one is looking”, “Having good morals, being reliable and trustworthy.”  Those were all good answers, but we had ten minutes left in class, and I wanted to make them think about it a little more.  Here’s what we concluded:

Integrity is more than doing the right thing, even when no one is looking.  It is the consistency with which we adhere to our morals and values.  If we were to value our family, and our actions reflect that, then we would consider ourselves a person of integrity.  If our actions did not reflect the value we placed on family, then we would lack integrity.  The same logic can be applied to anything else we value.

While we typically define integrity as a character trait, it also applies as a description of the “wholeness” of a thing.  Take, for example, the push-up.  Real push-ups are hard!  Straight line from the back of your head to your heels, no excessive scapular protraction, no sagging hips or piked up butt (tight butt and gut), all the way down (chest to the deck), and all the way up to full lock-out. There’s no sense in attempting a movement if you’re not going to try and maintain the integrity of the movement.  You have to put your ego aside and work the progression that will allow you to maintain the integrity of the movement, and be of the most value for you.

This is not a real push-up.

Integrity is a skill, and skills need to be practiced.  Doing the right thing can be difficult.  Most of the time, we know what it is that we should do, but taking the appropriate action is the hard part.  I’m not a smart man, so I only know one way to make “doing the right thing” easier, and that is practice.  If you consistently make good decisions, it will be that much easier to keep making good decisions.  On the flip side, if you shave reps off a workout, or cheat the integrity of a movement, what are you going to do when you’re faced with a really tough decision or moral dilemma???

Integrity is up to the individual.  We may have the ability to influence the decisions of those around us, but we cannot actually make decisions for them.  Stop worrying about what everyone else is doing and focus on yourself.  This is another time when ego rears its ugly face, when we’re so concerned about keeping up with everyone else that we’re willing to sacrifice our integrity to make it happen.

That’s a lot to absorb for a 15 y/o after an hour of P.E. when it’s 95° outside, and probably a lot for some of our readers.  If you’ve got some time for reflection, ask yourself:
-  What are the things that you value?  If health, fitness, or self-improvement are on that list, are your decisions and day-to-day actions consistent with those values?
-  Have you been maintaining the integrity of the movements and exercises in the gym?  Squatting below parallel on your wall-balls, maintaining the assigned tempos in the exercise prescription, running the extra loop in the parking lot, etc.

If you answered no to either question, ask yourself why.  There’s a good chance that ego is to blame.  If that’s the case, then the solution is easy!  Set your ego aside and remember why it is you’re here.  It’s not so that you can beat everyone else in a workout…it’s so that you can be the best you possible.  Start making integrity a habit.  Start small and practice integrity in your workouts; make every rep perfect.  If you’re consistent in the gym, you will find that it’s easier to make good decisions outside of the gym too!   Before you know it, you will have achieved all of your goals.