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Subscribe for FREE wellness Lauren Muney at age 40:
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"Training For the Plateaus" We all want to grow somehow. Some of us want to grow in strength, in muscle, in fortune, in fame, or even in wisdom. Here's the insight about 'change': there will always be the inevitable plateau. A "plateau" is a place where there was once forward-progress and now there is a stagnation. Previously, great successes could have been made and now, there is no forward-progress. It's as if progress grinds to a halt. We were running and then we are standing still - almost as if the rest of the world passes by us. 'The plateau' is frequently discussed in sports and fitness training. Bodybuilders, weightlifters, and speed-athletes are the most notorious: they are always trying to break previous boundaries. In our normal living, the drive is to 'push' through the plateaus. "We need to break through those ceilings and achieve as fast as we can!" People will do anything to move into that higher plane of living or training... we feel imperative to that person to be bigger, faster, stronger. There are whole books written about why we need to break through the sports plateaus so our bodies can't adapt to the current regimen. In fitness, adaptation ends weight-loss. In sports, they believe: if you pause, you lose - somehow. "Breaking plateaus" is feels almost magical. Think about it: it's a high. And we can get to the next destination when we have broken through. However, let's examine what a "plateau" truly is. A plateau is where no identifiable (physical?) progress is made. In the upward-thrust of our desires, the mental image is a dusty, tumble-weed-y flat place. After a height is reached there is a leveling-off. There aren't any gains in speed, in size, in recordable, definable achievement. The weightlifter stays lifting the same amount. The bodybuilder has the same size or weights. The speed-skater doesn't go any faster. The javelin-thrower doesn't gain any more distance on his throw. The dieter sees the scale-needle hovering at the same place. Everyone is looking for the breakthrough. We are always striving, striving, striving. The interesting thing is that takes a lot of work and dedication to get to the place where one is stalled. One has to surpass previous bounds before a leveling-off occurs. This could be considered "resting on your laurels" (the phrase comes from Greek Olympians who won laurel wreaths for their endeavors and never competed again, thus 'resting on their laurels'), or it also could be considered a temporary rest after a long journey - a chance to re-group, assess, and move along that current state. There is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to be better, faster, stronger. This website even advocates it. The trouble comes when you are disappointed and frustrated when you haven't moved up the plane. The trouble comes when you are mentally, emotionally, and spiritually set-back because of the plateaus; the frustration arises when you set your self-worth on the successes, when the final outcome of such a "pause" is innately tied to your self-esteem. If you were thinking that "mental, emotional, and spiritual" aspects are not part of physical training, you need to rethink that: NO aspect of the physical can be achieved without strength and resilience of the other aspects. The "mental, emotional, and spiritual" ARE the framework of all physical endeavors. Without a strong base, even the strongest tower will fall. In truth: However, in the East, there is a different thought. The point of life is to learn how to live on the plateaus. Even bodybuilding legend Dave Draper discusses needing the gifts of the plateau. One of the mainstays of advice for solid training, a man who has been through life's boulder-filled road, identifies the most important factor: staying the course and learning from the journey itself:
Read that Dave Draper states "discipline, courage, and trust":
Dedication. Devotion. Discipline. "Don't be swayed by external circumstances", recommends many spiritual teachers of many faiths: suits the same for athletes and fitness-enthusiasts. Force yourself, if you have to: commit yourself to the training. Are there real changes made in the high points themselves? Possibly, but the real changes occur when 'nothing else' is going on; when everything is supposed to be "routine". Real training comes in the "focus": in the average, disciplined sessions where you have to be mindful and notice every nuance. You are forced to focus, and focus on every detail: using this muscle here, relaxing that muscle there, pushing when you had no more strength to push. Learn what techniques to use. Keep at the practice, the routine. The sheer drudgery, sometimes, of the everyday tradition -- or the sheer bliss of it. . . . you only SEE the changes during the high points. "Training for the plateaus" is what martial artists call it. Training for the times when nothing exhilarating is happening but your discipline is required to move along the path, to learn, to use your new skills to try new things. Through this type of dedication to practice and training, you will move along; I promise you. You may not reap what you expected at first: You may have wanted huge muscles or skinny thighs. Instead (or in addition), you may have gained quiet centeredness, or self-esteem, or grace and dexterity. This internal solidities are the added benefits from practice. One again, I must stress: 'dedication' isn't simply meant "in physical training", but truly, dedication to your values. Values are what "the spiritual" means; this is truly "mind-body" in the deepest sense. But how can we persevere with "dedication"? How can we do it? Every day is an opportunity to be aware of our plateaus - and seek inventive ways to break them. Goal-setting: It's great to have goals. We can't know our progresses if we don't know where we have been and where we see ourselves going. It's actually fun to set our eyes on the horizon: that goal gives us a marker. However, because of plateaus and other life-intruding issues, what if we cannot achieve the original goal? Does that shortfall before the finish-line affect our self-worth? (Think carefully about Olympic bronze or silver medalists: the press acts like they are "losers" of some type. Losers!? With all that training, sacrifice, dedication, and achievement? Just because they don't have a gold medal??) It may even put too much pressure on the individual's "outside" progress and not enough emphasis on the inside progress. "It's the journey, not the destination", may be a cliche' phrase in today's society, but it's true: what we learn on the journey is much more important than the destination itself. Is the goal supposed to be the sole reason we do an activity? Is it the reward we receive...and what does that reward truly mean? Everything is the meaning we give it...
the problem does not come about the goal itself,
but the self-esteem we lose if we do NOT meet the goal. The
goal is a GOAL, not a measure of your worth.
You are NOT worthless if you don't
meet your goal on the first try... or the second try. The point is to
SEEK THE LESSONS ON THE JOURNEY. Go forth and journey. When you reach a plateau, know that it's just your chance to learn while you are there... and you are lucky enough to become challenged to get to the next level. So the plateau is simply a way to realize that you need and extra push, try a new technique, to get to that next level. Don't be frustrated by the plateau - BE GRATEFUL. It's pushing you to where you want to go: improvement. ----------------------- Oh, and what about me, your humble
narrator? I fall down on my road also. Anyone around me can tell you
that. I'm still learning too. ---- Thanks to my inspirations: Dave Draper and
his newsletters, used by permission.
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articles: ENJOY!
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| DISCLAIMER: Any application of the recommendations set forth in this website or in personal consultation is at the reader's discretion and sole risk. The advice and coaching from Physical Mind and Lauren Muney is intended for people in good health. Anyone with medical problems of any nature should see a doctor before starting a diet and exercise program. Even if you have no known health problems, it is advisable to consult your doctor before making major changes in your lifestyle. Any recommendations regarding diet or nutritional treatments should be discussed with your doctor. | |||||||||||||||||
Last website
update:
02/02/2006
Physical Mind Fitness is NOT affiliated with the
PhysicalMind Institute
of Pilates training and certification,
which can be reached at
its own
website.
