Santa Claus & Soul Crushing Workouts

There’s a myth as untrue as the Easter Bunny in fitness that still has legs apparently. The myth goes on to say that great training is soul crushing. You’ll know when you’ve made some real progress when you’re flat on your back, nearly dead. “No pain, no gain,” right?

Untrue.

Coaches are put in the most precarious of positions as observers of human nature. We see the best of people and we see the worst of people. We see their insecurities magnified by the thought of training. We see empowerment appear in the lives of people who previously had none. We see the best of humanity when people overcome adversity and accomplish more than they can ever dream of, and we see the dark parts, too, when people lie, cheat, and quit.

I can’t name the number of times I saw someone believing in this fantasy that we must crush ourselves to make progress. Optimal training makes progress, not bloody hands and paralyzing soreness. It’s easy to do too much. It’s hard to be smart.

Training isn’t about how much you can put up with. Training is about stimulus and response. If you need to be flat on your back to feel like you’ve accomplished something, I’ve got news for you. There’s no Santa Claus, either.

 

Logan Gelbrich

@functionalcoach