There’s a wise ole adage about “working smarter, not harder.”
Some people never figure out how to do so, or flatly refuse to do so. And they pay a heavy price for their unnecessary effort.
“Working smarter, not harder” also applies to exercise, but with a slight twist that I call “train smarter – get stronger.”
When you train, you want to improve. You want to be able to demonstrate increased strength, flexibility, endurance, speed and power. You want to get BETTER.
But at some point, you will not only need to train smarter, you will need to WISE UP.
Wising up is coming to the realization that there will come a time in your life, (and hopefully it is a long way off) where you cannot run any faster, jump any higher, stretch any further, or lift anything heavier.
In the physical world, there are limits.
Many of these limits are self-imposed – but those are not the limits I am writing about.
The limits I am referring to are the physical limits that are placed upon you by nature, or Father Time, or some other factor that we are not totally in control of.
There comes a day when Usain Bolt cannot run as fast as he once did, no matter how much he trains or how much he improves his technique.
There comes a day when Michael Phelps cannot swim as quickly as he once did, no matter how many superfoods he eats.
There comes a day when Babe Ruth can no longer knock the ball out of the park.
And there comes a day when your greatest physical feats can no longer be matched or broken (by you).
You might think this is negative news – but it is actually positive.
Here’s why: When you shift your focus from the physical body to the internal, neurological body (and you do this when you train smarter), you have breakthroughs that you never experienced before – and these breakthroughs are in many ways, superior to the physical. In fact, they may extend your physical abilities much, much longer than you or anyone else ever dreamt possible.
For example, I was at the gym at 1 o’clock this morning – and after doing a series of exercises on the monkey bars, I took a seat on the floor and began to do a series of animalistic postures and stretches.
In the distant past, when I practiced these postures and/or stretches, whenever I felt pain, I would figure out a way to bypass that signal, so that I could make progress. I often pushed myself for more, more, more.
Then one day, I reflected on the “don’t scare yourself” message I learned many years ago at a martial arts seminar. And I shifted my thinking about how to train, no matter what kind of training it was.
How’s it working?
It’s working incredibly well. Last night, at the age of 60, I set two personal records doing something that appears physical, but is, in large part, mostly mental.
How did I set these personal fitness records?
By training neurologically.
By listening to the signals my brain-body sends me as I train.
I used to ignore these signals. I would over-ride them. Now I don’t. I use them as feedback that will help me keep improving what I am doing, even though it appears that I am not trying to improve.
That’s the best part. I spent decades doing it the other way.
Now that I’ve WISED UP, I’m wondering where I would be if I had this approach sooner.
Well, I can’t go back in time – but I can continue to learn and guide others along the path I’m following. It’s a fascinating one.
If you want to get more out of your body, from the inside-out, and for far longer than you’ve ever thought was possible, click here.
Matt Furey
