mental toughness

On: Rehabilitation / Prehabilitation

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The best way to recover from an injury is to not have an injury.

Other than the sort you simply cannot predict, the majority of injuries are caused by poor preparation or the inability to adapt dynamically to the situation.

Rehabilitation goes through three main stages.

  • Pain management
  • Ranging
  • Loading

First, control the pain. This is both passively and actively. Once the pain is a under control, it is a return of function, within that pain free zone. Optimise the range of motion, or activity that is available without causing excessive complaint. Finally, the loading phase, where we return to activity, initially graded and then competition.

This is, of course, a gross simplification of the tasks at hand, offers no insight into the variety of techniques considered, but is offered as a thought guide for the observer.

As stated at the beginning, the best rehab is prevention, through prehab. Prepare better, prevent problems.

Everybody has a weakness, a compromise point, or an area that appears to be less effective, so train those out to become more capable.

Seek professional input if you are prone to niggles, seek professional input for coaching if required and build steadily. Social media is not your coach, a search engine doesn’t replace a doctor.

On: Consistency

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You are what you do.

Not what you think, read, talk about or present online. They all play a role in your self talk, but they are not you.

You are what you do. Just as your body is made up of what you consume, your mind is as well.

Choose your inputs for your desired outputs.

Want to be functionally more effective? Model those who are, with applied thought. Want a different path? Observe, reflect, change and do.

Not everyone has the physiology to be an Olympic athlete, not everyone has the mental capacity to be a theoretical physicist, but you are far more capable than you think.

So find those current boundaries and explore them, supporting yourself with good inputs, solid relationships and measurable outputs.

We are here to help you start that journey, from physical therapies to starter PT concepts.

Upgrade the mind, optimise the body.

The basics of positive mental health

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Firstly, if you reached this via a random search on the internet and are feeling stuck, buried under unmanageable pressure, in a corner or suicidal, breathe.

If that is you now, if you have a plan, if you’re looking for ways to end your life, if it’s so dark that the relief of knowing how is a comfort, stop. Please. Call a mate, phone Samaritans, if you think you’re going to OD or have, get yourself to A&E.

If you need to self harm to relieve the pain, to give you something to focus on, try ice cubes. Squeeze them in your hand and feel the burning cold. Put down the sharp blade and open a window.

When we, as professionals, talk to people who’ve cut or attempted suicide after we’ve stabilised them, they almost all regret it. Most attempts are a cry for help, to get attention, to put down the enormous burden, to ask someone to take over, just for a while, to deal with the crap life has handed you.

If this is you, I’m sorry. I have no idea what demons you’re fighting but I do know that so many have been there before you and there is a solution, somehow. But the never ending darkness is not it. There are charities who are there to support you, pathways in place to show you that, however dark it is now, there is a way forward.

Please note that this is not about mental illness. This is not about PD, psychosis, mania or depression. These are the kind that leaves you debilitated and requiring professional assistance. For those who have such things, it is important that the rest of us do not stigmatise them, help support them in any way and be conscious that we are all a few steps and some genes away from their situation.

For the rest of us, who live every day with our own mental health, it is thankfully starting to become more commonly talked about in recent years. The typical English attitude of stiff upper lip and crack on is slowly becoming more less expected, but the underlying causes of poor mental health is less commonly discussed.

Positive mental health is much more of a holistic approach, a way of recognising that body and mind are inextricably linked, that we can influence those around us and by intercepting negative trends, and that we may be able to prevent or minimise darker times.

The sketch above shows the basic pyramid of mental health.

Positive health choices are obvious in retrospect. Avoiding drugs that effect mental state (alcohol, cannabis, tobacco, illicit chemicals), taking regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, getting sufficient rest.

Regular life patterns play a more subtle role. We all have a circadian clock, a biological rhythm that governs eating, sleeping, and even more complex processes. But we also have a human need for regularity. For work, for seeing friends, for doing things we enjoy. If we neglect this, or it is removed from us, we soon notice its absence.

Positive relationships make more sense. We have all had relationships that drag us down, that make us feel less than we like to be. These can be personal, romantic or work, but their effect is pernicious and corrosive.

We can tolerate shifts in any one of the points for a period of time, for example poor health choices by eating too much, drinking too much or not resting enough, but if we also have a few unsupportive or negative relationships and no regular life pattern then we are in a slippery slope to poor mental health.

Mental health is a gift to be nurtured, shared and to be grateful for.

When the going gets tough;

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Stop.

Breathe.

Think: Do I really need to be putting myself through this, is there a more efficient way?

 

If you’ve been banging your head against the same problem 42 times, perhaps the 43rd attempt won’t solve it either.

If its a workout, or a programmed training session, then dig in buttercup, the outcome is worth the effort. The same if its a challenging work scenario with a defined goal.

But if the task has no defined goal, no finishing line and seems apparently insoluble, then perhaps you need to take a break and reflect.

It could be that someone has been down that route before and talking to experts could save you hours of time.

It could be that “we’ve always done it that way” isn’t actually the best anymore.

And it could be that, however good your intentions, the goal isn’t going to fit your long term plan.

Stop, breathe, think.

Then get going again.

 

 

Be Ready….

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If you can run 10k in 40 minutes but not carry your buddy 200 yards, are you ready?

If you can squat twice your bodyweight but can’t even run for a bus, are you ready?

If you can walk for hours with a pack but can’t climb a rope, are you ready?

If you can’t swim 25m in a pool, clothed, are you ready?

You never know what life will throw at you. It may be carrying a sick child home from a day out, helping a friend move house, walking across town because the traffic is messed up, or even being caught up in a situation where your skills and fitness are vital to keep yourself, and those you’re responsible for, safe.

Chris Hadfield, in his book “An Astronauts Guide to life on Earth” has a point about being a zero.  You might not be a direct asset to the situation at hand, but you really don’t want to be a burden. Being fit and ready to respond makes you a better zero.

We all like to think we’re fit, but have no idea what that actually means. Being able to run 10k fast is a skill but if you’re washed out for a week after, that isn’t so great. Being built like a rugby prop is useful, if you play rugby. But those guys and girls can also run very fast (at least the professionals), can you?

For its many detractors and weaknesses (not enough endurance based cardio respiratory training in most boxes), crossfit and its like offers a great way of being a better human. Not only do you get faster, fitter and stronger, you can develop mobility and recovery.

Of course, you don’t need to join an expensive box to improve. A few basic kettlebells, sandbag and jump rope are all you need to start.

And get some first aid training. The basics really are basic but could save your life and those who you love.

So be a better human and a positive asset to everyone around you. Get after it.

Linked below is a basic training plan and ready guide. It assumes you can move without pain but little else. Caveat: See a medical professional before starting any new form of exercise plan to make sure it isn’t going to kill you.

Be Ready V2

Open 16.4, its mental

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Scaled Workout

13 minute AMRAP

  • 55 Deadlifts @61kg
  • 55 Wall balls, 9kg to 9ft
  • 55 Cals row
  • 55 hand release pushups

Watching a team mate at the gym struggle through 16.4, it was interesting to note the effect of his mental state on his performance.

I know, from having trained with him, that he is stronger and better than me at all of the moves needed.

But for some reason, he was scared of it. He’d backed out at least once and finally had to face it to get an open score.

Training was not able to parse into competition and this is something you can see frequently. Strong guys and girls crumble under pressure and they perceive themselves as failing.

Dry run it. See the success in your head and take it on from a position of winning before you lift the bar the first time.

And in the end, he did well, getting a full round in before the clock ran out.

Can’t does not exist

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Not only is it a contraction of cannot, it is a word that disempowers us all. You cannot do that, I cannot do this. These phrases mentally weaken us by throwing up barriers that restrict our perspective.

Instead, reframe the statement. From I cannot, move to what is stopping me? With almost every goal and outcome, there are obstructions, whether physical, social or psychological. Some of these are with good reason and purpose (you cannot jump off the top of the london eye, for example), but for almost everything else, with a change in the way the statement is created, a path and a way forward can be discerned. From identifying what you want to achieve, it is possible to understand the knowledge you need to gain, the skills that can be learned and so step by step, move closer to where you wish to be.

We can get better, because we’re not dead yet.

Frank Turner Get Better

 

One foot in front of the other 

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The oft quoted line is “A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step”

What’s conveniently ignored is the subsequent steps. The ones up hills, through blizzards, rain and so forth. Inevitably our mythical mystic would have encountered these but they are brushed under the metaphorical mat unless pertinent to the retelling. 

A better narrative might be the one that admits such adversities and encourages progress and learning in spite or through the challenges. 

The trick is to maintain momentum, use easy moments to help carry over the harder ones and to accept that all things must change, all things have an end. 

In a running race, use the down and flat to recover, in a lifting competition, tactics, in the pool, don’t fight the water when tired and in life, take delight in the simple pleasures before the fading light. 

Semper Pergendum Sine Timore

Forward without fear!