Musings on recovery

I've never really been one to chalk up misfortune to a greater "idea" if you will. 

Those who know me know I hate the phrase "everything happens for a reason." 

There very well may be a “reason” for everything, but growing up has taught me well enough that the reason is most likely a result of my own decisions. 

I was sitting here grasping for writing ideas. 

I thought about comparing fitness to the Autobots mission to save the earth. 

And even have gone so far as thinking about how Mark Wahlberg really isn't as cool as he seems. Which would've been a flopped blog because well... Upon researching, Mark Wahlberg really is as cool as he seems.

Continuing to think about worthless writing. Topics and ideas brought me to conclusion we've all heard 100,000 times before.

recovery is the difference maker.

You may read that sentence and say: “well no kidding, Pat.”

I realize it’s not a revolutionary thought. However, what you may fail to realize is the light in which you place it’s importance under. 

You surely celebrate your physical efforts more so than your efforts to maximize rest and relaxation ( some of you glorify drinking wine more than physical feats though. )

Plus, There are no shortages of Incredible fitness videos on the Internet. 

We're all products of an Internet culture that seems to heavily focus on people who don’t work hard enough.

“Kids these days are soft, people are lazy.” 

Quote after quote, motivational pic after pic, all with the same message: work harder. 

Interestingly enough, we are chasing a result that we largely have no control over. We are desperately trying to motivate people to reach for something they have no interest in achieving, and possibly don’t have the capability of.

We know that various forms of motivation exist. Each ignites a different type of behavior. While external motivation such as our continuous internet banter can be productive, it is often easily forgotten with the next click of the mouse button. When there is no monetary reward, pat on the back, or approval, do the people who feed off these messages still show up?

Who makes this commentary on the laziness of our society? Who posts these quotes, and images? I have, maybe so have you, but we are quite intrinsically motivated. The joy of reaching our physical potential is enough to keep us coming back.

We're all a special breed.

So who are these comments and messages aimed at? They do very little, if anything, for the crowd who is not internally driven. In reality, they are aimed right back at the people who post them up. People like myself who WANT it, but often find themselves coming up short. We like working hard, we choose to do it. 

We hold ourselves accountable to reaching the highest level of what we are capable of. 

When it doesn’t pan out, we need to remind ourselves to work harder. 

Well, here's my "just the tip" of the week:

You need to outline better recovery.

you are motivated and plenty capable of working harder already. 

Let's all redefine what “must” be done. This can only be achieved through finding a better “why” or internal drive. Conversely, what you are capable of is much more.

but what you “must” do is prioritize recovery.

Sounds like a decent way to describe this problem, right? The people you mark as lazy, don’t feel like they must do what you know they are capable of. Your motivation will not sway them.

Your target, which is more than likely yourself, I know with me it is, is the person (you, yes... YOU) whose motivation outreaches their capabilities. 

If you want to progress, boost what you're capable of. What you must do is continually make progress, continually work harder. This is only possible if you are capable of recovering. 

Remember, even Tom Brady takes days off from cheating.

I just wanted to share my thoughts on he importance of recovery, in the future I will put together a post on specific and general recovery methods. 

Patrick Ciera