ARF NEWSLETTER 001
your fitness over the holidays, training for the spring, and my favorite recovery tools
THE TACTICS:
In creating this newsletter, one of the main goals I had was to take all the questions and issues that arise in coaching clients, training myself, and in my dm’s and distill them into actionable, educational bits that you can use in your life. Over the years, certain things arose again and again, yet few came up as often as how one handles the holidays when they genuinely care about their fitness. The first issue of this newsletter just so happens to be coming out while the holiday season is in full swing, so with that in mind - how exactly do you handle your fitness goals over the holiday season?
I’ll start off by by stating the important fact that you will not gain meaningful progress over the holidays and you will not lose meaningful progress over the holidays.
Notice how I say “meaningful”. What I mean by that is that if you stick to your dialed in workout schedule and nutrition plan over the holidays, you’re not going to be making significant gains over someone who skips the gym for a week or two and ditches the chicken and broccoli for champagne and cookies. A week or two does not make long term results.
That being said, in my time in the fitness industry, I’ve seen the pendulum swing from the aggressive “stay disciplined, stay hard” side all the way over to the coddled “eat the cookies, sweetheart!” side of things. I don’t love either extreme, and luckily neither are mandatory to staying fit (or unfit) over the holiday season. Like most things, the best option tends to sit firmly in the middle. Enjoy the holidays, yes. But don’t turn them into an excuse to become a sedentary pile of cookie crumbs and champagne corks.
Here’s the nutrition, training, and mindset protocol I would recommend for the best of both worlds:
From a nutrition standpoint, understand what things make the holidays special and what things don’t. Baking cookies with family on Christmas Eve? Special - eat the cookies. Picking at leftovers by yourself on the 27th? Not special - stick to your normal plan. Holiday work party? Enjoy the drinks. Lunch the next day? Hit your macro targets. Asking yourself the question “does this add anything to the holiday experience?” is a decent way to stay on track when everything that’s coming your way can be perceived as such. Be honest with yourself about what is actually special and what’s just an excuse to go off track.
Get your movement in. It can be exceedingly difficult to make the time to get into a gym to hit your programmed workouts over the holidays. Travel changes things, gym hours change, and you might not have access to the usual comforts of your gym. That doesn’t mean you can’t get some movement in. Go for a walk, a run, do a follow along ab workout on youtube. It doesn’t matter what it is, just get your movement in. Not only will you benefit from the movement and extra calorie expenditure (not enough to “undo” any damage, so drop that thought from your head) but you’ll be far more likely to make better decisions around the food you eat if you start your day with some movement.
Hold yourself properly accountable and be honest with the standards you hold yourself to. Ultimately, you can throw caution to the wind and be a bump on a log over the holidays. No one cares. But don’t wake up on January 1st wondering where it all went wrong the last couple weeks.
Remember, you have to align your actions with your goals and until you do that, you’ll never get to where you want to be.
There’s always a balance to be struck. If you get your movement in, stay honest to the goals you have for yourself, and eat what matters and avoid what doesn’t, you should be well on your way to successfully navigating the holiday season.
p.s. save this for the next time you go on vacation - the same protocol applies.
THE TRAINING BLOCK:
Fresh off of running the New York Marathon in November, I’ve spent the last six weeks in a “rebuilding” phase with my training. Ultimately, that’s equated to more time in the gym, less time on the road, and more food on my plate. Having just nine weeks to get in marathon shape for New York (a product of not knowing I had the opportunity to run until nine weeks out) required an aggressive approach in both my training and nutrition. I cut down my gym time significantly, dropped my calories to lean out, and upped my mileage. It wasn’t an ideal way to go about training and my strength in the gym suffered because of it, but it was a result of the timeframe of my decision and in the end, I performed well and was decently happy with my results. The focus of this current program is to build back any lost strength and muscle in the gym whilst maintaining a strong aerobic base for my upcoming spring marathon build. What that’s looking like is as follows:
MONDAY: UPPER PUSH STRENGTH
TUESDAY: LOWER STRENGTH + ROWING ERG
WEDNESDAY: 8km RUN
THURSDAY: UPPER PULL STRENGTH
FRIDAY: LOWER STABILITY/UPPER ACCESSORY
SATURDAY: LONG RUN/RIDE
SUNDAY: REST/5km EASY RUN
.2 MILES INTO THE 26.2
It’s worth noting that in our current age of “hybrid athletes” all over social media, that often times if you aim at two targets, you miss both. Training to look like a bodybuilder whilst wanting to hit a sub 3hr marathon can be a fruitless endeavor. Breaking your year into properly programmed and focused training blocks will allow you to point aim at any weak points or goals in your fitness/physique and build accordingly.
THE KIT:
If I have a vice, it’s that I like nice things. For any bad that comes with that, there comes a whole lot of good - mostly in the form of nice things. Whether it’s in the gym or out of the gym, I try to seek out the best kit available. Luckily, that doesn’t always mean the most expensive. Below are some of my favorite pieces of recovery gear that came as a result of my vice.
Normatec 3 Legs : air compression sleeves for your legs to help aid in recovery. They’ve gotten me through many long days on the saddle and on the track.
Theragun Pro: percussive massage device. I’ve used theraguns of varying size for many years. I never want to live without one.
Pso-Rite: Probably the best tool on the market for releasing muscle tightness. Simple but incredibly effective.
Acumobility Ball : If you’ve ever used a lacrosse ball for tight muscles, think of this as the evolved version. I was introduced to the brand at a conference several years ago and have had one in my gym bag ever since.
RumbleRoller: If you’ve ever used a foam roller, you’ll get the idea just by seeing the picture. Great for opening up the thoracic spine and working the IT bands.
Hoka Ora Recovery Slide: I picked up a pair of these earlier this year and have worn them just about every day since. Whether I’ve just finished a run or I’ve been walking around the city all day, these come on as soon as I get home.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this first issue of the newsletter. It’s sure to change and evolve over time, but if there’s ever something you want featured or a question you want answered, just reply to this email and you can be sure to look for it in a future issue.
Great, thanks for sharing the tips and also the tools.
Amazing!