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The Most Important 5 Minutes of Your Workout
“Powerful things happen when you start putting in the work to achieve your goals. You become addicted to the progress and fall in love with the process.”
You are a Warrior
You wake up early to tackle your morning run. You hit the gym after a long day at work. You make time to fit in your workout because you have mad goals.
But what you’re NOT doing may just be setting you up for failure.
What you’re NOT doing can end up having long-term negative effects on your body.
What you’re NOT doing could be hindering your progress and keep you from reaching your goals.
Yup. You guessed it. The Post-Run Stretch.
We've All Been There
It’s easy to get so caught up in hitting goals in the actual workout that we decide that it’s no big deal to just ‘skip’ the stretching.
Or we determine we are running out of time and promise ourselves we will stretch ‘later’, which we never do.
Let’s face it, we’ve all been there.
The truth is, trying to reach our athletic goals without including stretching in our routine is like trying to bake a cake without adding the flour. That cake is going to fall flat. Just as flour is essential in getting that cake to rise, stretching is essential in ensuring that our bodies function properly and rise to the occasion of reaching our highest potential, not only now, but in the future as well.
Lies We Tell Ourselves
I know what you’re thinking. I’ve told myself those same lies in the past.
Lies we tell ourselves about stretching:
- I don’t have time
- I’ll do it later
- Stretching is boring and unnecessary
(Insert eyeroll here)
Truth is, the older I get, the more I realize how important those stretches actually are.
You know what’s boring? Not being able to run or exercise due to injury, tightness, and fatigue brought on by not spending those 5 short minutes after a run stretching the body that just provided me with that gift of movement.
To Stretch, or Not To Stretch...Is there really a Question?
Nope!
Post-Run Stretching Results in:
- Increased blood flow to muscles and joints
- Improvement in flexibility and range of motion
- Reduced soreness and tight muscles
- Prevention of pain and stiffness
- Overall calm and relief of tension
Results of Not Stretching:
- Reduced mobility in joints and muscles
- Increased risk of injury
- More vulnerable to muscle pain and tightness
The list goes on and on but in the end, as runners, all we really need to hear is that post-run stretching can help us remain injury-free and active in the sport that we love for years to come.
My Top 10 Post-Run Stretches
The benefits of stretching already warm muscles at the end of a run or workout are exponential.
To make it easy for you, I’ve compiled my Top 10 Post-Run Stretches. And the best part is, these stretches will only take about 5 minutes to complete.
So, set goals, work hard, and get that stretching done. Remember to focus on proper form, stretch gently, and never bounce or “over-stretch”.
*Always consult a physician when starting any new exercise program.
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19 Lessons from 2019
"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." -C.S. Lewis
What's Your Word?
At the start of a new year, I like to choose a word that I will focus on. One word that essentially defines a goal, a feeling, or a mission that will become my axis for the year ahead.
As I began 2019, my word of the year was ‘Confidence’. 7 days in, I realized something was missing. Before I could truly attain confidence, I needed to embrace another ‘C’ word…’Courage’.
Courage & Confidence
Courage & Confidence became the pillars on which I lived each and every day of 2019. Each day when I wrote in my journal, I wrote those two words at the top of the page to remind myself of my main theme of the year and what I was striving for. When I was unsure of what to do in any situation, I would ask myself, “Will this build courage and confidence?” If the answer was ‘Yes’, then I would whole-heartedly jump right in and do it. I said yes to many things this year that my previously failure-fearing, introverted self would have perceived as impossible, and just simply not for me.
19 Lessons Learned in 2019
As I take this week to look at the past year; the wins, the losses, the joy, the heartbreak, the moments of challenge and the moments of ease; I can say one thing for sure. This may have been the year of my life that I have been truest to myself. The year that I allowed myself the grace to not strive for perfection, but just to be as Me as I could be. I learned a lot about life and myself and what it takes to have courage and build confidence over the last 365 days.
19 Lessons Learned in 2019:
- Letting go of trying to be “perfect” for everyone else will lead you to finding the most imperfectly authentic, awesome version of You.
- If you open your heart and eyes to endless grand possibilities, the universe will keep sending incredible opportunities for you to receive.
- If you believe that you are a certain way, positive or negative, that is the version of you that will show up every single day.
- You can’t change the past, but you can learn from it.
- Goals are nice to have, but without a plan to get you there, you’re going to find yourself running in circles.
- Wherever you are, be present in that moment.
- Begin each day with gratitude and it will change your life.
- Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself.
- Imperfect action is always better than no action at all.
- Running many miles with friends is one of the best ways to spend an early Saturday or Sunday morning.
- If someone asks if you can do something, make it your goal to not only deliver on the ask, but over-deliver.
- It is possible to simultaneously be crippled with grief by the loss of a loved one and celebrate life with those left behind.
- You are never too old to skip down the street, sing off-key at the top of your lungs in public, or just really need a hug from your Mom.
- Sometimes the best gift you can give your kids is to just stop talking and listen while they work through difficult decisions on their own.
- It’s not enough to strengthen your body. In order to perform at your best, you must also strengthen your mind.
- Workout & accountability buddies, near and far, are an integral part of reaching goals.
- Your children are always watching you, no matter how old or young they are, and learning from your words and actions. Be someone they can be proud to look up to.
- Nerves are a selfish emotion.
- You are always stronger than you think.
New Year, New Word
As we turn the page on 2019 and usher in a new year, a new decade, I will carry all of these lessons and more with me.
‘Courage’ and ‘Confidence’ have served me well in 2019, but their work is only getting started. I will be taking those words with me as I journey into 2020, while adding my new defining word to the mix:
‘Strength’
I hope you will all find your own defining word or words to carry you into 2020 and live them to the fullest. And as we welcome the new year, I hope you will set goals, build a road map to get you where you want to go, be brave, try new things, welcome challenges, and above all else…believe in yourself. You got this!
Happy New Year & Happy Running!
-Coach Lynn
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How to Slay the Day by Hitting the Snooze Button
“A grateful heart is a magnet for miracles.”
The Problem
Everyone will tell you that you should never, ever hit the snooze button. They tell you that when your alarm goes off, you should immediately get up and start your day. Some studies even go so far as to tell you that hitting the snooze button is bad for your health. REALITY CHECK PEOPLE…the act of hitting the snooze button is not the problem, it’s what you do with those minutes after you hit snooze that’s the problem.
The Confession
I have a confession to make…I hit the snooze button once Every. Single. Morning. There it is, I said it. My alarm wakes me up at 5:10am every morning. I immediately reach over and hit the snooze button. I know what you’re thinking….Damn, girl, I can’t believe you are actually admitting that! Well, I do, and that’s the truth. But here’s where it gets really good. My snooze button gives me 9 minutes. I do not fall back to sleep. It is not a tactic to waste time, or stall getting up. Those 9 minutes are the key to starting my day with positivity and wellness. I use them to practice gratitude for all the amazing gifts I have in my life. I use them to think about and set my intentions for the day. I use them to reflect on where I am and where I someday hope to be and how the actions I take today can lead me there.
9 Minutes of Gratitude + Intention + Action = 24 hours of Happiness
The End Goal
Happiness in our lives is what we are all after- the “end goal”, so to speak. There is a great episode from my favorite podcast, The Ed Mylette Show, where Ed discusses having “Blissful Dissatisfaction”. (Oct 17, 2018 episode). He talks about how most people delay their happiness now and decide that when they reach a certain goal, hit a certain status, or make a certain amount of money, then they will be happy. Ed explains that our ultimate end goal is not simply happiness, but fulfillment, and in order for us to achieve that fulfillment we must learn how to be happy in our current situation while simultaneously striving for something more.
Let me tell you this…what I have learned is that wherever you are right now, is exactly where you are supposed to be. The reason is not always clear. And sometimes when you are going through a challenging time, it can really suck. But even when we’re struggling to figure things out, there is always a lesson to be learned and there is always some joy to be found. And it starts with being grateful for what we have.
So if you had the power to start each and every day by choosing to control your own happiness before the outside world starts to creep its way in, wouldn’t you want to use that power to your advantage? Of course you would. The beauty is, you do have that power.
The Strategy
Slay the Day Gratitude Session
- Hit the snooze button. I’m serious. This sets a “timer” for your Slay the Day Gratitude Session.
- Make a list in your mind of all the things you are grateful for & give thanks to God, the Universe, or whatever higher power you believe in for manifesting those things in your life.
- Set your intentions for the day. Think about the things that are on your calendar and envision what your day is going to look like, feel like, and sound like. Focus on positive outcomes for all your daily intentions and how the actions you take today are going to lead you to where you want to go.
- Take action. When the 9 minutes are up and your alarm sounds again, get up and get moving. You have now set the stage for yourself to go out into the world and Slay the Day!
