WORK HARDER, NOT SMARTER

There has been an emphasis in the workplace to work smarter, not harder.  Streamline tasks, delegate, ask for help, collaborate - these are all ideas to get a job done without killing one's self.  There is nothing wrong with this idea.  Indeed, stressing over a job affects one's job performance and is harmful to one's health.  However, there is an area of life where working harder is definitely important.  That area is the gym.

In my former life (read between the lines:  before Girl8.5), I was a gym rat.  I went to the gym at least 5 times a week.  I met my workout partner at 5 a.m. and we lifted weights.  The gym is a different scene at 5 a.m.  There are no girls with spray tans, perfectly coiffed hair, tight pants and halter tops.  There are no fellows with just the right amount of sweat on their brows, spray tans and tight pants.  There may be some in halter tops.  If you venture in at o'dark thirty, you will see a bunch of ordinary people with bed-head, flannel shirts over rumply t-shirts, and baggy sweats.  There is no flirty chit-chat, just grunts of "mornin'" as people pass by.  Morning people are a different breed of cat.  It is all about getting the job done - put in your hour and get out.  It was the best feeling in the world to walk out of the gym at 6 o'clock and know that "exercise" could be checked off of the To Do List for the day.

Since Girl8.5 appeared on the scene, I have been unable to be a gym rat.  I have opted for other options, such as brisk walking in the forest, doing a home-made circuit with weights and a yoga ball, and belly dance class.  I have had the most success with the Wii.  Like all things, I got away from it for a while, but I am trying to embrace it once again.  I have been recently playing around with the yoga and the strength training options.  

The other day, I was searching for an exercise that was not going to tax me to the limit.  I was not thinking of my work harder, not smarter motto in the workout department.  I saw a picture of a lady sitting down, and it was called "Vertical Arm Stand", and of course I was all over it.  The lady was sitting down!  This was definitely for me.

Unfortunately, the name "Vertical Arm Stand" and the accompanying picture were rather misleading.  Instead of sitting in a chair with my arm in the air and burning a million calories with a smile on my face, I stood with my arm pointing straight up to the sky.  When the trainer gave the command (whistle, word, bell - I can't even remember because I am so scarred from what happened next), I had to lie down on the floor as fast as I could, my arm still directed straight up through all of my contortions.  As soon as I was prone on the floor, I had to get right back up again, all the while with my arm standing up like a flagpole, with the Wii remote clutched in my hand like the flag.  The idea was to make this struggling down and lurching up motion as smooth and fluid as possible.  Reader, I caution you not to smirk too soon - first you have to try this!  One repetition is not adequate to pass judgment, you have to do it six times with your right arm straight up in the air, and then six times with your left arm straight up in the air.  After all of the blood has drained out of your arms, you will feel exhilarated. The next day, you will ache all over.  Even your fat will hurt.  Isn't that the goal of all of your workouts - to make your fat hurt?  It is certainly one of the results of working harder, not smarter.