Todd Wants to Know....Do You Give 100%?

My name is Todd Walbert and I have been here at PROMATx Health Club for almost 7 years.  I previously trained at a couple other facilities while getting my kinesiology degree from the University of Kentucky but have worked at a gym doing a little of everything for almost 10 years.  I am 34 years old now and have been a physically active person since my youth where I played sports up through high school.  For the first couple of years after high school I was lazy but it didn't last long.  I had to get a degree in something!  My earlier aspirations in the fields of biology and forestry didn't seem to be as joyous as I had hoped.  The kinesiology program at UK was everywhere at that time so I chose to specialize in "exercise science".

After training for a few years, I chose to start my own LLC (limited liability company) and named it "All Encompassed Personal Training".  Why that name?  I felt that rather than specialize in one aspect of training, I wanted to be familiar with all forms of exercise...from bodybuilding to power lifting to power building to running.  In general I enjoy all types of physical exertion as I have competed in many sports and events as well as through my training career.

A common problem I see for exercisers is stepping out too early.  Too many people try to achieve a "number" or "time" rather than a "feeling" in the trained area. Understanding what utter failure feels like is necessary in changing the shape of your physique or your performance level.  Most of the time, if you aren't burning it, you aren't working it.  This premature quitting is evident in all forms of exercises.  Weight lifters quit a set of repetitions anywhere from 1-2 or 7-8 reps shy of what is needed to achieve results.  Too often, aspiring runners start to walk 1, 2 or 3 minutes shy of a point where they MAY realize they might have to stop and walk.  Even a "cross-fitter" or triathlete may not always push the envelope, if you will, hard enough to positively affect their mind, body, and training regimen.

A physiological response is needed to get better at anything.  Obviously you will not always be able to top what you did the day before or the week before but 100% is 100% and that is all we can do.  I like the 100% rule.  Always work at your potential and you know you are getting better at that task.  Training always contains so many outliers, from sleep to nutrition to mental state.  The probability at the body being able to do the same thing over and over is highly unlikely but you can ensure your adaptation to that stimulus is getting better if you always give 100%.  Finding that line and knowing where to stop safely is the constant challenge in any physical endeavor.

So....do you give 100%??

Stay tuned for more great insight from trainer, Todd Walbert as he continues as our guest blogger the next few weeks.