Reflecting and Asking “Why?”

Categories: Blog, Guest Post Mar 04, 2018

And now, a guest post from the Scottish OS Level 2 Coach, Richard Macaulay . Please read with a Scottish accent....

Have you ever asked yourself why you are doing something:
Why do I watch the programmes I watch?
Why do I vote the way I do?
Why do I like the music I listen to?
Why do I drink flavoured tea?

The answer to the first three can be fairly similar....very often it is because of where we grew up or what our family members/parents were/are into, or simply how the world around us (media etc) influences us - incidentally in my case the answer to the last one is, I don't. Flavoured teas are just a bit weird - caramel tea, ceylon spice chai tea??

The question of “why” can also be put to our movement/training habits/routines. Regardless of how much you enjoy, need (etc) your current movement/training schedule, stop for a minute and ask yourself why am I doing this?

Maybe the answer is easy - you can simply look at yourself and say....its fun - job done.

But maybe it goes a little deeper. I had one of these moments as I was discovering (and also fighting against my discovery of) Original Strength. I stood in at 6'1, 210lbs with a 410x5 rep deadlift, a 310x5 back squat and a 240x5 clean and jerk to name but a few lifts. I thought I had all the answers to any training question that came my way.

The result to this rigid way of thinking was torn ankle ligaments, torn rotator cuff, dislocated fingers, broken nose, two disc herniation's and a couple of concussions. One day I found myself sitting in pain and was suddenly and overwhelmingly willing to reflect and be open to new things - I should say at this time that these injuries were the result of playing rugby....before anyone thinks I was just really clumsy in the gym.

I made a pact with myself - that no matter how right I think I am about something, I will always be open to the idea that I am wrong. This sort of thinking arrived almost exactly when I found OS.

Fast forward a couple of years and I think about movement in an entirely different way. It is no longer about 'what' I move, but about 'how' I move.

Is my training making me a better, a more present husband and father?? If it is not, then why am I doing it. Are my workouts leaving me feeling beaten up or invigorated?

I recently finished a period of training using almost exclusively OS - with the exception of working on some bodyweight progression work - even with the ability of OS to rejuvenate and restore you can still have too much of a good thing.

I was working really hard on exploring the resets and testing myself. Sometimes (as is my way - this resulted in some amazing things happening, but also leaving my a little tired). So, I again stopped and no matter how much I back my programming abilities, I was open to the idea that how I was approaching my training might not be right.

Its not easy to admit when you are wrong or not getting things quite right, but I have altered my sessions and what I ask of myself....I have set aside sessions to purely explore the unending wanders of 'breathing' (the man that has gone from deadlifts being his main workout component, to breathing work being his main component - its a beautiful thing). I now fully embrace spending time on just opening up my hips and shoulders and feeling great about myself after I have done it.

I wrote this because I wanted many of us to stop for a moment and be reflective. Why are we moving or in many cases not moving? What are we doing it for?

Here is what I mean:

Why do I love OS?

Because it allows me to play Ninja's with my son on our trampoline, it allows me to do the gardening and be present with my wife, it allows me to be pain free after years of gritting my teeth every time I even saw a flight of stairs.

OS allows me to explore the wondrous thing that is 'me'. It means that opportunities and blessings and the 'world out there' are not ‘just out of reach’ - they are all around me, in me, part of me.

After all, its not about the times, the weights and the ultimate destination - its about this amazing and incredible journey.

So today lets stop, reflect and maybe even ask why.

Richard

Richard is an OS Certified Professional - Pro (the only one in the United Kingdom and Ireland). He co-owns bodycarewecare with his wife Karen in Scotland. Their philosophy has always been about movement, food and fun. In his 12 year career Richard has been fortunate enough to work with business men/women and now spends most of his time working with youth rugby players and performance athletes on the representative ladder working towards international honours.

In his free time Richard in a devoted family man with two children. Richard came to OS after a bad back injury and has found true joy which training brings him through physical well being. To learn about Richard go to www.bodycarewecare.com

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