Here's your December edition of Kinsei-Do Fitness Nuggets, our monthly newsletter that serves you little bites of health & performance wisdom!
Incredibly, this marks the 12th edition of the Fitness Nuggets, with one serving of bite-sized tips and tricks having landed in your inbox every month throughout 2022.
I'll be back with more actionable and hopefully motivating health and fitness advice in 2023, but for now, all that remains to say is, bye bye 2022, and...
Enjoy!
Nugget of the Month
The Golden Age of...Noise?!
On one of my favorite podcasts, Chasing Excellence, the two hosts recently debated what “era” we currently live in. By definition, it’s difficult if not impossible to accurately define what these times will one day be known for while we are right in the middle of them, but I found the discussion very interesting to say the least.
According to them, we currently find ourselves in the era, or better yet, in the Golden Age of Distractions and Noise.
While technology and the internet have given us access to more information and knowledge at a single click than humans had been able to get their hands on in an entire lifetime for millennia, they have also brought near constant distraction and comparison.
How many browser tabs do you currently have open?
How many unread emails are sitting in your inbox, screaming for your attention?
How many different segments is your to-do list broken up into, and how many tasks are sitting in each one?
Email notifications, instant messages 24/7 and a never ending stream of other people’s “highlight reels” have left us struggling to focus on any given activity, and unable to enjoy and savor the good things in our lives without the need to brag about them on social media, and then get frustrated when other people’s experiences seem even better.
In coaching for health, happiness and high performance, there’s a notion that people who excel at what they do, but are at the same time happy and fulfilled in and with their life, do so because they have or experience most or even all of the facets of PERMA-V. I’ll save the deep dive into each of these six facets for another Fitness Nugget in the future, but let’s look at the second letter, E for ‘Engagement’.
Engagement, also sometimes referred to as ‘flow’ or ‘flow state’, is a state of intense focus, where all external distractions fade away and even time appears distorted. It’s a state of being fully engaged (hence the name) in whatever you are doing, and research has linked it to extremely high levels of performance, efficiency but also usually enjoyment.
You may or may not remember the last time you experienced this flow state for yourself - we live in the Golden Age of Distraction after all! - but if you’ve ever seen a master artist doing their thing (could be music, performing, painting, etc) and seemingly being in a totally different world, then you’ve seen Flow in action.
Take Action
As you read this and let it sink in, think about how you can perhaps move away from bouncing from one notification to the next, letting external cues and people drive what you focus on and when, and move a little closer to where you control the noise, instead of the noise controlling you.
How?
Turn off all notifications, such as emails and incoming WhatsApp messages, when you want to do some focused work.
Remove all social media apps from your phone for a week or so.
When you get home from work, leave your phone by door where you take your shoes off, and don’t look at it again until the next morning.
There are many ways to cut out at least some of the most prominent and common distractions that we face every day, and while you may feel ‘empty’ or ‘disconnected’ initially, once you experience Flow or flow-like states more often, you’ll never want to go back again!
I have mostly spoken with trainers, coaches and functional fitness enthusiasts on my show in its first two years of existence, but I've also had the pleasure of talking to people outside of the "industry" (such as Halim in episode 15 or Stephan in episode 34) on the role health and fitness plays in their lives.
In 2023, I want to widen the focus from talking mostly to people whose lives already center around training, and instead talk about health, fitness, happiness and high performance in the context of YOUR life. The objective of this is learn about your habits and routines, and how you make the quest for being the “best version” of yourself and living to your fullest a reality every day.
By talking to many different people from many different walks of life, I hope your stories and strategies will inspire others who also live busy lives to see that it’s possible to thrive and be amazing like you!
If you would be interested to come on my show and share your story with my small but fine audience, I'll be thrilled to have you on! Just click on this Calendly link to find a date and time that suits you, and we'll meet on Zoom and record an episode!
Can't wait to hear YOUR story!
Would you like a free movement assessment?
Are you struggling with movement limitations or discomfort when performing certain exercises, or in daily life?
As I've been studying to become a Primal Mobility certified mobility coach, I'm happy to offer you a free assessment.
Send me an email and I'll tell you what I need from you, and we'll go from there!
What's Jo doing?
For a few days after Christmas, I had the great fortune to be able to spend a couple of days on a remote island in Indonesia - there are only about 17,000 to choose from - and enjoy a true disconnect from the aforementioned Age of Noise: there was no cell service at our resort, and the wifi was extremely spotty.
We're so deep into this Golden Age already that it feels weird when not constantly connected, but after a day, I fully embraced it, left my phone behind (most of the time) and just enjoyed the absolutely stunning nature and scenery.
It was exactly what I needed after quite a busy last few months, to get my head clear and refocus my priorities for 2023.
What are you doing to prepare for the new year and get yourself recharged and ready to rock it in 2023?
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