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My 5 “no-no” Cues

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I have been taking group exercise classes for 20 years and teaching them for eleven (seventeen if you include teaching dance!).  Teaching exercise is a beautiful marriage of my love of language and my love of movement.

Yes, language is so important to movement.

A class I took recently reminded me of this, as the instructor said several things that I found not helpful and perhaps even harmful.  It got me thinking about cues that I have eradicated from my teaching script.  Here are five of them.

5 Cues I Never Say When Teaching Exercise

“Work off your weekend!”

Guilt talk about food makes my heart ache. In my book, guilty feelings about food are the least productive, most harmful approach to “diet and exercise”.

“Straighten your back”

A strong, healthy, beautiful back has two strong, healthy, beautiful curves (three if you are speaking of the whole spine).  What you will hear me saying (a lot!):

“Lengthen your spine”

“Support your back by engaging your abdominal in towards your center like a corset”.

“Pin your shoulders back and down”

Ugh, do people really still think this is good for them?

Pulling your shoulder blades “back and down” overengages your upper and mid-back muscles while overstretching your chest, in other words, puts you in a position that is not neutral, functional, or balanced.

The correct neutral alignment for the shoulders (especially with any type of load baring activity, like push ups, planks, and all weight lifting) is a broad upper back with the shoulder blades wrapping wide around the ribs.  In general, the shoulder musculature is most stable* and working most effectively when the scapula are “flush” to the ribs, no winging, poking, or protruding of any of the scapula bones.

*Mobility in shoulder blades and joint is also crucial for a healthy ‘girdle but this cue is specifically addressing stability for exercises.

“Do (fill in the the blank) for me!/Give Me More…”

It’s your workout my friend, it’s really not about me.  Do it for yourself! Give yourself five more! 🙂  Or, rest if it’s time for a rest (see my next “no-no” cue).

“Don’t give up”

I am all for pushing yourself past the point of “comfortable” but please stop before you push past your limits.  When your form starts to fail you it is time to rest or perhaps modify. This is not giving up, this is working your edge but not going past it.  This is respecting your body and recognizing that your experience is wholly unique; it’s not the same experience of the instructor or the dude next to you.  A good trainer/instructor can correct form, offer advice and suggestions for modifications and progressions, and encourage you to work hard, they cannot feel what’s going on in your body.

 

What cues do you love and which do you loathe from exercise instructors? I’d love to hear your thoughts, it will help me improve my workouts and my teaching!

Whether you’re working out in the woods, in the living room in your pj’s, or in a group class I encourage you to listen to focus on form, listen to your body, and enjoy the process! Happy moving!

Check-in

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Two weeks ago I set out on a “Birthday Challenge” and it’s time to check-in with how it’s been going.

To recap, my challenge is this,

April 1-may 12 I will

Run 64 miles
Practice yoga 16 times
Do 16 Pilates workouts 
Meditate 32 minutes a week (this is going to be the hardest to achieve but I need it)

Funny thing about the meditation part.  I wrote 32 minutes a week in the post but somehow got stuck on the idea of 32 minutes TOTAL over the entire 6 weeks.  Subconscious resistance to meditating? No way. 😉

I have been meditating-and loving it-just not quite 32 minutes a week.  My body and mind have started to crave the quiet time and although it’s a huge challenge to be still, physically and mentally, I’m excited by the prospect it holds.  At first I caught myself labeling my mediation time as either ‘successful’ or not and quickly realized how unnecessary and unhelpful that is.  Yes, sometimes I find it almost impossible not to day-dream or make a grocery list as I sit but still, I sit and do the work and will count that as sucess.   Both weeks I ended up sitting for 13 minutes total per week.

I’ve been sore!  I’m finding it a little hard to recognize and respect where my body is at right now.  I’m not that out of shape and it’s coming back quickly but I am still finding it challenging to remind myself that it’s fine if I want to walk after only running a mile or that it’s cool if all the other runners pass me on the trail.  The goal is to push myself within my current limits, not to be the fastest or the most hardcore athlete out there.

Over the last two weeks I’ve run 15.5 miles, practiced yoga 4 times, and done 4 Pilates workouts, as well as taught lots of classes, walked dozens of miles, and ridden my bike a time or two.  I am feeling stronger, calmer, more flexible, and a little leaner than I was on April 1st so I would say I’m right on track!  I will bump up the intensity of my workouts a little as the weeks progress and my body adapts to the challenges I give it.

Do you get motivated to move in the Spring?  Do you notice that your workouts change depending on the season?  Spring and Fall are definitely my favorite running seasons, both because of the weather and because the scenery is beautiful and changing rapidly.