What Coco Chanel can teach us about fitness.

Coco Channel was driven and ambitious.  Her vision and designs created a business, then a brand, then an empire.  She did this all in a time when society did not associate women with traits like ambition, creativity and competiveness.  What would it look like if Coco Chanel was a performance athlete?  Let’s look at some of her quotes.

“Women have always been the strong ones of the world.”

-Don’t let dudes rule the weight room.  Women have a place there too.  You have real strength.  The greatest strength you can have is your attitude. You have a courage that is more important than the number on the side of the dumbbell.

“Nature gives you the face you have at twenty; it is up to you to merit the face you have at fifty.”

-That is kind of harsh! The point I like to focus on is that when you are younger, natural physical gifts make you feel healthy and strong.  I had a bad diet when I was younger, and did not really have to workout. Younger people at the gym seem to be able to really pack on the muscle quick.  I feel the difference from 20 to 33.  The idea is, if you keep going, keep working you can fight rapid ageing and have a healthy body regardless of you number. I have seen fifty-year-old ladies in some fitness classes that are in great shape and are doing about the same work as me.  Their secret, they have kept working out after nature’s gifts have left. These women have worked passed the gift and have the body that merit creates.

“Success is often achieved by those who don't know that failure is inevitable.”

-I was talking to someone about my attempts to train for a half-marathon.  I am not sure if I will be able to pull of a half-marathon.  She immediately said, “You can do it.”  She had no idea about my flat feet and my troubles with my hip and back.  Just, you can do it.  The point is I was talking myself out of even trying.  I can run a half-marathon, and end up having to walk part or even aborting the run all together and quit if my body disagrees.  I can still train for the half-marathon, and if I feel like my body is just not up to it, I can change my plans.  I am not thinking about “winning” the race.  How much do you think you can do in your life if you did not know that you would fail at some point? You will always fail at something. It is the effort, tiring and experience that make you who you are.

 “Gentleness doesn't get work done unless you happen to be a hen laying eggs.”

-I talk a lot about being gentle to your body to prevent injury.  Always keep in mind that you want to be safe.  But, to get results, you have to kick your butt a little bit.  Work hard, give it your all safely.  If you have been doing low reps, low weight and have not been sweating, you are being too gentle.  Your efforts will produce results.

“Hard times arouse an instinctive desire for authenticity.”

-I feel you learn the most about yourself on the bad days.  The days when you are not into what you are doing but still press on.  The big goals and big dreams are the authentic you.  The days when you want to quit or give up and don’t, when you dig in deep and work harder are examples of your authenticity. You forget what others are doing and find out who you really are.  Some days I have really crappy workouts, everything goes wrong, I had a bad week, I am way too busy; but I do what workout I can anyway.  Anyone can do a great workout on a great day, but overcoming the bad day proves how strong you really are.  Don’t you feel so much more accomplished when you overcome adversity?

“How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone.”

-This gets concept gets lost so much in the gym or on the track.  We all focus on some superficial goals from wanting to look a certain way or accomplish some fitness feat.  Do not let this confuse or stand in the way of the person you really are.  Your goals support the person you are and are becoming; don’t let them over take you.  You are a whole person, mind, body and spirit, not just going to weigh 130 lbs in 6 months.

So if Coco Chanel was an athlete, I don’t think she would “do fitness,” she would “be fitness.”

What Survival Training Teaches us About Fitness.

What Survival Training Teaches us About Fitness.

I had the pleasure of taking Introduction to Wilderness Survival and Compass Navigation courses at Survival School Canada http://www.survivalschoolcanada.com/

Paul Cobham has so much knowledge to pass on, but I found one of his lessons in particular had a great correlation to my view of physical fitness and health.  He described a pyramid of priorities (like the food pyramid we are familiar with).

Graphic by Leona Graham http://www.leonagraham.net/

In this graphic, Mr. Cobham says the most important thing is the WILL TO LIVE.  Your attitude is the most important thing.  He described an event where one of his former students was stranded in the Arctic with no gear other than what was on his back in a horrible blizzard.  All he could do was sit and wait for rescue.  What kept him alive was thinking about coming home to his wife. 

So what does this have to do with fitness?  Your attitude is the most important part of your fitness and health.  That is what will get you through the pain and obstacles.  If you don’t have the will to press on, your fitness pyramid will crumble.  I encourage everyone to FIND THAT FIRST.  Whatever it is.  Living longer for your kids, feeling better in the future, the attention of the opposite sex, or what ever you need to keep you going on the 7^th kilometer of your 10k.  That is the real reason personal trainers and us odd fitness folks keep going on about motivation.  If you have that, building on everything else is easy.

Then you will be inspired to find knowledge.  For fitness and survival, this means learning the proper way to execute a task and the reason why these tasks are important and effective.  Mr. Cobham was excellent at that for survival, and I hope I can help you with that in fitness.  Then, you need to apply this with practice.  The application of knowledge with practice develops SKILL!  In fitness and survival training we intend to develop skills and grow.  Take home for this, don’t get frustrated quickly.  You are learning and practicing.  JUST KEEP WORKING AT IT.

And what is the smallest part of the pyramid.   KIT.  That is all the crap you buy.  Does this hit home with anyone?  Think about all that exercise equipment you have at home.  All of those tv and magazine adds.  Mr. Cobham described our consumer society as being overly focused on kit, so most people’s pyramid looks like this:

Look familiar.  You buy the latest thing, try to practice, but you fail because you don’t have the knowledge, and this really does not help your attitude at all.  Take home:  kit is great, but is worthless if you do not start with THE WILL TO GO ON.  Without will all your kit is just expensive clutter.  All these items are ephemeral, your attitude can be eternal. 

So start between your ears.  Find your motivation, you will stumble and fail and run into adversity, but you will also succeed and have personal victories. 

I had a great time at Survival School Canada  http://www.survivalschoolcanada.com/

and the setting in the Willow Retreat http://www.willowretreat.com/ was a great opportunity for me to get some mind, body and health balance. Check out their pages for some great health related opportunities. Anne Cobham does Reiki and Meditation in an old-fashioned peace and quiet environment.  I have a feeling that may be my next adventure.