Understanding Equilibrium - It's All About Balance

Balancing Work, Life, Fitness and Everything In Between

Ben Mumme

Nov 09, 2023

Wisdom

One piece of wisdom that motivates, encourages and empowers you to grow.

“Equilibrium is the profoundest tendency of all human activity.” -Jean Piaget

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Insight

One insight that helps you deeply understand a situation, idea, or concept.

Understanding Equilibrium

Equilibrium is a concept that extends beyond physics; it's a fundamental principle that echoes in our daily lives. Imagine it as a ball resting on a curved surface. In a state of equilibrium, the ball naturally gravitates towards a single, unique location over time. It's like a self-correcting system.

In our personal lives, the allure of instant gratification often prevails, but equilibrium nudges us to consider the bigger picture.

Applying Equilibrium in Daily Life

Equilibrium isn't confined to scientific laws; it's a practical life principle that guides us through the complexities of daily existence. It's like maintaining a balanced scale in a static equilibrium.

In our bustling routines, balancing work, school, social life, and family can be a challenge. Yet, equilibrium is the secret to managing time effectively, making our lives more productive. It's also about achieving a dynamic equilibrium where multiple forces find perfect balance.

When it comes to personal decisions, it encourages us to align our immediate desires with our future goals. Equilibrium is equally relevant in our professional lives, helping us navigate the delicate balance between personal interests and overall well-being.

Equilibrium in Work, Life, Fitness and Beyond

Equilibrium's influence extends to the realm of athletics and high-performance living. It empowers us to balance a full-time professional career, academic pursuits, creative endeavours, and rigorous training. In the human body, it's akin to maintaining heat loss to match sugar consumption for dynamic equilibrium.

Understanding the importance of allocating time and energy wisely is the key to success. In fitness, consistency is paramount, and there's no room for procrastination. Today is always the best day to start anew.

In the face of life's demands and temptations, equilibrium reminds us that finding balance in our endeavours, be it work, personal life, or fitness, is the essence of a fulfilling life journey. It's about maintaining a balance between opposing forces, just like a ball on a curve or celestial bodies in space. Equilibrium is, all about balance in our lives.

The Mechanics of Fitness Motivation: Finding Equilibrium

Motivation isn't merely about sheer willpower. Instead, it's about setting the stage for a sustainable fitness journey. Think of it as creating a roadmap, a personalized checklist to fuel your enthusiasm.

As the saying goes, "If you want something done, give it to a busy person," because they excel in time management. Start by tackling the easiest tasks on your list, and don't underestimate their significance. Completing these small wins and connecting them to a supportive network will not only enrich your journey but also strengthen your motivation.

Motivation is more about building a sturdy foundation than summoning willpower. There is a checklist by David McMahon that will keep you finding equilibrium in your fitness journey.

Living Legend

One inspiring story of a famous person still living for doing something exceptionally well.

David McMahon

Dave McMahon, a living legend in the world of sports, has left an indelible mark on the realm of fitness motivation. With an impressive record that spans six different sports, including being a Canadian National Biathlon Champion and a dominant force in winter triathlons, Dave's journey is an inspiration for high-performance athletes and outdoor fitness enthusiasts alike.

From a young age, Dave's passion for sports was apparent as he engaged in an eclectic array of activities, from martial arts to figure skating. He swam, cycled, ran, practiced gymnastics, and even dabbled in shooting. His diverse experiences laid the foundation for what would become a storied career in biathlon and cross-country skiing, sparked during his time in the army.

Today, Dave stands as a world-class athlete in cross-country skiing, ski mountaineering, winter triathlons, and trail running. His dedication to fitness and motivation is exemplified by his comprehensive checklist, which outlines how he has mastered the mechanics of sustaining enthusiasm.

Dave's checklist is a treasure trove of wisdom for anyone seeking to maintain their motivation in their fitness journey:

Get a good night’s sleep.
Know when to turn it off. That is your smartphone, work emails, television and social media.
Get outdoors to train immediately after work. Don’t dilly-dally, vacillate or pontificate. Do not settle in.
No junk hours of training, make it count.
Be ruthlessly efficient in fitness workouts. Have a plan in advance. Don’t sleepwalk through workouts. Write the workout down. Look forward to the exercise. Make it real and meaningful. Log performance thoughts accomplishments and improvements. Upload and review GPS and training statistics, and keep a log! Record pre-race and post-race thoughts. Establish goals and key performance indicators. Measure success.
Do your creative thinking and problem solving on long slow distance exercises. Invoke your default network. Let your subconscious solve problems in the background.
Breathe consciously.
Nurture your support network of friends and training partners.
Stop self-sabotaging thoughts.
Start exercises with motivating thoughts and affirmations.
Stay hydrated during the day.
Have a good snack 1-2 hours before exercise, before you get home. Blood sugar levels affect energy and mood. If you wait to get home to have a meal, chances are you will be home to stay.
Buy nice sports clothing and equipment for yourself.
Join one or multiple training groups. All your peers are having fun without you.
Read sports articles/magazines, watch videos, and become a student of your sport.
Tell yourself that 95% of the challenge is just getting out the door, 4% is warming up and 1% doing the actual exercise.
Wear comfortable (warm) clothing to training and for the warm-up and cool-down.
Don’t go so fast on the warm-up that you lose the will to live. Do not exceed 50% of your race pace in the warm-up. Ease into exercise routine. If you go too hard too soon, you will crash physically and mentally.
Finish the warm-up, before you make up your mind about the training.
Dress properly and comfortably. There is no such thing as bad weather, just poor clothing choices.
Play music as you get ready to go out, or when it is safe during exercise.
Maintain a good diet. Eat frequently during the day rather than big meals.
Don’t think of it as a workout, but a fitness experience building or healing).
Convert anxiety to curiosity.
Immerse yourself in the pop culture of the sport.
Act like an athlete and hang out with others.
Be social. You are going to play with friends.
Take the time to enjoy the cool down.
Be consistent; set aside time every day for exercise. Exercise without guilt. Co-workers and family will respect a predictable routine.
Exercise enough that it holds significance in your life (Too little exercise loses critical mass and it becomes harder to maintain).
Make exercise a ritual.
Don’t binge train (hammer one day and miss days in a row)
Don’t go medium well all the time or you will plateau and get bored.
Try high-dynamic range training. Cross-train within your sport. For example running road, track, trail and cross-country from distances 1k to 50km.
Cross-train, mix it up throughout the season even if you have one primary sport. This will keep things fresh and prevent mental burn-out and overuse injuries.
Vary the pace of the session (warm-up, core training cool-down) and periodize intensity and duration from day to day, week to week, and month to month.
Be in the moment. Sport is not work to complete so you can get back to something else. Keep your thoughts on making the exercise experience pleasurable, meaningful and real.
Write down your psychological, social, exploration, technical, and physical training goals for the day.
Have achievable micro-goals (for each workout, training week and month)
Create an aspiration board. Post it on your wall.
Commit to a competition calendar of races or events. Sign up early with a friend.
Include your partner and family in sport, whether that is just a yoga session or recovery hike or bike ride.
Embrace the lifestyle of the athlete.
Identify with a hero and have a mentor.
Find good training partners.
Get a coach.
Welcome athletic supporters.
Join a team.
Train with someone slower. Train with someone stronger and faster
Don’t be hard on yourself. Be realistic. Think positively. There is a rhythm to fitness. (Not ups and downs)
An easy workout – isn’t. Call it a healing session or active recovery and treat it as such.
Health before fitness.
Plan a technique or education session or equipment preparation for when you are ill or injured.
Identify your sense of self with that of sport.
Use competition and competitors or a tangible/measurable challenge as positive pressures to train. You should never be too far from competition or testing yourself.
Never be afraid to fail. Plan for it. Laugh.
Don’t worry about outcome or performance. Just do what you need to do in preparation.
Cultivate a child-like sense of wonder, every practice is an adventure. Go exploring but bring food.
Let the terrain provide the challenge.
Belief gives birth to reality, vision and dream.
Don’t be self-conscious of your body or performance. We all have different shapes and sizes. Hopes and dreams.
Use sports as an escape from work. View it as an opportunity to mentally reset, refresh, and revitalize.
Exercise outdoors in all weather for the clean oxygen and healing qualities of nature’s spa. Mud, rain, snow, wind or sun. Folks pay a lot of money for what you get for free. Take the time to admire the view from a mountain top, stars, full moon, and wildlife. Take a plunge into the cool water of the lake after a summer’s trail run… Go forest bathing.
If none of these brilliant ideas work, contact Dave McMahon for a dose of soul-crushing guilt and peer pressure through social media.

Dave's checklist encompasses not just the mechanics of motivation but also the art of living an athletic life. With these practical principles, he continues to thrive in multiple sports and inspires others to embark on their fitness journeys. Dave McMahon's journey is a testament to the power of these principles in action.

Final Thoughts

Questions for you to ponder and think carefully about.

What challenges or obstacles have you encountered in your fitness journey that are making you consider breaking up with your routine?
Can you identify any past successes in your fitness journey that remind you of what you're capable of achieving?
Are you surrounding yourself with a supportive and motivating environment, both online and in your daily life?

Cheers,