Taking time away from martial arts for a little? That's fine.
What else?
Eating all that holiday food put in front of you? Remember, you DO have a choice. Look hard enough, and there's often good food at any party and gathering. Many people now have veggie munchies at parties. You can drink all the soda water you want, and not gain a pound (of weight that you can't pee off). Many holiday meals have good food choices like turkey, vegetables, and even a slice of pumpkin or sweet potato pie with lots of beneficial carotenoids.
One of my former mentors - strength coach and former world heavyweight powerlifting champion John Gamble - used to talk about the concept of active rest. He had me write out a WHOLE YEAR of training on a schedule. One of the things he told me to do was to take a break now and then. But he emphasized the word ACTIVE in the phrase "active rest."
Active means you can hit the ski slopes instead of the dojo. Just don't pull a Sonny Bono on us.
Active means you can swim indoors instead of hitting the dojo.
Active means you can take long walks outside, or toss a football. You can even play some pickup basketball, but remember that martial arts is safer when it comes to the knees and ankles...
Active means you can be "active" with your significant other. Hey, don't you know that half the people that train hard do so for vanity? Time to cash in!
Active means you can invest time in relationships that allow you to spend all that time in the gym for the rest of the year.
Active means you can expand your horizons by reading about new things, seeing interesting films, traveling to places, etc.
So, what am I doing tonight? I'm going to the gym. But in the last two weeks, gym time has been different, and intentionally so. My last weight training cycle ended just before Christmas. It's fun time now.
Happy holidays.
- Bill
