Quick word about something essential to fitness training, as I'm running late today:  feedback.

What in the Sam Hill do I mean by feedback?

Kind of just what it sounds like:  information coming back to you about your fitness and training efforts.  It can take, quite literally, a zillion forms.  Perhaps more, like closer to a jillion forms.  

How many times have you heard this one?  "I didn't realize how overweight I really was until I saw the pictures of myself wearing the banana hammock during our Summer Sales Extravaganza in St. Croix!"  Those photos constitute an unexpected--and jarring--form of feedback.  Equally, someone might say "I didn't realize how well my acai-berry-and-vinegar diet was working until Marjorie in Personnel told me how fetching I looked in my new Bermuda shorts!"  That's good feedback. 

(Fetching.)

If you're smart, you don't wait for Marjorie or the banana hammock photos to give you your feedback; you're actively feedback pretty regularly.  Yes, it's useful to fly a little bit blind now and then, jogging or cycling or even lifting a bit free-wheeling-ly in the gym so as not to become obsessive-compulsive, but from where I'm sitting, most people are a little too lax about closing the feedback loop.  They don't keep track of times or distances or weight lifted or inches or pounds lost. They just exercise or diet and vaguely hope they will suddenly find themselves sporting a six-pack.

If you're completely happy with where you are in your fitness program--this doesn't really apply.  But for everyone except you, Mr. Pitt, it's essential to get feedback often. It's one of the proven elements to reaching your goals:  measuring, recording, trial-and-error-ing.  My first triathlon season I wrote down what I did for every workout--how fast I was, how I felt, the structure of my workouts, etc.  It worked wonders.  I've had clients weigh themselves every morning and keep a measurement graph every week.  A bit extreme, but this guy lost 60 pounds in about 6 months, so you can't argue with progress.  It's a great tool.

You know, to see if you're getting anywhere. 

All for now--happy Thursday.

Andrew