Our thoughts occur as an internal dialogue. The voice inside our head is constantly analysing, commentating and narrating our every experience. The internal dialogue is always there, yammering on in the back of our heads. In stressful situations, that familiar voice can get hijacked by fear and turns into what I like to call the inner bitch.
Fear is a great motivator and the inner bitch seeks self-preservation above all. Think of the inner bitch like a shrill-voiced Karen protesting hysterically, using any argument or hyperbole to thrust us back into the safety of our comfort zone. The inner dialogue collapses into a fearful monologue, sometimes loud and obnoxious, sometimes softly-spoken in deviously rational tones.
We must be mindful of poisonous, negative thoughts and be diligent in casting them out when they appear to us. We must make a habit of this.
Humans are governed by the principle of least effort; we tend to prefer the path of least resistance. This is why we will slide effortlessly into habits which are easy, comfortable and convenient. It’s the reason most people prefer to sit on the couch and watch TV rather than do a heavy set of barbell squats.
However, because we prefer the safety and assuredness of comfort to the turmoil and possible danger associated with discomfort, we sabotage our own potential for self-realisation. But turmoil, discomfort and stress are prerequisites for evolution. As the old saying goes: a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.
So the question is: Do you want to live an easy life, or a fulfilled one?
The Stress/Recovery/Adaptation cycle is the process by which an organism regulates its own biology to accommodate for external stressors. If the stress is too overwhelming, the organism will be unable to adapt—and probably dies. If the stress is too low, it will be insufficient to provoke an adaptation.
Therefore, there’s a desirable amount of stress that’s just enough to overcome and adapt to.
This basic principle is central to strength training as it involves repeatedly stressing the body by lifting increasingly heavy weights in order to provoke a neurological and musculoskeletal adaptation in the lifter.
You work out to stress your body, you eat and sleep to recover from the workout and your body produces an adaptation in the form of bigger muscles, denser bones, and a more efficient neural pathways. As a result, you get stronger.
For change to occur, the pre-existing balance of things must be upset for a new, more capable balance to be established. So, we must structure our lives in a way that our current balance is consistently being upset just enough so we can learn, improve and progress.
What does this have to do with the inner bitch? Systematically pushing yourself outside of your current limitations makes you better at handling stressful situations and reduces negative thinking. Being comfortable with discomfort makes you more courageous and silences that inner bitch.
This is true for every aspect of life. Adaptation to a stressor isn’t just a new PR at the gym; it is a new skill learned; an obstacle overcome… another stone laid on your path to greatness.
Get to work silencing that inner bitch, in the immortal words of Ronnie Coleman, “Ain’t nothin’ to it but to do it!”
When does your inner bitch start whining? Get in touch with us and let us know.
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