Train With A Purpose

Posted on August 7, 2015 By Artemis Scantalides

On Tuesday I recorded a FitCast podcast with Kevin Larrabee and I shared with him how I spent my weekend last weekend first on Saturday speaking at the Elite Training Workshop with Ryan Ketchum, Tony Gentilcore, and Mike Reinold, hosted by Mike Reinold at Champion Physical Therapy Sports Performance in Waltham, MA and then on Sunday attending The Strength House by Greg Robins Optimizing The Big Three powerlifting seminar at Cressey Sports Performance in Hudson, MA.

We discussed how here in Massachusetts were are very fortunate to have so many powerhouse coaches packed together within a 20 mile radius from one another from Cressey Sports Performance to Mike Boyle Strength and Conditioning to Champion Physical Therapy Sports Performance and of course Iron Body Studios 😉 and that maybe the only other state that can compare is California. However, Massachusetts would win because it’s a smaller state. Of course we are biased.

Train With Intent

Throughout my weekend of both teaching and learning with some of the best coaches in the industry, one theme that remained constant at both events was “Train with intent” or “Train with a purpose”, which is Greg Robins’ tagline for the Strength House and something that I kept hearing Greg and Coach Tony Bonvechio say over and over again at Optimizing The Big Three, along with “Move with intent.”

What exactly does this mean?

I think sometimes people hear this and they think it means that you have to have some sort of significant athletic goal like a competition, triathlon, or a marathon that you are working towards.

That is not necessarily the case.

Although it helps to have an athletic goal like that, as it can definitely help you to stay motivated and continue to build more physical strength, a higher fitness level, and more mental fortitude, that mindset can also be intimidating, especially if you are new to fitness and strength training.

I see it as know why you train, workout, or exercise daily, and have that purpose, that reason in the back of your mind at all times as you are moving through your training sessions and staying true to your fitness goals.

Move with intent to get the most out of your lifts, or endurance (e.g. run, bike, swim) training, and move with intent to stay inline with your goals.

For example, I was talking to Mike Reinold at the Elite Training Workshop last Saturday about helping female clients to train with intent and not just come in and mindlessly go through a workout doing biceps curls and donkey kicks just to do a workout. It reminded me of when I used to work for a commercial gym and teach group fitness classes. I remember in my spin class about 85-90% of the people would come in, stay focused, add resistance when I instructed to add resistance, add speed when I instructed to pick up the pace, and find that place mentally that they needed to be in order to get the most out of class.

That 85-90% trained with intent.

Then there was the 10-15% of people who would just sit on the bike, never add resistance, and just hamster wheel their way through class while looking at the clock.

(Sometimes I would take the clock off the wall and hide it to throw them off. I was an eeevil spin instructor mwuahahahahaha!)

This 10-15% did not train with intent. They would take up space on a bike, and go through the motions of a “workout” just to say that they went to the gym.

This 10-15% didn’t have a mindset of I want to get better, progress, and, improve my fitness therefore I am going to put everything into this class and train with intent.

Whether you are an elite athlete or a mother of three (who is not an elite athlete) or an office worker who squeezes in their time to move before or after cube farm time, you should approach your training session with intent, move with intent throughout your training session, and train with the purpose to move better, get stronger, improve your level of fitness, and even your mental fortitude.

Train with a purpose for life longevity and quality of that longevity.

Recently both powerhouse Serena Williams and badass Ronda Rousey, (UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion and Reebok sponsored athlete), were attacked in the media for having masculine bodies. (Read more in Tennis’s Top Women Balance Body Image With Ambition and Ronda Rousey Finds It Hilarious When Her Body Is Called ‘Masculine’ )

Apparently being kick ass athletes, who are the absolute best at their sport, with amazingly fit muscular bodies makes their female bodies masculine.

I am confused by this thought process, as I am not sure what is masculine about this,

Or this,

BUT that is a whole other blog post…

Ronda Rousey’s response was that she thinks it’s absolutely hilarious when people say her body looks masculine, “Because there’s not a single muscle on my body that isn’t for a purpose”, she said.

Exactly.

Every single muscle in her body is for a purpose. We all know she trains with ultimate intent at the highest level.

Every single muscle in our bodies that we work hard to build with strength and movement to apply that strength is for a purpose. Whether you are an elite athlete like Serena or Ronda or need that muscle, strength, and good movement to perform your daily activities as a mom lifting children, groceries, suitcases, or doing a racked carry sprint with your toddler across an airport in order to catch a plane because you are running late for your flight.

Every single muscle in your body is for a purpose so train with a purpose.

*****

Do you want to learn programming, techniques, and how to build the mental fortitude to train with a purpose? Then I join me for one of my upcoming Lift workshops. I Am Not Afraid To Lift is now approved for .8 NASM CEUs! Upcoming 2015 schedule is listed below…

Next I Am Not Afraid To Lift workshops coming to:

New York City, New York on September 12, 2015 at Drive495
Dulles, Virginia on October 3, 2015 at BSPNOVA
Needham, MA on November 7, 2015 at Iron Body Studios

One Comment on “Train With A Purpose”

Cate Reynolds
August 7, 2015

Nicely written. And when I clicked through to read the NYT article about Serena, I found this gem of a quote from Maria Sharapova:
“I can’t handle lifting more than five pounds,” Sharapova said. “It’s just annoying, and it’s just too much hard work. And for my sport, I just feel like it’s unnecessary.” This from a pro athlete. Wow. I’m speechless.