“We want to build a strong, sustainable mind and body without breaking either in the process” - Renee McGregor
I read this quote by leading sports dietician Renee McGregor this week and I just thought, wow I have never resonated with such a simple but loaded quote so much.
With my education in psychology, and personal interest in health and fitness, this sums up my personal and professional mantra to a T. There is a lot to it, so I thought I would unpack it a bit in this blog post.
The key words relating to mind and body for me are strong, sustainable, breaking and process.
strong = ability to endure great stress/difficulty
sustainable = ability to endure great difficulty/stress over and over again without failure.
breaking = pain/dysfunction
process = Ongoing in duration, progressing
Having a strong and sustainable mind and body for me, genuinely is the key to health, ideal well-being and longevity. The process involves an array of lessons, sessions, discomfort and challenges. These take form in the way of workouts, competitions, learning, recovery (mental and physical) reading, analysing, reflecting, internal stress and relaxation.
Building a strong mind and body simultaneously requires a balance. This balance is so delicate, it can take years to achieve. I personally feel like I am still finding it, albeit getting closer, I am not there yet.
In practice, a strong mind and body means working out and reaping the rewards of strength and endorphins. A strong mind is keeping my mental space decluttered, functioning and in a ‘productive’ state when required, and a ‘relaxed’ state when necessary. Doing both simultaneously requires some compromise, taking a step away from the computer and the books to move my body or not making myself do that heavy squats session after a shit night sleep and a stressful week.
I could go on and on, unpacking the depth of this quote although I shall wrap up here. Thank you Renee Mcgregor for so concisely surmising my outlook on well-being.
