Monday, 10 June 2024

This Week — A new approach to the Newsletter, and a lesson about struggling with fitness

Linda Eskin — Personal Trainer, Behavior Change Coach, Martial Artist, and Author at GoYouFitness.com

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Happy Monday, Reader!

I hope you are doing well and getting outside for some active play in the spring weather.

Newsletter News

I have news about our newsletter: I'm taking a different approach. Instead of a "weekly-ish" newsletter, this will be for occasional project updates and invitations to participate. More on that in a minute...

Thank you!

First, I want to express my gratitude for your support and enthusiasm in subscribing here. I appreciate you diving in right at the beginning. Thank you. I hope you'll stay, and invite your friends to check out GoYouFitness, too.

Here's the Deal

As I'd cautioned, everything here at Go You Fitness is a "Writing In Public" experiment. With experiments, some things don't work out as we expected, so we learn from that "failure" and try a different approach.

My original idea was to write articles with fitness tips and encouragement, provide book recommendations, share news and studies about health and fitness, and give detailed release notes about new website content and features.

You may have noticed that you have not been receiving any newsletters from me lately. Huh. My apologies for that.

What I have discovered is that the rest of life interferes with keeping a weekly schedule. ADHD, with its side quests and hyperfocusing, has played a part, too.

Not only that, but trying to write a newsletter has been stopping me from writing for my site and my books! It's been a recurring cycle of "Ooh, a great idea for my book. I should write about that! No, wait... Stop everything! I ought to be getting the newsletter out before I do that. But I'll need to think about it. I'll just start my laundry and get a little yardwork done first."

And so nothing gets done.

Well That Didn't Work

Just as I would advise you to do with a fitness program: If it's not working for you, change it.

Writing a weekly newsletter doesn't work for me. What's worse is saying I would write a weekly newsletter, and then not getting it done. Constant pressure, failure, and shame. That's a familiar state of being for anyone with ADHD, and familiar to anyone struggling with an approach to fitness that isn't working: "I'm going to get up every morning and go for a run!" And then you don't, because it's cold, and you can't find your shoes, and you stayed up too late... again.

What's the Big Lesson Here?

For writing, and for fitness, and probably for everything else, too:

1. Be quicker to realize that something isn't working.
2. Waste less time feeling bad and beating yourself up about it.
3. Drop it and move on. Try something different.
4. Repeat as needed.

Getting quicker and lighter about this process would be a good goal.

So, Now What?

Here's the new plan: Instead of the weekly editions, I will send a project update every few months.

• You will get occasional website updates and book announcements.
• You will still be a part of this Writing-In-Public project, with invitations to contribute and opportunities to become a beta reader as the Go You Fitness website and books come to life.

What to do about the newsletter:

• If you want to get the new updates, that would be awesome. You don't have to do anything - you're already in. Keep your eyes open for occasional updates in your email.
• If not, I totally get it. Just scroll to the bottom of this newsletter and click "Unsubscribe from everything." And thank you for being here.

Back to Fitness — Applying What We Have We Learned

Give some thought to that four-step "Big Lesson" process above.

Are you struggling with a fitness plan or goal that isn't working for you? Are you just not doing it? Or doing it, but hating it? Take a gentle, honest look.

Plans and goals are supposed to support and inspire us, not make us feel terrible while we fail. (Tip: It's not you who's failing, it's the plan.)

It doesn't matter if a fitness program worked for a friend, or is endorsed by a famous trainer, or even if it worked for you at another point in your life, or another season of the year, if it's not working for you now, change it.

• Go easier for a while if you need to. Back off to focus on other things that need your time and attention. (But don't quit - just do less.)
• Or go harder if that inspires you. Sometimes challenging ourselves more can be inspiring.
• Try having a deadline: sign up for a 5K or register for a Highland games competition.
• Join a group or class for structure and community: nature walks, a hiking group, martial arts dojo, masters swim team, circus arts classes, yoga studio, or rowing team. If you can't find a group you like, start one: Family Frisbee Fridays!
• Try something new: surfing, kayaking, trail running, water ballet, landscape construction, calisthenics, Frisbee golf, or riding your bike on the path around the local lake.

And don't skip step #4: Repeat as needed. If your new plan isn't working out, drop it, and try something else.

Let's Get Moving

You go outside and play. I'll get back to work on my writing. Look for new articles, recommendations, and inspiration at GoYouFitness.com, and I'll keep you in the loop about progress on my book.

We've got this!

Linda
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Did you know you can read past newsletters?

If you recently subscribed, or just want to review what you've already read, you can always find the past Newsletters on the Go You Fitness site. Feel free to share them with friends, too!

Past issues are archived at my ConvertKit page, so each link on my site will take you to a ConvertKit web address that starts with "goyoufitness.ck.page".

READ PAST NEWSLETTERS

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The Book Report

Table of Contents The Table of Contents is still "in the shop." The freshly-reorganized outline for the book and site will be available soon. Table of Contents

Release Notes Find website updates, announcements of new features, and mentions of recent fitness articles and recommendations. Release Notes

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Thank you for being a part of Go You Fitness! Have a question, suggestion, or request? Drop me a note at Newsletter@GoYouFitness.com​

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If You're Having a Hard Time...

People often engage with fitness during major life transitions: a bad health scare, divorce or death, getting clean and sober, an empty nest, job loss, a move to a new community. We start out full of determination. But even when it's exciting, change isn't easy.

If you are having a hard time you might want to know about the crisis resource links on the website. You can find them under Fitness Resources.

Please take care of yourself, and get help if you need it. 💛

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Copyright © 2024, Linda Eskin — Go You Fitness