Today in the gym, I noticed something interesting. Typically, my heart rate speeds up when I first do cardio – particularly if I am doing a strenuous exercise or series of exercises, or if I am just jumping into it. This could be seen as normal, except sometimes, it gets to the point to where I am prematurely out of breath. I think the main reason for this is my brain gets over-excited, causing my body to react by in turn boosting my heart rate beyond what is useful – a sort of malfunctioning stress response.
There could be more than a couple of reasons for this. I am a naturally “high-strung” person, and have battled with nervousness and anxiety in the past, so jumping into a moderately intense cardio workout like today’s could potentially trigger this condition. Also, I have genetically a faster-than-normal metabolism, and although I’m not a exercise physiologist, I have a hunch that that could have something to do with my body’s system unnecessarily jolting into turbo mode.
I noticed, though, that the more I pushed through, the more I simply did my sets and took some time to catch my breath between them, the more body sort of calmed down and began to take it in stride. It was almost as if after a certain point, my body began to “learn” how to manage the exercises – to pace itself. I was intrigued by this discovery. Strangely, about halfway through the sets (I was doing seven supersets of bodyweight squats followed by 60-second jump rope), it seemed to actually get easier.
This could be seen as analogous to the process that takes place when you decide to start a new habit or discipline. Not even on a long-term scale – just could be the activity for the day. Ever heard that it takes a rocket 90 per cent of its energy just to get off the ground? That’s what I’m talking about. For me, practicing falls into this category. Once I start practicing, I really have to force myself through the first five minutes, and usually, once I break past that, it’s smooth sailing.
The body knows how to acclimate to almost any activity, and so does the brain. My issue had been that my cardiological system would, initially, be working too hard, too hard to keep up a steady pace. But once I simply forced myself through this uncomfortable first stage, I found that it soon adjusted itself to fit what I needed it to do.
We can use this principle any time we want to explore untapped potential in ourselves. The more we push through, the more we notice things, and the more we notice things, the more real Learning actually takes place. This is called Engagement – our brains and our bodies are constantly interacting with internal and external stimuli.
How does this relate to the Impresario? Well I’ve already cited Seth Godin’s definition of the Impresario. But using what I’ve explored above, today in the gym and in this specific blog entry, I think I can safely now say that I’ve come up with my own definition. The Impresario is simply someone who engages with life!
If any of this rings true or strikes a cord with you, feel free to send an email to piersonkeatingmusic@gmail.com. I’ll be sure to return to this concept of the Impresario, and this new definition I’ve just come up with, again and again in blogs posts to come.
Thanks for reading!