The Value of Monotony

by  :C.J. Ong, Jr.

The times I was most at peace my Self were those times many would view as monotonous.  I trained alone, finding solace within the repetitions of crank arms and pedals, foot strike and Olympic bar movement.  It seemed natural to fuel my body with fresh fruits, fresh vegetables and lean meats.  I worked hard when I was fresh, worked easy (and showered) when not so fresh and slept when I was tired.

There were never feelings of hardship and I was never bored.  I was at ease, rather than dis-ease with my Self.

However when I made the choice to enter the mainstream fitness industry I became increasingly dis-eased, partly by the politics and deceptive practices of the fitness industry and partly because I found it difficult to “fit in”.

The mainstream fitness industry capitalizes on the consumers fear of monotony and of becoming bored, be it with exercise equipment and programming or with fitness nutrition by selling them a never ending array of repackaged programs and “exertainment” classes, shiny exercise machines, books and diets.  I just didn't get it.

And somewhere along the line while working and training in the mainstream fitness industry I stopped making progress, losing sight of the fact that monotony was an element in my past successes and needed to be returned to my life in order to realize progress.

I never found it a hardship to put quality foods in my shopping cart; to bench, squat and deadlift in a powerack; to ride a 150 miles or run 20 in training.  I found satisfaction in following and completing an 8 week training plan, be it in the weight room or on the roads.  And I was certainly never “bored”.

However I did find working out among the shiny exercise things while hearing the mindless sound of thunder by the stampeding McFitness herd to be a hardship and soul crushing.

And as it dawned on me how much I loved (and how much I missed) the discipline of monotony I made the choice to return to it and move far away from the herd and their pursuit of the bright baubles of McFitness.

And in my return to what some view as hardship I find my Self dis-ease free and at peace again.

“reject the awful normal