Practicing your new normal

Cal Ripken (at least I think it was Cal) "Practice doesn't make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect."

Whoever it was, I think this statement is important. Any time you do a behavior, you reinforce that behavioral pattern, and with time, that becomes your "new normal."

We can use this to our advantage. In Brian Wansink's brilliant book "Mindless Eating," he shows how most people eat according to scripts, rather than because they are hungry. They eat because that's what they do when they come home from work, or that's what they do when they are stressed, or that's what they do when watching a football game, etc. Those scripts are what is normal for you. But you can create a "new normal." Instead of eating something when you come home from work, you can play catch with your son as soon as you come home. Instead of eating when you are stressed, you can make a point of calling your mom and letting her know she is important to you. You can replace a maladaptive habit with a healthier habit- you can create a new normal.

I once heard an interview with Tom Arnold where he made a similar point. He was a co-star in "True Lies" with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Tom asked Arnold for advice on how to look buff for the movie. Arnold advised him to just practice walking with his stomach sucked in, and over time his posture and abdominal tone would improve. And it worked. It's a great pearl that can help prove abdominal tone, and is an example of "practicing your new normal."

This applies in other aspect of life. I've often heard the advice that you should not dress for the job you have, but the job you want to have. While I don't follow this pearl myself (I wear both polo shirts and sportcoat and tie at work, but I wear polos more often), but the idea makes sense- the best way to earn a job is start acting the part to confirm you are ready.

The main point I want to make, though, is in regards to posture. Whenever you sit or stand, whether you think of it not, you are "practicing" your posture. This is especially true with older individuals. Many older adults walk with a slumped posture, and are practicing bending at their waist, curving their shoulders, and sticking out their neck. This is reversible, however. There are some very good exercises that can, with practice, improve your posture, which can help your appearance, improve neck and back pain, and make you feel more vibrant and energetic.

It feels odd at first, but it's all about practicing your "new normal."

Practicing being joyful

It's been over a year since I last posted .... I will try to make shorter, but more frequent posts

About a month ago I went to a fantastic course on myofascial medicine that was put on by UPMC, and it's had some major impacts on the way I think about musculoskeletal conditions.

The single most impactful thought that someone shared with me at the course is that we need to practice being joyful. I thought that this was a remarkably brilliant insight.

The nervous system is designed to adapt to anything you do frequently as a "new normal." This can have negative consequences if you look at people are who routinely miserable. As a thought experiment. think about the last time you were at the DMV. It's a miserable environment, everyone hunches their shoulders, and there is a palpable tension in the room. Now imagine being like that all time- that would be a horrible "new normal."

Instead, imagine trying to practice a "new normal" by practicing being joyful. Here's a simple exercise- extend your hands overhead like you just crossed the finish line of a marathon. Didn't that make you feel better? I don't think it's possible to put your arms overhead in a victory position and be in a bad mood.

I don't think this is just psycho-babble- I think it reflects a real neurologic phenomenon. Paul Ekman did some ground breaking research that demonstrated that if you have a person put their face in a smiling position, their mood will improve. I think that this is true of the body as a whole as well- if you place your body into the position of happiness, you will feel happier.

I've noticed this when I work on some strengthening exercises in my patients. I often work on them to strengthen their posterior chain (muscles behind their back like the thoracic paraspinals) and stretch their anterior chain (muscles in the front of their body, like the pectoralis minor), and an interesting ancillary phenomenon is that most of them notice that they are noticably happier. It happens almost instantaneously. I don't think this is an accident- by training their muscles so that they can literally walk taller, they also figuratively walk taller- they become happier.

And so do I.