Pushing Through
You don’t have to read any of the studies on the rhythms of the body to know that you have high and low points of energy throughout the day.
I am charged in the morning and wane a bit by early afternoon. Your pattern may be different.
What is the best use of these rhythms? Paraphrasing the late Jackie Gleason, “Be going out when the tide is going out and coming in when the tide is coming in.” When you do it any other way, you stress your system.
When you hit a low point, that’s a cosmic clue to not push through. We, through conditioning, ignore the stop signs and keep on going. This may work for you for awhile, in fact, for decades. The sticky wicket is this: This pattern of ignoring your rhythms will eventually bite you in the ass.
We all admire the will of the person working two or three jobs to put food on the table and keep a roof overhead. We all recognize that schedule cannot be sustained without pain. The person may persevere for years, but payback is coming.
This is what’s going on. Your body, in its infinite wisdom, is sending you “slow down” signals in the form of less energy. For whatever the reason – conditioning, choice, necessity, you push through. Here’s the rub: There comes a point where you push through one time too many and your body rebels. It, in effect, says, “If you don’t slow down, I will slow you down.” It does that with some sort of malady.
Initially, it could be something as mundane as a nagging pain in a certain body part or the flu. But you think that a tough person like you has to push through. When you ignore the initial warning signs and the ensuing maladies for too long, your body will send you a final warning – something that will flatten you and make you take notice.
If that’s happened to you, I’m sorry, but you should be grateful. Your body has offered you an ultimatum: Pay attention to your energy or perish.
You cannot rationalize this universal truth away: Ignore your body’s rhythms and you will pay.
Your body won’t accept the labels of “Type A” or “Hard Worker” and give you a pass, because those labels are based on ideology and not something measurable like the rhythms of your body.
Let’s pretend that you pay attention for awhile after being flattened and start to feel better. If you use that as a springboard to go back to your old ignoring ways, you’re not going to get much older.
Pushing through is something we all do. When it becomes your lifestyle, payment to the piper is coming due.
All the best,
John
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