Play or Decay

Dear Collective,

I played the clarinet in grade school. I started back in fourth or fifth grade, and I was actually bad enough that they put me on the bass clarinet. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed it at the time.

But if you handed me a clarinet today, I probably couldn't even figure out how to make a clean note.

The blueprint is probably still buried deep in my brain, but the path is covered in decades of dust. Why? Because I stopped practicing. I stopped playing. And when you stop doing something, you don't just stay the same. You get worse.

The exact same rule applies to the barbell.

The science tells us that it only takes about two weeks of doing nothing before you start to lose your hard-earned gains. Your body is incredibly efficient. Muscle is metabolically expensive. It takes a massive amount of energy to build it and keep it on your frame. The moment you stop using it, your body says, "Well, if we aren't lifting heavy things anymore, we aren't going to waste energy keeping this."

All that time, effort, and energy you put into building your strength begins to dissipate. Your body reclaims the resources.

Strength is simply the resistance we build against decay to buy ourselves more time. It keeps us physically and mentally young. And the only way to keep it is to keep playing.

When I say "play," I don't mean mind games or manipulating people. I mean pure, unadulterated physical play. Using your body as an instrument of capability and joy.

At the studio this week, we are running our Wendler 5/3/1 program. This is the hardest week of the cycle. We are testing your one-rep maxes. But we are treating it like a game.

The rules of the game are simple this week: you are going to have one or two movements that are incredibly heavy and difficult. You are going to test your limits. But everything else on your plate is going to be super easy. We are keeping it enjoyable. You get to walk in, warm up, hit the heavy rep, PR, and find out what your physical frame is actually capable of right now.

But the play shouldn't stop when you walk out our front doors.

If you want to be happy, independent, and healthy in your eighties and nineties, you need to prep for it now. You have to use the strength you are building in here.

So this week, I am challenging the entire community to go outside and play.

We are steps away from Ridgeland Common, right next to the Oak Park Ice Arena. There is a giant grassy field out there. Go grab some friends, go play kickball, throw a dodgeball around, or just go run around and be silly.

Or, if you want a different change of scenery, the OPRF High School track is wide open on weekend mornings. Show up at 7:00 AM. Go for a run, walk the lanes, or bring a football to throw around on the turf. There are always people out there doing their own workouts, running laps, and enjoying the morning. It is a great space to just move.

You don't stop playing because you get old. You get old because you stop playing.

Don't let your hard work rot in the harbor. Get out there, test your limits, and let's go play.

With Strength and Wisdom,

Charlie We, The Collective Fitness