Dude. Breathe.

The other day, in the midst of a delightfully vomilicious workout involving a barbell, burpees, and situps, I was instructed by the trainer to breathe. Like, he actually had to remind me to inhale, then exhale. Embarrassing. Because that should be an automatic thing, right? In theory, yes, but as the minutes ticked away my breathing got shallower, my form went to shit, and I ended up stumbling from one task to the next. Frantic. Exhausted. Cross-eyed.

“Dude, stop. Calm down. Breathe.” he said.

I squinted in disbelief (and because of the sweat in my eyes). “Uhhhh…. perhaps you’ve forgotten… you just gave me approximately a million reps to complete and I have to do them rightnowbeforetheclockbuzzesalsoImightpassoutanysecondnowand I DON’T FREAKING HAVE TIME TO STOP AND BREATHE, YOU ~~SON-OF-A~~ nice, helpful man!”

…Seriously, though. Calm down and breathe??? Easier said than done when you’ve got a lot going on (in workouts or life in general).

When life gets busy, painful, difficult, stressful, whatever… our tendency is to grit our teeth and bear down even harder.

“You want me to stop and breathe? F off, I’ve gotta finish all these reps! I’ve gotta file this paperwork, return 73 e-mails, and stay late for that meeting! I’ve gotta cook healthy meals, track my calories, and be at the gym every morning at 5am! I’ve gotta smooth things over with that friend and touch base with this one. I’ve gotta keep smiling, never cry, and bite back my words! I’ve gotta vacuum my car, make an appearance at that party, and buy toilet paper! Never mind that I’m exhausted, cranky, and forgot to pencil in one eyebrow this morning – THERE IS NO TIME TO SLOW DOWN!!!!!”

Before we know it, we’re stumbling from task to task, forgetting which way is up, and becoming more frantic all the time. (If you can relate, you’re either smiling or cringing right now.)

Dude, stop. Calm down. Breathe. Doing so is not a waste of time. It is, in fact, the most useful, productive action you can take. It turns panic into determination. It turns chaos into inspiration. It turns a forced smile into a genuine one. It turns a heavy barbell into a lighter one. It allows you to do your job like a frigging boss.

Whether your job is to clean and jerk a heavy weight,

or not fall over in yoga,

or approach other humans with graciousness and respect,

or rock it in business,

or turn heads in your new jeans,

or exit your bed and face another day,

or set a good example for young people,

or support a friend going through tough stuff,

or be a breath of fresh air and cheerfully kick ass at life,

you will do it best if you aren’t drowning in a sea of “I’ve gottas.”

One of my friends/workout buddies/unofficial life coaches – This gal is a living, breathing definition of “cheerfully kicking ass.”

You can’t be your most awesome self if you never come up for air. So set the barbell down. Push your to-do list aside. Close your laptop early. Extend your weekend. Enjoy the view from the top of that rope. Breathe, breathe, breathe.