Workout of the Day

Maintaining Your Double Life


Many people today are simultaneously leading two lives that pull in very opposite directions. High-intensity training is as common as it’s ever been, but so are sedentary desk jobs with heavy mental stresses. Chances are, you lead some version of this double life. You are both the modern weekend warrior athlete and the modern desk warrior, splitting your life between extremes.

The reality of this practice is that it will run up against the limits of performance and sustainability at some point, likely sooner rather than later. Injury, burnout, dysfunction, halted progress. But the solution is not as simple as quitting your desk job so you can traipse about and be active all day (this, obviously, would be a foolish choice for most folks), and it's not as simple as ditching high intensity training or abandoning training all together (we are interested in being healthier, happier, more able humans after all). The double life is sometimes unavoidable. But with minimal effort, we can bridge the gap between these disparate lives to get the most from each. Try these three simple strategies to steer your lifestyle practices further into the sustainable, and to stop letting your workday lifestyle wreck your body.

1 - Move more.
Get up every 20 minutes (or more often) and move a little. I don't care what you do -- stretch, get coffee, do some squats, dance, walk in circles for a minute -- remind your body that it is a vessel of movement, not meant to be permanently chair-shaped or stationary. Better yet, get a standing desk.

2 - Fuel well.
Stop putting low-quality, low-octane fuel in your system and then asking it to perform like a sports car. If you're going to treat yourself like an athlete (in training), find little ways to treat yourself like an athlete outside of training, too. You know the drill here: fresh plants, high-quality proteins and fats, and a balanced nutrient profile.

3 - Regular maintenance.
It should only take 10-15 minutes of daily maintenance in the form of mobility, soft tissue work, and working weaknesses to keep your system moving properly and injury- and pain-free. Kelly Starrett popularized this idea of daily maintenance and it has worked miracles for those who buy in. I want to draw attention to the word “daily.” That is the key. We all have 10 minutes. Do it while you're watching TV, split it up into 2-minute chunks throughout the day, do it with your kids, put down your phone right now and go do it.

Double lives aren't ideal, but it is possible to have your metaphorical cake and eat it too. This isn't advice or admonishment or a guidebook, it's just what you need to do to keep the engine running.

- PS


  • Power clean - work up to 3rm

  • For time:

  • 21-15-9 reps of:

    • Power clean (50% of 3rm)

    • Thruster (same weight)