Vic’s Mancronysms

🏴F.E.A.R.S. FOR A VIBRANT LIFE 🏴

5 things to keep in mind in order to get a more vibrant and interesting life.
🟥- Focus – regardless of how big or how easy your task, your mission or your goal is, put all your attention to it. Stop chasing multiple birds at once. If you want something to happen, be disciplined and work on it.
🟥- Experiment – life is about trying new things. No one has all the answers. We all have to figure them out as we go. The more new experiences you have, the faster you’ll find the solution to new problems or situations.
🟥- Adapt – the key to resilience is our ability to be comfortable with the uncomfortable. It can only be uncomfortable because it’s unknown, frightening or painful. We can adapt and get used to anything if we decide to.
🟥- Risk – taking risks is the essence of the pioneer spirit. Without risk, there is no exploration, no conquest, no new frontier, no progress. It’s valid for civilizations, nations and individuals alike.
🟥- Simplify – life is chaotic by nature and we seek comfort and reassurance in objects, possessions, relationships, routines and habits. The problem is that we keep them even long after we stopped needing them. Make your life simpler.

🏴TRAINING FOR LIFE IS A M.E.S.S. 🏴

You’re going to the gym? That’s good, but what are you training for? Esthetics or practical  life? If it’s to be ready for life, your training should focus on 4 fundamental qualities.
🟥 – Mobility – sitting for long hours, hunched over a computer or driving a car, affects your body. Tight hips and restricted overhead shoulder mobility are very common.
🟥 – Efficiency – learn to be efficient when it comes to practical skills like climbing, running, vaulting, jumping. It only makes those movements easier to perform but also decreases the risk of being injured
🟥 – Strength – being strong is the fundamental quality that helps building pretty much everything else physical. Stay strong as you age by lifting your body or heavy objects off the ground.
🟥 – Speed – if you combine strength and speed, you create power, the ability to move yourself or any object around quickly and efficiently. Power production is improved through sprints, jumps and ballistic resistance training.
Now it’s time for you to start training with a practical goal in mind!

🏴FIGHT WITH YOUR P.A.W.S. 🏴

Being a protector means being able to defend yourself, your family and those who are dear to your heart. It’s not something you improvise. Preparation is key and relies on 4 important steps that can help you to avoid, anticipate or react efficiently.
🟥 – Planning – It’s very difficult to determine your best course of action in every situation when you are in the middle of it. Planning helps you to know the places to avoid, the tools to carry, the resources you can use, and what you would do in realistic situations you might encounter.
🟥 – Awareness – criminals with bad intent often benefit from the element of surprise. The only way to negate that is to pay attention to what is happening around you. It is hard to avoid or escape a situation if you don’t see it coming.
🟥- Weapons – regardless of how strong and skilled you are, dealing with multiple aggressors is extremely difficult. Weapons of any type, improvised or not, can turn the situation to your advantage.
🟥 – Skills – self-defense is improved by building a set of skills like striking or grappling. It is based on your ability to effectively hit an aggressor, to control them, but also to deal with any weapon they might have.

🏴GOOD SEX IS ABOUT P.E.N.I.S. 🏴

Communicating with and understanding your partner are essential for an enjoyable sex life. It is based on sharing an experience and a selfish partner rarely makes a good sex partner.
🟥 – Patience – understand that your partner might not be ready for everything yet. They might not be in the right mood and are not necessarily comfortable with telling you. Things might take more time that you think and you have to be fine with that. Enjoy the journey.
🟥 – Exploration – the human body can be an infinite source of enjoyment. Feel free to use your five senses and your whole nervous system to create many different sensations. Don’t just repeat what works because after a while it will not work anymore.
🟥 – Novelty – boredom is the enemy of a thriving sex life. Trying new things, new places, new environments, new ways to do old things are the spices that keep the fire going.
🟥 – Initiative – Everyone has some fantasies but also taboos and things that they might be reluctant to try. It’s important to talk about them and eventually to create ways to circumvent them while respecting your partner’s borders.
🟥 – Skills – Everything is a skill that can be learned and improved and there’s always someone who can help you in anything you like doing or anything you’d like to be doing. Getting better at something makes it more enjoyable for both partners. Read, study, practice. No one was born a Sex God.

🏴NO EXCUSE FOR BEING A  F.O.O.L. 🏴

There are things we don’t control in life: the time and place we were born, who is our family, its wealth, many biological and anatomical features, etc.But what we become in life mostly depends on things we can control or influence. We can fool ourself and pretend that it’s not our fault, and we can blame something or someone else but the truth of the matter is that we decide if we are:
🟥 – Fat – with the exception of some rare hormonal disorders, if many men are fat, it’s because of their eating habits and their sedentary lifestyle. It’s not the food industry’s or the government’s fault It’s their fault. The solution is easy to find, not easy to implement.
🟥 – Overindulgent – excess of anything is rarely good. Anything pleasurable should be enjoyed in small dose. Discipline equals freedom and overindulgence leads to addiction. Alcohol, drugs, sex, entertainment or food, excess often hides meaninglessness.
🟥 – Overbearing – arrogance is different from confidence, and trying to dominate others is not a sign of mastery, personal growth or achievement. When you talk, you don’t learn anything new. When you listen, you do. Being a man is as much about building a life as it is about helping others
🟥 –  Lazy – reaching any goal involves effort and commitment and a man who has no goal is just drifting, killing time till his death. Nothing great has ever been done oversleeping and postponing decisions and action to another day.

🏴D.E.-S.T.R.E.S.S.  TO RECOVER🏴

Training, moving and exercising in general are a form of stress for your body. Recovering properly is as important as exercising properly. It optimizes your training and helps to prevent unnecessary fatigue and injuries.
🟥 – Drinks -Water is really all we need, and probably more than most of us drink. Electrolytes might be a good idea too
🟥 – Entertainment – Any hobby that helps you to change your mind, relax and enjoy the moment
🟥 – Sleep – Obviously an essential way to recharge your body and your brain. Don’t underestimate the benefits of naps
🟥 – Temperature – Enjoy the benefits of cold (shower, bath, cryotherapy) and hot exposure (sauna, Turkish bath)
🟥 – Relaxation – For the body (massage) and the mind (meditation, music, journaling). Breathing practice is a way to combine both
🟥 – Exercise – Any low-to-moderate intensity activity like walking or stretching
🟥 – Sustenance – When it comes to recovery, think about light meals and proper supplements
🟥 – Sun – Spend time outdoors, preferably in nature. Enjoy the sun on your skin

🏴DO NOT F.A.I.L. YOUR RELATIONSHIPS🏴

Regardless of the gender of your partner and the nature of your feelings for them, some basic rules help to keep long-lasting relationships with your friends, family or lovers
🟥 – Fun – Even if we need to share the difficult moments with others, there is no better way to keep a relationship going than laughing, playing, sharing adventures and travels.
🟥 – Assertive – Setting boundaries early on in a relationship. You will not feel used and will avoid any misunderstanding about what you expect or tolerate from others.
🟥 – Independent – Being needy and relying on others is a character trait that many find annoying. Asking for help once in a while is fine. More is irritating.
🟥 – Loving – A relationship, even friendship, is based on love, something many men have a hard time showing. Be there when the others need and show how much you appreciate them.

🏴THE S.E.E.D.S. OF YOUR LIFESTYLE 🏴

Wellness is a holistic process that promotes physical, mental and emotional health. It is based on five fundamental components of our lifestyle:
🟥- Sleep – when, how deep, how long and how well you sleep play an essential role in your ability to thrive in life. If your brain and body can’t recover at night, they will not be able to perform optimally the rest of the day.
🟥- Exercise -specialization is for insects. It’s important to train a wide variety of movements and skills, and to develop a strong, mobile,  explosive and injury-free body.
🟥- Environment – from an evolutionary perspective, we do best when we spend time in nature, outdoors, getting sunlight and stimuli from a wide range of environments. It helps to improve our immune system and our resilience.
🟥- Diet – what you eat, how much you eat and when you eat has more impact on the way you feel, move and look than all the supplements and fad diets out there.
🟥- Stress – short bursts of intensive stress have never been a problem. The problem is all the chronic low intensity stress that creates systemic inflammation and needs to be managed on a daily basis.

🏴PROPER BREATHING FOR N.E.R.D.S. 🏴

Breathing is one of the most important physiological activities that we  do constantly. Several elements can help us reduce stress and improve performance:
🟥-  Nasal – Even though we can breathe through our mouth, nasal breathing brings a lot of additional benefits (filtration, humidification, NO production, etc)
🟥- Exhalatory – Exhalation shouldn’t just be passive. Controlled exhalation helps recovery during effort and better CO2 management.
🟥- Restricted – Most people tend to breathe too much and too often, therefore throwing their respiratory process off balance. Breathing should be slow and minimal.
🟥- Diaphragmatic – Diaphragmatic breathing is the most efficient way to breathe. It also lowers our stress response and cortisol level.
🟥- Synchronized – During cyclical and a-cyclical activities, optimal breathing should be synchronized with our movements, using the mechanical action of our body.

🏴A MAN ALWAYS LOOKS FOR R.I.S.K.S.. 🏴

The life of a modern man is not about being a Spartan or a Viking. It is not very relevant anymore, even if it could be motivating at times, but there are classical attributes that seem to be less and less common, attributes that the modern man should embody.
🟥-  Responsibility – Don’t shy away from your duties to your family, your work, and your community. Be a  man who doesn’t reject his responsibilities and doesn’t blame others.
🟥-  Independence – A man is self-sufficient. It doesn’t mean you are not a team player, but you must be able to take care of yourself physically and financially.
🟥-  Strenuousness – Don’t seek the comfort of an easy life. Accept and embrace the challenges of life as they come. The obstacle is the way.
🟥-  Kindness – Being a strong man doesn’t mean being a jerk. Be kind, compassionate and empathetic to who around you deserves it.
🟥-  Style – Even if it doesn’t sound like a virtue, a touch of class in your life is one of the attributes of an educated, interesting and charismatic man.

🏴A GOOD DIET IS A R.E.V.O.L.T. 🏴

Everyone needs a different diet and everyone wants a different diet. It might be for fat loss, muscle gain, health or simply enjoyment. Thousands of websites, books, articles, studies and videos have been done on this very topic and no one seems to agree. Everyone ends up confused or convinced that their truth is the only truth. A bit of common sense usually helps understanding what a good diet is:
🟥-  Restrictive – Overeating has never been easier. Regardless of what you eat, calorie restriction helps a bit to keep everything under control. Feast and famine is what we’ve always experienced as a species.
🟥-  Evolutionary – Through thousands of years on this planet, we adapted to thrive on food like meat, fish, vegetables, fruits, tubers and nuts. Everything else is relatively new and might not always be optimal for our health.
🟥-  Varied – Micronutrient deficiency is a very common problem as our diet is based on fewer and fewer ingredients. Try new vegetables, fruits, organs, even insects!
🟥-  Organic – No doubt that chemicals and GMOs are part of most of the food available in our stores. Going organic whenever possible allows us to find better quality and less processed food.
🟥-  Local – We are used to find anything at anytime of the year and that’s a very new phenomenon. By buying more local, we not only support the local economy but we also eat more seasonal food.
🟥-  Tasty – What would be the point of eating the perfect diet if all tasted like chalk and cardboard? Learn to combine flavors to enhance how your food tastes instead of drowning everything with sauces and condiments.
In one of his comedies, the French playwright Moliere wrote: “One must eat to live, and not live to eat”.  The food industry tries very hard to make us forget this simple truth. Fight convenience and look for a more optimal diet.

🏴MAKE PROGRESS WITH V.I.C. 🏴

This last mancronym is well know amongst the whole community of MovNat Trainers worldwide, as it explains how people can make progress in their skills and movement practice. By varying any of those 3 components, one can explore different way to challenge their training.
🟥-  Volume – it’s about repetitions, time, sets, ladders, resting time, etc. It’s simply about doing more of something, either in term of duration or number.
🟥-  Intensity – Here we are mostly talking about weight, speed, distance and perceived rate of exertion. Lifting more weight, running or swimming faster,  throwing an object or jumping farther.
🟥-  Complexity – This one means any variation of a skill you already train, or the acquisition of a new skill. You can vary the environment, the skill itself or how you combine a skill with another skill or several of them.