Eleven Push Ups? Really?
When stupid sound bites go viral on social media ...
I have officially declared this the summer of the push up!
Why?
Because I like working toward a fitness goal and then feeling empowered when all that work actually … well, works.
But also, because I can do push ups anywhere which means this is the perfect fitness goal to chase while I’m traveling over the coming months.
But here’s what I’m not doing.
I’m not doing push ups because a menopause influencer went on a well known podcast last March and told the podcast host that all women need to be able to do eleven push ups from their toes.
Do I think that strength training is important for healthy aging? Absolutely. I will sing the praises of strength training until my dying day.
But this particular advice went viral and felt like pure click bait. Eleven push ups? Really? Why??? Thankfully, some internet sleuths quickly worked to figure out where that number came from, and it turns out that there isn’t actually any evidence supporting this claim.
Here’s what I know: nothing magical is going to happen once you can do eleven push ups from your toes, even if a medical expert says so. Think about it: there are women who can pump out eleven gorgeous push ups but who are extremely unhealthy in other ways. Healthy aging is a holistic practice that involves a wide variety of things - not just a single movement.
Which is exactly what the podcast guest explains if you listen to the episode, not just the viral soundbite. She says that mobility, balance, strength training and cardio are all vital to aging well. She just happened to mention the eleven push up thing, which went viral, giving us another random tidbit with zero context to add to our never ending list of “shoulds”.
If you genuinely want to start strength training because there is overwhelming scientific consensus that it’s important for healthy aging, then good for you. To get started, you need a program to follow.
If you can find and afford a personal trainer that specializes in training midlife women, awesome. But for the rest of us, I love both Madeline Moves and the RISE program by Jason and Lauren Pak. Both Moves and RISE are $20/month, utilize apps that are easy to figure out, and are expertly programmed to build strength and prevent injury. Heaven knows there are plenty of other options, but of all the programming I’ve tried out or looked at (including some menopause specific ones), these two remain my absolute favorites.
If you'd rather slide down a razor blade into a vat of lemon juice than strength train, the best thing you can do is to move in whatever way you are willing to do consistently - push ups be damned!
The most important thing is to not get so caught up in the ridiculous minutia of social media soundbites that you don’t do anything out of overwhelm.
The reality is that there are a wide variety of ways to live a healthy, active life and the most important thing is to just move. So pick whatever fits into the context of your life right now, and get started. For me, that happens to be push ups. What is it for you?
xo,
Rebecca
P.S. Two things you no longer have to do in perimenopause.
P.P.S. The We Do Not Care Club made the New York Times!!! (gift link)