the pain diaries: Day 505..."GiVe iT HeLL hOnEy! (he he he)"

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Day 505..."GiVe iT HeLL hOnEy! (he he he)"

Another Sunday...time for more of my mindless ramblings that probably don't make sense or interest anyone other than myself...but as I always say, "This is MY diary...I just happen to leave it lying open on the table for all to read.". I have nothing profound or insightful today...just a humorous story. When I was working out at a "big" gym...I had funny experiences every now and then with other patrons as well as employees there. Now it's usually just me and a barbell...and on a good day...if I'm lucky...a few friends suffering along side me...so the stories that involve men asking me to lay plates on their laps for bench dips and pick up lines at the water fountain have long dried up.

Thursday...I ended up spending a good part of my day in the gym...off and on...and I was alone most of the day. I was tired and struggling to get through my warmup...a ONE MILE run...nothin...so I decided to just stop and clean the gym up instead of moving on to workout. I had been working for probaby 45 minutes...wiping down everything...vacuuming...spraying Lysol (I feel like I'm becoming some sort of germaphobe!)...and then finally mopping. I had made my way up to the door when two men drive up in a beautiful 7 series BMW...quite possibly my favorite car...ever. They walked in and asked if they could walk through the gym to the offices behind us. I said, "Sure...just be careful because the floor is wet and I don't want you to slip." I thought it was funny, because the guy driving reminded me a bit of Chris Farley's character Matt Foley on SNL. He didn't have glasses, but he had that booming annoying voice and a big gut...a really big gut...and he kept tugging at his pants. Everytime he would tug at them, he would do this little side to side movement and I would imagine Matt Foley saying, "...That and a nickel will get you a nice hot cup OF JACK-SQUAT!". They walked through..didn't slip..and I quickly finished up and left to go eat.

During lunch, I had this whole "Tortoise and Hare" epiphany and decided to go back to the gym and workout. It was a beautiful day...breeze blowing...sun shining...60s...so I drug all my equipment and did my entire workout outside. It was a workout that I went through and did the entire thing 3 times or for 3 rounds...for time. There was a 500M Row at the end of each round...which felt like pure torture...everytime. Needless to say...by the end of the 3rd round...I was out of breath...sweating...desperate to be DONE. Just as I strapped my feet into the Rower and started my last painful 500 M...the same two men, along with a man that works for the pharmacy behind us, drove back up. I was gasping for air and grunting and groaning with every stroke. They were staring...and not being discreet about it either.

Now I understand that for most people...what we do...what I do is inconceivable. They have no idea what it takes to complete a Crossfit-esque workout. There is no comprehension as to the amount of mental focus it takes or how excrutiatingly painful it can be...so while it is a bit annoying...I try to be "forgiving" when people want to talk to me or make "cute comments" to me in the middle of a workout. Behind my sunglasses, I could see this Matt Foley-ish guy staring at me...waiting for just the right moment to make some comment. I ignored him...put up my invisible wall...tried to look miserable (which wasn't hard because I was)...anything to just get them to go away. They piddled around at the trunk and carried a few things in until finally my 500 M was complete. I unstrapped my feet and fell to the ground beside the rower as I stopped the stopwatch...my chest rising and falling as I gasped for air...rolling side to side because my legs and back were screaming.

THIS...was the moment that "Matt" chose to speak. He said, "He he he...WHOOO won?...YOU?...or the MACHINE!?!". In broken words...still gasping...I said, "The ROWER...ALWAYS wins!" and turned my head to the side...hoping he would go away...and he did...but not before he shifted side to side pulling his pants up for the millionth time and said, "Weeeell...you give it hell honey! He he he!" and threw in a wink for good measure. Ewww. In my head, I said..."WTF mister?!? Can't you see me lying here...writhing in pain...out of breath?!? Do I look like I want to have a silly conversation...with a strange man that can't stop tugging at his pants??? WHY DON'T YOU TAKE MATT FOLEY'S ADVICE AND 'SHUT YOUR BIG YAPPER!'" But...in reality...I controlled myself. I just laid there...speechless...I gave him a really strained courtesy smile and a thumbs up. THIS...is my life.

SUNDAY=REST DAY

No comments:

Post a Comment

..............WHY?...............

This is my training log...my "workout diary" if you will. It is mostly for ME, but if it motivates someone else, that's great too! I write everday as a way of being accountable to myself. It's a way to track my progress, correct my mistakes, and a way to look back and view my day to day struggle to continue to work towards being the best possible version of myself. Sometimes, I am tired or lonely or unmotivated. Sometimes, I am "powerful beyond measure". Sometimes it is fun...easy. Other times, it is almost unbearable. I use to have my trainers to push me...but NOW I am on my own.

QUOTES THAT INSPIRE ME TO PUSH HARDER...GO FASTER...AND TRAIN LONGER

"SOME DEFINE OBSESSION AS NEGATIVE. I SAY IT'S HOW YOU GET THINGS DONE."

-MARK TWIGHT

"PAIN IS TEMPORARY. IT MAY LAST A MINUTE, OR AN HOUR, OR A DAY, OR A YEAR, BUT EVENTUALLY IT WILL SUBSIDE AND SOMETHING ELSE TAKES IT'S PLACE. IF I QUIT HOWEVER, IT LASTS FOREVER."

-LANCE ARMSTRONG

"TO BE TRANSFORMED BY EFFORT, ONE MUST DIG DEEP...SURPASS ONE'S EXPECTATIONS OR SELF-IMPOSED LIMITATIONS...RISK FAILURE...BLOW UP, AND 'GET THE FULL DOSE'...IT ALWAYS HURTS YOU GO AS HARD AS YOU CAN."

-MARK TWIGHT-"GYM JONES" WEBSITE

"TO GIVE ANYTHING LESS THAN YOUR BEST IS TO SACRIFICE THE GIFT."

-STEVE PREFONTAINE

“PUNISH YOUR BODY TO PERFECT YOUR SOUL.”

-MARK TWIGHT

“ONLY THOSE WHO WILL RISK GOING TOO FAR CAN POSSIBLY FIND OUT HOW FAR ONE CAN GO.”

-T.S. ELIOTT

"THE BENEFITS OF FITNESS ARE NOT MERELY PHYSICAL. SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF A SERIES OF DIFFICULT, SHORT-DURATION, HIGH INTENSITY EFFORTS BUILDS SELF-ASSUREDNESS IN A WAY THAT VERY FEW OTHER ACTIVITIES CAN. TOUGH WORKOUTS THAT PUSH AN INDIVIDUAL TO THE VERY LIMIT OF HIS OR HER CAPACITIES MAY BECOME THE GATEWAY TO HIGHER CONSCIOUSNESS. AND THAT AWARENESS OFTEN LEADS TO CONFIDENCE."

-MARK TWIGHT

"WHEN A PERSON TRAINS ONCE, NOTHING HAPPENS. WHEN A PERSON FORCES HIMSELF TO DO A THING A HUNDRED OR A THOUSAND TIMES, THEN HE CERTAINLY HAS DEVELOPED IN MORE WAYS THAN PHYSICAL. IS IT RAINING? THAT DOESN'T MATTER. AM I TIRED? THAT DOESN'T MATTER EITHER. THEN WILLPOWER WILL BE NO PROBLEM"

-EMIL ZATOPEK

"GIVE IT EVERYTHING AND LET THE CHIPS...OR WHATEVER...FALL WHERE THEY MAY. IT WON'T EVER GET EASIER, BUT YOU MIGHT GO FASTER, OR LAST LONGER."

-MARK TWIGHT

“A LOT OF PEOPLE RUN A RACE TO SEE WHO IS FASTEST. I RUN TO SEE WHO HAS THE MOST GUTS WHO CAN PUNISH HIMSELF INTO EXHAUSTING PACE, AND THEN AT THE END, PUNISH HIMSELF EVEN MORE. NOBODY IS GOING TO WIN A 5,000METER RACE AFTER RUNNING AN EASY 2 MILES. NOT WITH ME. IF I LOSE FORCING THE PACE ALL THE WAY, WELL, AT LEAST I CAN LIVE WITH MYSELF.“

-STEVE PREFONTAINE

“SUFFERING PROVIDES THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXERCISE WILL AND DEVELOP GRIT… THE MIND AND BODY ADAPT TO BOTH COMFORT AND DEPRIVATION… RELISH THE CHALLENGE OF OVERCOMING DIFFICULTIES THAT WOULD CRUSH ORDINARY MEN... LEARN TO SUFFER.”

-MARK TWIGHT – excerpts from "Extreme Alpinism - Climbing Light, Fast and High"

“SOMETIMES IF YOU WANT TO BE A WINNER, YOU HAVE TO BE WILLING TO BEAR THE SCARS FROM THE FIGHT.”

-PETRA SALVAJE

'EACH OF US GIVES WHAT WE ARE ABLE AND, MORE IMPORTANTLY, WILLING TO GIVE TO LIFE. HOW WE REACT WHEN OUR CAPACITY AND WILL FALL SHORT OF OUR EXPECTATIONS DETERMINES HOW WE VIEW OURSELVES...".

-MARK TWIGHT~"GYM JONES" website