#truthtalk

A post I wrote to our gym members about this same time last year. I'm glad I ran across it, because I needed the reminders my own self.

I'm currently in #truthtalk mode with my own whiney ass, so prepare accordingly.

Peeps be putting' up some SERIOUS numbers these days when it comes to 1 RM stuff at our gym. Some are doing multiple amounts of pull-ups  and the nuances of Olympic lifting are really starting to click.

I know this for sure: If you're hitting new numbers or learning new skills, it has more to do with consistency than just about anything else. And for that, I'd like to  extend a sincere congratulations. You have PR'd your "show the hell up."

And you didn't just show up for a couple of weeks or months in a row. And you didn't just show up on Mondays because you felt gross from the weekend. And you didn't just show up when all the stars aligned and it was easy to get there.

You showed up when there was snow on the ground. When your alarm went off at dark thirty am and all you wanted to do was sleep two more hours like the rest of the world does. When you were sore and tired and thought there was nothing you'd be able to do short of laying on the turf for 47 minutes. When your kids were acting extra bratty and you had to bring them with you anyway and listen to them cry for half the class. When you skated in four minutes late because your real live job had you doing real live grown-up shit. When you hated what was on the whiteboard. When you were injured but hoped I'd have enough subs for you do get a decent sweat on. When too many people on FB said all the dumb things they could think of and you couldn't help but read it. When all your friends hit new numbers and you couldn't even move the weight you managed two weeks ago. When the scale said you were up five pounds. When you hated me for what I said or didn't say to you the day before.

Do you get it? People doing remarkable things in there earned it. Busted their asses on REPEAT for literally months if not a year or more. I'm sorry, but you don't get to come in and be president of Tribe if you've only been around for less time than someone else who thinks he or she gets to be president.

You will have to work. And cry. And be mad. And do it when you don't wanna. And then you'll have to do it just like that in those same shitty conditions for sometimes months on end. Remember when I told you I PR'd not one thing for a whole year? Good thing I kept at it, because six months after knee surgery, every one of my numbers is up and by a LOT.

I'm tired, you guys. I'm grumpy and pretty sick of everyone's shit right now, but I am so grateful that I moved a barbell today. I picked up and put down over 10,000 lbs today. That, on a day when all I wanted to do was go home and get back in bed. I'm really glad I did that because I'm 10,000 pounds stronger this evening than I was this morning, at least in character.

I had an interesting conversation with a friend early this afternoon. I had mentioned that I was headed to the lake to see my dad and said, "I don't even really wanna go, but I probably should." He said, "I'm glad you're going. Even if it doesn't feel like it's doing you any good, it will. You'll feel the good come later."

I thought that was so insightful. Same for my a.m. workout. I may have had to trudge and grind through it and really never hit my stride, but I'm better for it. I might not feel yet, but it's doing something to me that will show up later.

Look, this gym is a commitment. God's honest truth: It's an ongoing grinder. People who show up here and there for a couple weeks when they feel like it never last and that makes me sad. I know what it feels like to spin my wheels and not get anywhere and that's the last thing I want for any of you. So, please get both feet and both sides of your ass out of your comfort zone and into the place that WILL change your life if you'll just give it a hot minute and a damn chance. It may not feel like it's working, but magic is brewing in you.

The bubble-over comes later.