Start time 8:27 am
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - Well this sucks"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I can't believe I can't believe I'm this pathetic"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "This sucks"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "There's no way I'm doing all 20 sets"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups -"I'm dying"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I used to be able to do this so easily"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I'll just do half of it"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "If I only do half then I suck"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I can't fucking breathe"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I'm dying even harder now"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "ugh"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I have to walk what I talk"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I can't"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "this is deep water"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "Come too far to turn back now"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I might be able to do this"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "Slowing but still going"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "Almost there"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "I can see the finish line"
15 swings, 5 squats, 3 pushups - "Thank the Gods it's over"
End time 9:05 am
Total elapsed time: 38 minutes
9:06 Heart rate 125bpm
9:10 heart rate 107bpm
••••••••••
So that was less than fun. However, I am glad that I did it and proud of myself for getting through the entire thing. I can't tell you how much your inner dialogue plays into your training. You have to be honest with yourself and you have to hold your own feet to the fire. I read an article somewhere about how your brain will tell you that you can't go any further before you're actually done physically. It's a form of self preservation. You have to realize that and tell yourself to keep going, especially if you're working out by yourself. What benefit would it have been to myself if I let myself quit after the fourth set? It's obvious that I had a lot more in me. That was just the initial panic of brain realizing we were doing something that would be extremely stressful. I relate it to when you jump into a cold pool or pond and you reflexively take that deep deep breathe and then start hyperventilating. You have to tell your mind to calm down and breathe slow. Then the water doesn't seem so bad - it was just the initial shock.
There was also something I read called the Deep Water Method. I read about it awhile ago and I never implemented the actual program. The idea of it has stuck with me though. It's about the mental game that goes hand in hand with the physical one. Going back to the idea of jumping into a pond for a minute will help you understand it. Think about jumping in and swimming to the other side. You start out and it's not so bad, it's tiring, but doable. As you get further out, the water is getting deeper and you're getting more tired. Do you go back? Nah, you keep going. Well eventually, you get to the deepest part of the pond and you're fricking dying. You're struggling and now you're screwed because you can't touch the bottom and to swim back to shore would be more work than reaching the opposite shore. But damn, you are spent! You have no choice, you have to keep going. Period. So you do. You push and push and sucking wind and swear and grit your teeth and push some more and by the Gods, you reach that other shore. At one point you were absolutely positive that you could not go on. You were going to drown and sink. But you didn't. That is the idea behind the deep water method. You intentionally put yourself in deep water. Lovely isn't it? OK, maybe not lovely, but it works.
I'm going to switch things up I think and play with kettlebells for a few weeks. I'll come back to this workout every so often and see how I improve on it. Right now, I'm hungry. This is the best part of my workout - refueling!
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