Yesterday, I went to the house of pain, also known as the gym. Some of you have said--give the gym membership up!!! It's too expensive, etc etc. As I do welcome and entertain some of those comments, I have to say this, part of recovery means finding solstice in other things while you are working through the hurt that has invaded your immediate 360 degrees. Like Diogenes, I've taken a slight vow of poverty, though I have not reverted to begging in the streets as a means of income. In fact, strangely, I applied for a job not too long ago. It was at the same institution where I was wrongfully terminated. According to the press, the said person who said he was not responsible for my dismissal, said he had nothing to do with it. So that being the case, I look at this as an opportunity for a clean slate. That said, in the event this individual does wish to for lack of a better term, drudge up the past, well, it would only be self destructive to this individual so it might be to his advantage, if I see him to sit down and be quiet. This is one example of mastering pain. You take what you have been hit with, internalize it, and then re-direct it with superior force. I learned this in martial arts demonstrations. You see, when you watch people breaking innocent pounds of concrete, they are taught to go through the brick or slab and not just merely break it. If you don't go through it, the force generated, regrettably will return back to the sender of the force-- this is a natural law of physics. The return of this force can actually throw that person backwards like a recoil. So why not apply this in life? No I am not the late David Caradine aka Kung Fu wandering through the desert barefooted, but I am one who is a grain of sand on the beach called life. For me and my big ass ego, that is a humbling recognition. So back to my day at the sweat box. I got in kinda late but I made up for it with intensity. I did the following:
3 sets of dead lifts at 315 pounds each. It was like this-- 5, 5, and 3.
3 sets of leg squats at 235 pounds. 8, 4, and 4.
2 sets of front squats at 135 pounds -- 10 and 10.
3 sets of leg step ups with 135 pounds on the shoulders -- this strangely is a good cardio exercise.
In the break of these sets, I preformed abdominal exercises from sit ups, to leg extensions.
Then took a break from my legs and worked the arms and back a bit.
2 sets of the standing military press at 100 pounds, that was 8 and 8.
3 sets of the push press at 135 each 5, 5, and 5.
2 sets of seated dumbbell shoulder press at 45 pounds each, lets see that was 2 sets of 10.
3 sets of lat pull downs between 180 pounds and 160 pounds.
Then back to the legs:
4 sets of leg extensions at 100 pounds each alternating between 8 and 6.
3 sets of calf raises,
and of course a light set of leg presses where my feet are in a ballet stance. Don't laugh, it works the inner thigh like you wouldn't believe.
BTW, if you do this DRINK PLENTY OF WATER or they will be calling 911 for you. For me that is a leg day and it's light. I am not attempting to sound cocky but trust me, thats a light day. Dead lifting 315 pounds is not my max. I've actually pulled 355 pounds and the goal is to pull 400 by my 40th birthday. Needless to say, when one lifts weight like that, you will get sore, especially in the back. Yepper your back and even your legs, particularly your muscles where your knees are, they will be a little sore. Then I discovered it how to master the pain. I nice hot bath. I don't mean lukewarm, I mean piping HOT. At first, that water burned like hell. But as I lay in the tub and allowed the steam and the heat to do its thing. Oh God I felt so much better. I woke up this morning virtually pain free. That's a blessing. Now, why won't I ditch my gym membership? Can you imagine what I would do, let alone look like, if i didn't at least take care of myself. Even my mental health care providers are like, keep doing what you are doing. Exercise releases natural anti-toxins. Those same anti toxins release stress and we all know, when you hit 40, shoot your late 30s you have now crossed the threshold into mortality. That’s heart attack and stroke range. On my dads side of the family, heart disease is common. So why not head it off at the pass? In fact the next physical challenge might sound a bit, well, crazy. I've decided to sign up for an 8k road race. The 8k is five miles. This will be brutal but it too like any challenge is not to be feared but embraced and conquered with the exception of my fear of fish. The leg strength I am not worried about too much but the oxygen, that might be a problem so i have to figure out how to train outside without getting my sinuses jacked up.
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