Yesterday was chest day at the gym. I haven’t lifted weight for my chest since I was hit by a truck in November and separated my shoulder. I told myself it was because I was recovering. Truth is I was scared. I knew it was going to hurt and it scared me. The doctors told me my shoulder will always hurt when I lift weights until I either have an invasive surgery or build supporting muscle around the damage. Today I decided to not be a chicken and just do it. I knew I wouldn’t bench the 100 lbs I was easily doing before the accident and after some playing around on the bench press I knew my weight would be low. It was 55lbs, my heart sunk a little. I said “I am going to do 10 sets of 10. I can do 10 sets of 10! It’s only 55lbs!” I did 10 reps barely twice but after the third set my shoulder gave out on the 7th rep to the point that I had to dump the weight! I was embarrassed to dump these tiny 5 lb plates from my bar. I wanted to cry! I came close to giving up altogether and going home to sob. But then I realized: I could give up altogether or I could re-rack the bar with the same weight and push for the 7 every time. Since that was my new “best”, I would just have to push to that capacity. That is how I was going to get stronger! So I did it. I racked my bar, slid my 5 lb weights on, took my position, and focused. I lifted and pushed out 7 reps for 10 sets even though my shoulder was on fire and tears were in my eyes. I took longer recoveries in between sets but not too long. I was barely able to rack my bar at 7 reps, but I racked it! In the end that’s all that matters! There are going to be weights and challenges in life that are going to make you stumble and maybe even drop but those stumbles and drops are inevitable. It’s the walking away that makes us weak. So re-rack it, get your mind straight and focused and lift again! You will find you are stronger then you ever believed!
Posted on: Thu, 06 Jun 2013 19:31:59 +0000
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