Paradise Found

"Feels heavier than twenty-five pounds, doesn't it", Jeff said as he handed me the dumbbell.

"It does", I said as I double checked the weight before hefting it into the trunk of my car. I was borrowing two dumbbells so I could do a WOD on the weekend while I was staying in Victoria. I hate missing a workout.

"Take the ab wheel too".

Grimacing, I threw it into the trunk. When you first see the ab wheel in action, it looks  fun. Around about sixty, it begins to resemble a medieval torture device.

"Thanks buddy, I owe you".

I wasn't exactly sure what kind of WOD I was going to do. I had surfed the Crossfit site getting some ideas and settled on some kind of shoulder work, skipping, and ab wheels - all with equipment that would easily fit into the trunk of my car.

Here was my plan:

On a beautifully clear and warm Sunday morning, I pulled out the equipment and set up on our cabin deck overlooking the Gorge waterway. The setting was tranquil and pretty. I started with skipping to get my heart rate up and warm up my joints and muscles. I got to five skips and the rope tangled on my shoes. No matter, I began again. A dozen later I stepped on the rope. A few more and the skip rope handle flew out of my hand. This was getting frustrating. "Damn it", I thought, "What is up with this?" Getting a little angry, I rattled off 50 skips quickly. My calves were burning and I recognized that good old-fashioned feeling of being pissed off. Rather than stop and do something else, I kept skipping in 50 set chunks until the 300 were done. I tripped a few more times but I was skipping much faster and smoother.

Without waiting for my heart rate to settle, I sat down on the deck stairs and grabbed up the 25lb dumbbells. Man, they really do feel heavier outside the gym. I pressed them overhead, touching them together at the top, and then back down. Then a few more, full repetitions. I was trying to concentrate on the idyllic scene of the narrow inlet flowing in with the tide, but my shoulders were burning and my reps were getting hard. I finished my ten and set them down for a 20 seconds. After what seemed like too short a rest, I picked them up again and pressed them overhead quickly, full repetitions, with aggression. After each set of ten, I rested for just 20 seconds and then snapped up the weights and pressed them skyward again. I was feeling pissed off again because I don't enjoy struggling with weights that I know I can lift easily. With pain rising in my arms, I slammed them up ten more times to finish them off. The deck was made of wood and I was disappointed I couldn't just slam them down because that is what I wanted to do.

I saved the easy one for last. A mere 72 ab wheels and victory was mine! In fact, the first four rounds were okay. I've been doing these a lot so it isn't the gong show it was in the beginning. Mind you, by the fourth round I was in the shit again. Each extension was harder than the last and because I'm stubborn, I try to wheel it forward to the very limit of my ability to control. The stretch in my shoulders was deep and I wondered how a small inexpensive piece of plastic could so humble me. I wanted to throw it in the Gorge, but I didn't because it belongs to Jeff.

I got to thinking afterwards. What made this workout so challenging? The weight wasn't that heavy and I've skipped before, for goodness sake. Why were things different this time? The beautiful setting was inspiring and working outside in the sun always makes me feel good. What made the difference between almost getting it right and shifting into the Crossfit athlete high gear and getting it done?

Attitude.

When you read the preceding paragraphs carefully, each time I moved from feeling whipped to feeling unbeatable, it was because I was determined - I was pissed off. In my mind, there was NO way I was going to fail and that caused me to lift with passion. By concentrating on the beautiful surroundings and how peaceful and tranquil I felt, I may as just as well slipped on something from Lululemon and practiced yoga. Crossfit demands everything from you. It's not a peaceful endeavour and the only time you feel relaxed is when you are done. I had no pre-WOD jitters for this workout which signalled that my head wasn't in the right space yet. But I got there.

So the next time you see saunter into the Crossfit Langley box talking about what a gorgeous morning it is, slap me upside the head. I need to stare into the chalk bucket and get my game face on.