Hi and welcome to another week,
The new Assault Bikes are certainly leaving a mark on me and my training. It isn’t about the trouble I am having get on and off (they are different and it just feels awkward) – I know I will become accustomed to that. It is just that I haven’t ridden them enough to know what I can do on them with regards time and distance and the subsequent levels of exhaustion I am likely to suffer. On the old bikes it was fine – I knew how fast I could go – and how long I could ‘hold’ each speed – in each gear. And yes, some bikes were harder than others but in principle I knew that if the speed needed to be 100 and I had to be in gear 14, well, it would be relatively easy. Change the gear to 18 and it would be VERY hard. On the Assault Bikes, I (and the rest of you) are still in ‘finding out the hard way’ stage. One thing is for certain – pedalling flat out on the Assault Bikes over the past week or so has left me flat on my back in the gym too many times already…I need to get better!
Going through this little experience with the Assault Bikes has had me thinking about people just starting at Round 1. Or people just moving from Beginners to Boxing…or trying Body Work for the first time, or having a go at their first No Rules or TANKS session. The explanation of what you have to do is confusing – but ‘everyone else’ seems to know exactly what it means (and they all seem to know each other!). The movements being demonstrated seem complicated and they have names that are unfamiliar – but ‘everyone else’ seems to be doing them at least as well as the trainer (and some people seem to be doing them much BETTER than the trainer). The weights being talked about and used are ‘beyond heavy’ and where exactly IS all that equipment that people seem to be grabbing from all over the place…and why do I need it again? And what was the first thing I have to do? And where did everyone go?
In your own head you are probably thinking “I just don’t have it in me to do ‘this’”…whatever exactly ‘this’ is. It all seems too hard, too much…and because of this, your first thought is maybe to scurry back to Boxing, or Beginners…or out of the gym. All of those reactions make a lot of sense to me (after all, I have been new to things in my life before – we all have!) but it isn’t exactly the best pathway to ‘growth’. So…what are the options???
1/.Follow your instincts and give it away. This might mean leaving the gym, going back to Beginners, or Boxing, or wherever it was that you felt comfortable and successful.
2/.Make the best of it – accept and understand that it is going to take TIME and just commit to giving it a go! The next question I guess is exactly how much time is it that we are talking about?
Well – how much depends – and that is because the ‘time’ you need is for a lot of reasons. The first problem to overcome is that overwhelming feeling of discomfort – and you feel uncomfortable because your head is so filled with the ‘details’ you aren’t able to see the ‘big picture’. As an example, whilst it might SEEM important to remember the exact order that each of the assigned exercises must be completed in, it is probably more important simply to relax in the knowledge that you know where that ‘LIST of Tasks’ is written down! Give yourself a way to ‘answer’ the easy questions so that you can focus on the more complicated ones!
You also need time to develop your skills. Whilst your table-tennis skills – honed in your garage as a kid! – might remain razor sharp, if you have never done a squat with a heavy bar on your back before, it is going to take time until you are comfortable doing it! If you have never done a burpee with a push-up before, it is going to take time until you can do it in ‘one motion’ the way the people around you seem to be doing…it doesn’t take days or weeks – it takes months and years of repetition. It might be true that once you have learned to ride a bike you ‘never forget’, but there were no doubt a few cuts and bruises (to your body and your ego) associated with that learning process…you need to be prepared to suffer a few more (hopefully just of the ‘ego’ variety) each time you try out a new movement either in the gym or out. No-one expects learning to play the guitar to be easy but somehow everyone seems to expect themselves to do a perfect kettlebell swing on their first try!
You also need time to experience some SUCCESS – because a little bit of success is what will give you the confidence to keep ‘having a go’. This is a tricky though because almost everyone defines ‘success’ in a different way. I mean there are some people – regulars at the gym – who just refuse to give themselves a break – they just can’t see themselves as ‘doing well’ as long as they aren’t perfect! They might be in the gym five times a week and watching their diet pretty well, but as long as they are carrying those ‘extra’ (lol) 5 kilos, or struggling to deadlift their body weight or whatever their ‘problem’ is they wont give themselves any credit. This is where it is important where you have a bit of an understanding of exactly why you are in the gym and training – because there are always alternatives and, for example, watching TV and eating cheesecake is a lot easier, more comfortable way to spend your time than punching bags and doing pushups!
So…if you want to feel ‘SUCCESS’, you have to give yourself a break and ask yourself (remind yourself??) exactly why you are training. Hopefully, you’re training because you love it and it makes you feel happy and good about yourself – plain and simple. You enjoy training and you like what it does for you, so you come to the gym and work out because that’s how you have fun. It is OK to get occasionally frustrated if there is a movement you are struggling with or you keep seeing other people who are ‘better’ than you at one exercise or another – we all have a competitive streak – but that shouldn’t stop you from enjoying what you are doing and taking pride in your EFFORT.
If your main focus is the things you can’t do or how you stack up compared to other people, then that might be a problem for you going forward. You have put yourself in a position where you have to realise that there are some things you might NEVER do ‘WELL’ (some things are just plain HARD!) and some people you’re just probably NEVER going to catch up too, so where does that leave you?
Well, if you want to be fit and healthy it means you need to quit thinking about all that other crap and focus on what you are doing WELL – and that might be as simply as just HAVING A GO at something new – rather than thinking about things from the other side!
Remember, when it comes down to it none of us at R1 are training for Olympic medals. You should always dream of being as good as YOU can be – and that dream should be part of what gets you back in the gym each day – but it shouldn’t be leading to feelings of frustration and helplessness. It should be about becoming something better than you were three months ago – six months ago – two years ago. A stronger, healthier person. These are the things that are going to make your fight with the alarm clock, the punching bag, the barbell and the confectionery isle worthwhile, so they’re the things you should focus on. Dream big – but don’t expect perfection from yourself. Keep some perspective on what you’re doing and why – and just keep moving forwards.
Try something new this week. It might be as simple as picking up a heavier barbell or going for a bin run after you class finishes – but try something new and – importantly – give yourself credit for having a go. And remember, if you are regularly in the gym you ARE doing an awesome job – you just are.
See you in the gym,
Michael.
P.S. Thanks to everyone who has expressed their sympathy for the recent passing of Vanessa’s Nanna, Peggie. It has been a difficult time for everyone in my family and all of the words of support from everyone at Round 1 have been most appreciated.
Our latest gym challenge – the April 2015 ’30-50’ Challenge is up and ready to go. For the first time ever, there are TWO registration options:
1/.Register for the challenge AND 2x Body Scans (1 before the challenge, 1 after) for a cost of $35.
2/.Register for the challenge only for a cost of $10.
As this is a ‘Get it Done’ Challenge, everyone who finishes will receive a ‘Get it Done’ T-Shirt…we never sell these so everyone you see wearing one in the gym – including any of the trainers – has ‘earned’ their shirt through finishing one of the challenges.
So…what do you have to do?
1/.Within the month of April, complete 20x Group Training Classes at Round 1. All class types count (yes, including Beginners!). You must complete 20 sessions and have each one signed off by a trainer.
2/.In addition to the classes, you must also complete FIFTY repetitions of THIRTY different exercises. You can break these up however you like – 10 at a time, 20 at a time, 2 at a time for all I care – as long as on the 31st of April you have done 50 reps of each of the nominated exercises you are DONE. Now – don’t stress about me tricking you and including things that you just haven’t learned to do ‘yet’ – I have included ‘alternative’ exercises for anything that I think might be in that category on the sign off sheet and if you have issues with any of the others I am sure I can come up with a replacement for those as well.
Keen? The registration link is here: April Challenge Registration.
Our first Spartan Race training session was today. It wasn’t too tough – but we did a bit of running, some monkey bars, some more running, some pull-ups and even some more running. A lot of fun really.
If you are at all interested in doing the event I would encourage you to give it a go – we are going to do it TOGETHER as a TEAM…if anyone is struggling with an obstacle we will help get them through it together. Next training session is Sunday March 29th – we will be learning rope-climbs on that day. Like today, it will be an 8am start.
Just a reminder that for the duration of the 2015 Crossfit Open we will be doing each of the WOD’s as they are announced each Friday night at 7pm. The workouts have been both a great challenge AND a lot of fun so far…our plans are to head out to dinner together after the workout this coming Friday night. If you are interested, just get to the gym in time for a 7pm start on Friday night.
Orders for new gloves are just about to go in – we are getting in additional bag mitts, leather gloves, mma gloves and weightlifting gloves (which you can also wear under your boxing gloves). Keep an eye on the store if there is anything in particular you need – we are trying to keep things as up-to-date as possible whilst continually enhancing our product range. Our new snapback hats will be on the way soon…and – as mentioned over the last couple of weeks – our new backpacks have arrived and are available for all of you 12-month members…
I have started up a NEW Footy Tipping league for 2015. So whilst in past years your membership to the Round 1 competition has just ‘Rolled Over’, this year if you want to be in you will have to rejoin. The league name is Round 1 Fitness 2015 and the link to join is HERE: http://www.footytips.com.au/comps/Round_1_Fitness_2015
The password for the league is ‘speedball’.
Good luck everyone!
Can’t sign off without mentioning Perkville. Sign-up, check out your points and redeem your points for Round 1 vouchers at www.perkville.com. It is an awesome system – spend money at the gym (on memberships and personal training), get points. Come to the gym and train? Get points. Recommend Round 1 Fitness to your friends – get points! It is that simple. 400 points = $25 – so just for paying for a 12-month membership you will get nearly $50 in credit to spend at R1. How easy is that?
Awesome sight put together by Round 1’er and ‘Life Ready’ Physio Monica Wright: http://1life1body.com.au
Check out the site for any help you need on health, fitness, well-being…for anything really. And if you are struggling with injury, get in touch with Monica at WWW.LIFEREADYPHYSIO.COM.AU.
Michael.
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