Thursday, December 26, 2013

ENDURE: December 26, 2013



This One Goes to Eleven

Perhaps many of you will remember that famous scene from the mockumentary movie, This is Spinal Tap, where the character Nigel Tufnel gives a tour of his stage equipment and points out one guitar amplifier whose control knobs all have the highest setting of eleven, not ten like standard amplifiers, believing that this numbering actually increases the volume of the amp ("It's one louder"). When asked why the ten setting is not simply set to be louder, Nigel responds, "These go to eleven.”   (Watch it HERE.)
Such is the popularity that “these go to eleven” has become an idiom in popular culture, which has come to refer to anything being exploited to its utmost abilities, or exceeding them.

When I joined Pro-Activity in January I wrote a few goals on the “goal board” in the gym. One of those goals - do ten perfect pull-ups (palms facing away, pull all the way up, lower all the way down) - was pretty aggressive for me.  I was starting at two and never in my entire life had I been able to do more than five.  Run a 100 miles in a day? No problem. Six pull-ups? Not so easy. Ten? Never even considered. But I wanted to try now.

I bought a pull-up bar and mounted it in one of the doorways in my home. Every time I passed it I would attempt a pull-up. And if I couldn't do any I just hung there, getting used to my own weight.
Soon, with the combination of frequent practice and training at Pro-Activity, I was gaining strength and increasing my reps. By March I was able to do six - yeah a new PR!

Unfortunately that psychological high only lasted a short time; I fell while running in the woods and absorbed most of the impact with my elbow. I could barely bend my arm and was forced to stop most of my strength training. I visited our PT-extraordinaire, Amy Weller for ultrasound treatment, which helped in reducing the swelling.... But her message was clear: don't do anything to stress it!  It was definitely frustrating.  I needed three weeks of “rest” to arrive at minimal soreness, not even perfect.

Upper body training was never high on my priority list but I saw that my running and overall well-being was benefiting from it, so I sought to get back into it quickly.
Throughout the summer I kept at it, getting stronger and getting closer to my goal, but then another setback, a major one:  I injured my rotator cuff while competing in a Tough Mudder event. I actually didn't realize the extent of the injury until a few weeks following the race I lifted something at home and nearly screamed in pain. Lifting my arm, rotating the shoulder, sleeping... All super painful. I visited Amy again and she gave me some exercises that were so simple but I could not do them.

I shelved my pull-up goal and told myself that just like everything else I do, I had to stick with this, do the exercises and see what happens. Weeks turned into months and I slowly improved and graduated to progressively harder exercises. But the thought of hanging from a bar was scary - I didn't want to get hurt again.  It took a long time to gain strength and I was fearful of another setback. I continued to train in other ways, all contributing to my pull-up strength, but actually hanging from that pull-up bar was off limits in my mind…until it wasn't.

Every day I walked into the gym I saw my goal written at the top of the board - it was simultaneously a tease, a challenge and a desire. I always finish everything I start...sometimes a little longer than planned but I tend to stick to stuff.  I owe it to myself to try, I thought. Early November I grabbed the bar and hung for a few seconds - no pain. Kept doing this followed by stretching and soon I sent a note to Amy: “Have been working on the moves you gave me and apparently it's working. I did 2 pull-ups today without any pain at all. Probably could do more but don’t want to go crazy.”
It was cathartic to write - the pain, the fear, the limits that injury put on me all went away with that note and her response was equally awesome, a reminder of who I was. “Yay!  Good for you!!  I'm not surprised, though.  The winners in the fight against shoulder pain are those that stay in it for the long haul. Way to go, Joe!”  Thank you Amy!

Six weeks till the end of the year, could I reach my goal? “Yes, I thought it was very possible!” I continued to follow my plan: stretching, range of motion exercises, strengthening, practice, practice, and practice.  And then I got some inspiration from “the students.” I was in the gym one day and witnessed three of our athletes testing before they left for the wrestling season.  There was Ryan Pomrinca, Eric Martin and Luke Appravato each doing 20+ pull-ups. In fact, Eric wasn’t satisfied with his number and tried again, upping his total from the first round.  “Damn, they’re strong, I thought” but I didn’t feel outclassed; rather I was thinking, “Why not me? I want that 10, I know I can do it.”   Thanks guys!

I arose yesterday and after completing my usual morning exercise routine, I grabbed hold of that pull-up bar, hung for a second, thought “why not me, I know I can do it.”  And soon I was at eight and it was no big deal, then nine – I’m gonna do it, I’m gonna do it – then ten, then eleven…and that was it.  I DID IT!!! Thrilled, I told my wife (“Good for you Joe!”), then I texted Eric, “I know you will get the significance of this, “I just did 11 Pull-ups!!!” “THAT’S AWESOME!” he replied almost immediately.

Yes, it is awesome, and to be sure it wasn’t a fluke, I tried again this morning – 11 once again. “These go to eleven” actually had relevance beyond the number: I exploited my perceived ability and took it one further... it’s time to raise the bar and keep going.

Always Believe,

~Joe G

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