Do not surrender to past habits!

Rant and Tip for August 1, 2013

Quote: "The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender." ~Vince Lombardi~

Vince Lombari has had many quotes over his career. I found this one and thought this is where I am now when it comes to my way of eating and exercise. I find it very hard to surrender to eating a less than healthy diet and hitting a new personal best when I lift. I am always striving to get better and better. The harder the work the greater the reward, as you change your lifestyle and work hard to be successful in your lifestyle change, you will find it harder and harder to surrender to any unwanted urges or cravings you encounter. Work hard and you will be successful.

Went it comes to exercise as you work hard to achieve your goals you will find as you go along it will be harder and harder to give up on that last repetition. I recently was working out with a friend and hit some great person best in the bench. I made a miss-calculation on the bar and instead of hitting 315 for 1 rep I pressed 335. I forgot we were using 100 lb plates and 5 pound collars. This added 20 pounds to a bar I thought was 315. Anyway the weight went up easy. My training partner at the time was John Bogart a master bench press world champion. He immediately put 345 on the bar for my next attempt; again it went up with speed and confidence. We made a bold jump at that point to 355. I was excited to make this attempt. I hit a sticking point at just before lockout. I held that bar there and continued to try to lock out the weight. I did not want to surrender to the bar. Ultimately I missed the lift but, I fought it all the way. We dropped the weight to 350 and I did hit that weight.

As the weight went up I hit the stick point and t was at this point and I pushed harder, I was not going to surrender to the weight. I wanted it to go up. I needed it to go up. I would not surrender to the bar. When you strength train consistently you will find this will happen to you in your workouts. As you get stronger from your training and you find that you are able to do things you have not done in years, you will find it hard to surrender to the life you had before training. Whether you are a cardio aerobic type person or a strength training individual like myself you will not want to go back to you previous lifestyle.

It is funny as a young adult or child you do not realize what a gift being fit is. You almost take it for granted and you allow yourself to eat anyway you want and you do not take in consideration the affects it could have on the rest of your life. As a mature adult we have experienced the side effects of an unhealthy lifestyle and for many of us it took that for us to pull ourselves together.


Through this blog I have raised about $100.00 towards the National and World meets. I have a long way to go but I will get there. Thank you to those who have made donations to help me get there.

Tip: Make your new lifestyle fun. If you do not enjoy the exercise you are currently doing mix it up and find something you enjoy. Now I do know some of you may think UGH I don’t enjoy any physical activity, this you will just have to overcome. You can do it and you will find something you enjoy. Maybe it is just a matter of going with someone you enjoy spending time with.