"Commitment"

I'll start with my workout log for today, 7/28/12:

2 cups iced coffee with half & half pre-workout, then

*Thrusters 5x5 (this is a front squat with an overhead press at the top)
*One arm chinups 4x3 assisted
*Bench 4x3 with warmup and cooldown on the ends
*Deadlifts 2x5 with warmup
*Box squats 5x5
*Bent over rows 3x5
*Hourglasses 5x5 (sitting overhead press with hands together and elbows wide, mainly targeting triceps)
*Mr. Litwack pullups 4x4 (dead hang pullup with knees held at 90 degrees out from body and weight held between knees)
*Lateral raise 1x5

At the end of the above, I was considering punching out a quick Fran (google "crossfit fran" if you are unfamiliar), but yielded due to the idea that more workload would probably hinder my strength and power progress rather than help it.  Overtraining is real.

I followed the workout with a smoothie consisting of
*6 raw pastured eggs
*1 banana
*About 1-1.5 cups of half & half
*A scoop of supergreens powder from Whole Foods

and a 6oz. block of raw gruyere cheese with a Larabar and bottle of kombucha.

_________

So far this week, I got out of the woods and back to Asheville at like 10:30pm on Tuesday and hit a hard workout with my visiting cousin similar to the one posted above, though shorter. The next day (Wednesday) we did 5 hill sprints as a recovery/HGH boosting workout. Thursday we hit it again hard...I couldn't do military by the end of the workout as planned because my right pec was so tired I didn't trust it to stabilize. Yesterday I ran 4 hill sprints, the goal again being maintaining functional athletic power, fat burn, physique and HGH levels. Today I did the above workout. Tomorrow will either be hill sprints or ultimate frisbee. Monday will hopefully be another beastly workout.

It occurs to me that commitment doesn't mean sacrificing. Commitment means that you truly want to walk the path to your goals more than you want to do anything else. You are in love with the path, not the idea of the finish line.  There is no loss, no regret of what you might be missing.

When I am in the gym working out, that is IT and I'm not 'missing out' on anything else. Today 'commitment' looked like me and maybe 4 other people going into anytime fitness to push ourselves while the rest of the city enjoyed the free music festival (Bele Chere) in the closed streets of downtown Asheville. There is no conflict for me. I legitimately have looked at the options and decided that I truly love working out and will get more fulfillment and enjoyment from hitting a hard workout than I would from drinking and watching local bands play with the crowds.

This does not mean that the people who went are bad or lazy. Commitment is a personal journey and it is only those that lack true commitment that feel a need to judge others who choose a different path. Commitment is simply a matter of weighing the options, deciding what one's priorities are, and making the mature decision with a perspective on long term goals. Commitment happens right now or it doesn't happen at all, because tomorrow never comes.

Welcome to the Wellness Well.

-Brant