Please visit us at our Facebook page, and like the page so that you can be up to date with all of our upcoming content!
Player Intro
The passing of Kobe Bryant was significant for a lot of people in all domains. He represented many ideals in sport, from his perseverance, to his competitive drive, to his legendary pain tolerance.
Perhaps he has most inspired others with his work ethic; he was known for enjoying punishing practices, for working harder and longer than anyone else, and for having no time or respect for those who refused to commit as he did. He was the ultimate embodiment of the message in this post, and here is a quote from him to set it all up:
"You want to train as much as you can, as often as you can. Imagine you wake up at 3, train from 4-6, breakfast, relax, now you're back at it again, 9-11, right? Relax, now you're back at it again, 2-4, now you're back at it again, 7-9. Look at how much more training I have done by simply starting by 4. You do that, as the years go on, the separation that you have with your competitors and your peers just grows larger and larger... It's common sense, thinking how can I get an advantage? Start earlier."
Rest in peace to one of the greatest.
Gameplan
I'm sneaking out of bed again this morning; alarm went off at 5:30 am. I'm waking up on the drive over to the gym, ready to lift or play basketball. It's not easy, and no matter how many days in a row I set my alarm for that time, I'm fighting the temptation to give in to the thought of "five more minutes," which inevitably turns into missing the morning workout.
This schedule originated from coming into a work schedule that required me to be at work at 8am. In order to maximize family time after work, the only time remaining to be able to exercise was before work in the mornings, leaving time to eat and shower. Thus, 5:30.
Developing the habit of being able to consistently deny ourselves an extra hour of sleep doesn't show up overnight. We seem to be able to will ourselves to do it a couple days in a row, but we revert to our typical patterns. What helped me to change this and overhaul my schedule was a mindset change developed through exercise.
By committing to lifting and exercising in other ways regularly, we choose to give up our present comfort and pleasure for a longer-term goal and fulfillment. Each time we commit to moving that stack of weights, or someone's body slams into ours while playing a sport, we are choosing present pain and soreness for future gain. Just as the Kobe quote talked about, the purpose for his waking up at 4 am every morning was not for that day, but for the gap between himself and his competitors to grow over time. Long-term growth, not short-term comfort, was the goal.
Choose present pain for future gain
The very nature of sports and exercise is delaying gratification in the present moment for a reward later. Swimmers have 5am practices before school starts; football players have grueling strength and on-field prep; rowers work tirelessly to be in peak form for meets. What keeps all these athletes going as they're trying to keep from throwing up, passing out, or collapsing under the weight they're trying to lift?
The mindset shift that was required for me was to start training my brain, not just my body. Whatever I'm working towards, whether it's becoming stronger, faster, or more skilled, will cost pain, effort, and energy. If my brain can believe that, the body follows; my goals are bigger than my present comfort.
When my brain believes, my body follows
This didn't happen overnight; it started with me first building little habits of making time to exercise each day. Even during my sophomore year of playing JV basketball, I wouldn't make time to lift like we were supposed to do in our off-days. I showed up to every practice, though, even the ones scheduled for 6am before classes started. That began to build discipline in my actions; as that discipline built, so did my mindset of setting aside my present comfort for a bigger goal.
That mindset became: what am I willing to sacrifice today to benefit my tomorrow, my next week, my next month, my next year?
That cycle continued to reinforce itself into my present mindset and habits. As I continued to push myself to do hard things, I built stronger discipline and ability to sacrifice in the present; as my discipline and forward-looking perspective grew, I was able to push myself further and further.
What has all this meant for my life outside of sports? One transition I was not prepared for when getting married and starting a family was what it meant to be responsible for something greater than myself. At first, being married was just having a roommate that I liked a whole lot better than my previous one (all respect to my brother).
It turned out, however, that sacrifice was part of this relationship: instead of just gaming solo, we needed to spend time together; instead of going to the gym when I wanted, we needed to make sure dinner was ready for both of us. This practice when first getting married is important for when kids come along. Suddenly, you are completely responsible for someone's needs who is not at all reasonable or willing to wait.
In order to continue moving towards my own fitness and life goals, I needed to seek out some discomfort. Instead of going to work out after work is over, I wake up two hours earlier to lift and shower so I can make dinner and put the kids to bed in the evening. Instead of continuing to move up in my old job, I went into practice for myself so that I would have the flexibility to be home to put the kids down to nap and drive them to their activities.
Having a foundation of sacrificing what I wanted in the present, whether it was sleeping in, eating what I wanted when I wanted, or going out wherever, allowed me to transition a lot easier to having a bigger goal than my own comfort.
A long-term mindset has translated to professional development as well. In an effort to be the best counselor I can be for clients, I can't just be complacent in what I learned in grad school and experienced in residency. In the nights after the kids are asleep, when I would rather be reading for pleasure, playing games, or whatever else, I am learning anatomy and coaching skills to be able to provide fitness as a therapeutic intervention for clients. It's a far-fetched goal in relatively uncharted territory, but the foundation I've built through sports has prepared me well: to give up what I want now so I can be who I want later.
Execution
Today's video teaches the kettlebell clean. This is a powerful move that builds on the explosive hinging movement we practiced with the swing, and sets us up in the racked position to expand to other movements.
If you are banging your wrists in this movement, make sure to follow some of the below tips:
Keep the kettlebell tight to your body as it travels up, not to the front or to the side
Follow the cues of "zip your jacket" (as you bring the kettlebell up) and "slide your hand into the glove" (as you rotate the kettlebell around your wrist)
Use the explosive power of your hip drive to bring the kettlebell up and around. This is not an upper body exercise!
Please subscribe if these videos and stories have been helpful for you as you work to better yourself as an athlete and as a person. Like our Facebook Page to get the latest updates, and as always, share with us who we should interview next!
Comments