Little progress steps & what I learned from OPT Webinar on Motivation

Little Things-Tuesday

Sometimes it is the little things that really count the most and make progress for me that much brighter and really keep me pushing hard and going strong. So on Tuesday morning which is my class WOD day, it was a grueling one. Through my private coaching session I have learned how to pace myself through those grueling longer WODs. The first piece started off with Back Squats at tempo, but there were only four with about three minutes rest in between sets-so I know I had to push myself here and not go too light. I knew my Back Squats for three is 132. So I started warming up with the bar doing seven, then went to 85# and started doing warm-up sets at tempo. I started the WOD weight at 132#s. Each set I was able to progress and add weight; my sets were:

This is the best reason to do individual coaching! My 1RM for Back Squats is 165#s and I was able to do tempo for 155#s which is just ten pounds shy of my 1RM not tempo. Wow! Then the aerobic piece started and ended with a row and my goal was to get the rows to be within 10 seconds of one another.

Part B: 
750m Row
10 burpee box jumps
10 wall walks
5 sets of 60 single jumps; 300 singles
10 wall walks
10 burpee box jumps
750m row

Part B: My 750m row to start was 3:25 and then the modifications I made were single jumps instead of double unders, feet walking up wall past the middle part of the skull plywood, single jumps, and step ups to the 20 inch box instead of box jumps. Then ending with a 750m row at 3:30. I’m thankful to my coach, Lisa who kept me moving through this pacing piece. I’d stop to take a break and she’d count me down and get after me to keep pushing hard. At one point it was like I was drunk because I am not sure what happened and how I finished, but I just jumped after it and got it done. The last row was hard, but I tried to use strong pulls and use my breathing to control my last parts. I finished the whole thing in 24:08, for once I wasn’t last-which is just a little thing for me. Even though the other person only had the modification of single jumps–for me it was a small victory.

Motivation vs Inspiration, OPT Webinar

Later in the day I was able to jump onto an OPT Webinar that spoke about motivation. One thing that was brought up is how the word “motivation” is so over used in today’s fitness world. Sharon, suggested instead of using “motivation” with clients, that coaches find what inspires the client to want to get better/stronger/fitter. This made me reflect on my year and how I started to get serious this year with the sport and with my weight loss I was fully driven with motivation.

I wanted to get thinner and stronger and be like people I look up to and to get the positive praise from those I love. I was really motivated, but in the middle of April when I started to lose motivation I hit a bump in my road. The motivation wasn’t enough to keep me going through the whole year and I found myself searching for ways to get back on track, yet I still tried to do what I could to eat better and find those “quick fixes”.  At one point during the year I even quit working out because I lost hope and drive. I still continued to lose weight through so-so paleo habits and then one day ran into a friend who had switched boxes. A few words from a friend was all I needed to pick up and find the inner strength and “in”spiration to move forward and continued the goals I had started in January.

“Inspiration” is found from within, there isn’t something outside driving you anymore-it is what is inside of you that is driving you to do better, be strong, get fit. In June of this year, when I stopped trying to be better for others and started doing better and getting stronger for me; that is when I started seeing the biggest changes. I switched to a box where I am now that I had been to before which had more strength programming. The other times I had worked out there getting stronger scared me and I wasn’t ready to push myself and see what I could do. What is inside you that is going to drive you to be the change you want to be?

One other thing I learned from the webinar which I never thought of before was to have a “theme” for the year instead of goals. Often time people make goals for the new year with big expectations and don’t have the steps or the realism factor in their goals. Since I was a teacher and have had to write goals for students of all levels, I knew that goals or objectives have to be measurable and have specific details on how they will be accomplished-not a normal thinking for most people. Meagan from OPT suggested instead of writing goals for the year, encourage your clients to have themes. For example, be consistent-maybe you need to be consistent in your food choices (<—-me), maybe you need to be consistent in your training or what you are most passionate about. So, what is your theme going to be for 2014?

Better late than never

After being on the webinar; I knew that I needed to conquer the goal that I had on my birthday January 17th. That goal was to have box jumps, no specific height listed conquered. I know I can jump, I know I can step up onto an 18 inch box. I also have a sick fear and have a mental head game that has kept me from progressing and doing it. Anthony, my coach I do individual coaching with suggested that I get a plastic sprinkler box and practice stepping up and jumping on it multiple times a day until I have it. Then conquer the 18 inch box. Have you ever had a fear so great that it brings you to tears when you look at it?! For me it has been those damn boxes!

I finally got the sprinkler boxes; okay so I probably should have only gotten the higher one but I got both. I practiced the 6 inch box stepping up on it and so forth and I was able to jump two feet onto it pretty quickly. Then I started practicing the 13-inch box, damn I can see from a video that I took I can jump that high but I have fear holding me back. Why I am fearful now, I used to bungee jump from 150 feet high bridge when I was 18-20, now I can’t jump onto a 13 inch box?!

I’ve made some progression, I harnessed myself into my green band on my pull up bar and I can jump onto the freaking box with the band, but take off the band and I frozen. It is going to take an act of God and a lot of jumping practice, but I have 19 days left until the end of year and I will conquer them! Since I started on my birthday and that is when I will post my year picture, then that is when I am going to jump on an 18 inch box!  My Box Jump Progress

If you believe it you can achieve it! 

I know others believe it for me, I just have to believe it for me too!!