People spend too much time finding other people to blame, too much energy finding excuses for not being what they are capable of being, and not enough energy putting themselves on the line, growing out of the past, and getting on with their lives.
–J. Michael Straczynski
I was mindlessly scrolling through Facebook last week, responding to the all the comments about how good the girls on our powerlifting team are looking in their lifts (headed to USPA Nationals, what, what!) , when I came across this posted up on a friend/fellow weightlifting coach, Mr.Seth Walker’s, wall.
I watched this video at least 10-15 times, really thinking about what he was saying. Although this video contains some fun facts about lobsters that you might not have known, it highlights a very real issue: the idea that an athlete or, for that matter, any person, must face some type of stressful/stimulating circumstance in order to grow.
Think about it this way–
A muscle does not grow unless you put it through a point of stress that signals to the body to go and repair said muscle, this time stronger than before to adapt to the future stimulus you will exert upon it. In doing so, the body has now fortified this area to withstand this amount of stress, hence you get stronger or less sore from that same set/rep scheme. Now the next time you change up your program, you introduce that given muscle body to a new stimulus and it must repair and adapt to this new level of stress, continually repairing and rebuilding.
So why, if in nature with the lobster and in our own bodies with our muscles (and for that matter bone and connective tissue), if all of these things take the situation they are given and learn to adapt around it, why do we, as humans, choose to shift blame or find reasons to make our situation impossible to handle?
We look to shift this situation to something that we could not possibly control. We look to take away our ability to do something about it, so that just maybe someone will come to us with a magic solution and help us along our way…
Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime
-Chinese Proverb
I am here to tell you:
If you are injured, you have to work through it.
- Do your rehab exercises
- Spend time mobilizing
- Spend time recovering
- Remember that you are in it for the long haul, so don’t beat your body to the ground and expect it to get back up and work for you
If you want to lose weight, you have to get up and work for it.
- Learn to eat right
- Find a reputable coach to give you a program
- Find a group of supportive peers that will support you in your time of need
- Learn to be the person YOU want to be when push comes to shove
If you want to be better at anything in this world, you have to practice.
- Put in the hours
- Don’t give yourself reasons you can’t
- If you fall down, get back up and learn to keep pushing forward
- Don’t expect it to come easy
- Know that the longer you do it, the slower the results are, but even 1 kilo more is a step in the right direction
It is not easy to overcome and injury, nor is it easy to make the choice to shed away a body you do not want. Hell, the rule of 10,000 says it takes 10,000 hours of practice to be considered an expert in your field/sport/area, which is 417 straight days of non-stop practice.
My point is this, when you get handed a bad situation or life presents you with an external stressful event, be like a lobster–molt your stress and find a rock. Your friends, your coach, your loved ones, your teammates, or whoever it maybe, let them be your rock and help you, because when you finally emerge from beneath, you will truly be stronger for going through it and come out better than before.
It’s not whether or not you have the ability to do the work ; it is whether or not you have the will to do what is necessary to get to where you want to be..
so, be a lobster and adapt!
Looking for a good place to start? Here’s a 15 minute yoga video to get you nice and energized to start the day; it focuses on really opening up the hips and getting the blood flowing through repeated Sun and Moon Salutations! Enjoy!
PURE HEALTH PERFORMANCE 
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