It was in the summer when I first experienced this. I remember I was with Jesse doing free squats. I don’t remember how many we did but I remember being SO tired. Jesse is encouraging me to “c’mon” and I REALLY was trying! It got to the point where I could not do anymore. I couldn’t stand up from the squat I was attempting. My arms and legs gave out at the same time and I found myself collapsing onto the floor. I felt my cheeks ignite into flames and I was SO BEYOND embarrassed!!!
I think it was Jon who walked over to us clapping his hands. “Way to go to fatigue! Way to go to fatigue! Way to go to fatigue!” I was too embarrassed to look at him as Jesse walked over and picked me up and put me back into my chair. We were going to rest a little and do some more. I remember not understanding why they thought me collapsing was a good thing. Chris talked to me about this just last month (a different Chris but still an intern). He said it is hard to get people to push themselves to that point. I told him that it’s embarrassing!
Then I remembered what Mike told me that first day. It is in the “overwork” that the muscles will find a way to tell the spine what they are doing. My original pathways of communication between my spine and muscles are all messed up with scar tissue. We have to “trick” the body into making new pathways. I remember thinking as this was explained to me DUH! I will walk. If my body can go to level 10, they’re going to push it to level 15. It is in between that level 10 and 15 that new pathways are being made. I just have to get to level 15. It’s not the easiest task and sometimes I “chicken out” but other times I can go until fatigue. My guys just pick me up and put me back in my chair. Jesse has done it. Jon has done it. Chris has done it. And now, Phil does it too. It did take a while for me to get kind of comfortable with this. I consider myself kind of hefty and I can’t help with the lifting in this instance.
I texted Phil and asked him if I worked hard at training last night. He responded “very.” I asked him how so and he said that my stands (I stood for about 1:45) and leg curls and extensions were “good” and we hadn’t done manual leg presses in a while and he said they “weren’t bad.” He DID have to come over from the other side of the bar to put me back in my chair once. When he does it like that, I told him that now I know what the sled feels like when lineman have to push it at football practice.
I saw the Instagram video of me walking not too long ago (my son has an account). I think that my steps now are more steady. I think my body can go to level 20 now but they still push it to level 25. My Dad was a sergeant in the Army in Vietnam. He used to tell me along with the “grabbing my guts” and “being a man about it” that he knew I could do it because “the blood of STRONG Mexicans runs through my veins.” I’ve been thinking about him A LOT and I wear his socks to training often but NOT on Wednesday – that is reserved for my Duck Dynasty camo socks. But I will continue to try to go until fatigue until I can just do it outright. In the meantime, Phil will just have to pick me up.