a new weightlifting phase and wifes blood pressure

Yesterday my weightlifting coach placed me into a new phase. This phase rotates 3 days. Each focuses on something different from form, volume, or maximum lifts. I'm very excited. Every week I'm getting stronger. 20 days left until the New Mexico games!

Today I did a Metcon workout called death by meters. It was brutal. Here's how its done: Two cones/medicine balls will be set up 10 meters apart from one another- the 1st min. you will run 1 apart from one another- the 1st min. you will run 1 10 meter, the 2nd min. you will run 2 10 meters, (from 1st cone/medicine ball to 2nd cone/medicine). The 3rd minute you will run 3 10 meter (from 1st cone/medicine ball to 2nd cone/medicine ball and back) and so forth until you cannot ball and back) and so forth until you cannot complete the appropriate 10 meters in the allotted complete the appropriate 10 meters in the allotted time.

The last week my wife has had debilitating migraines. Last night we checked her blood pressure and it was 157 over 121. The diastolic number was high enough she was in danger of a stroke. She spent last night at the emergency room. Thankfully our new Warden is a good man. Warden Franco approved me to be off from work all week in case I need to take my wife back to the emergency room.

clean and jerk day!

Today was my 2nd favorite day, clean and jerk day, 2nd only to snatch day! I can now get 2 very good reps of the clean and jerk at 5 kilos above the New Mexico clean and jerk state record for the super-heavy weight 40-44 age group. So far there's no sign of my strength gains slowing down. I've set a new personal best clean and jerk AND snatch every week for the last 5 months. My coaches Shane Miller (who's athletes owns over 450 world and national records), Jodi Stumbo (holds numerous world records), and Linda Tetrault (multiple national and PanAm champion) of Miller weightlifting are amazing. With them in my corner I can accomplish anything! Today they helped me clean up my jerk, which has always been a weakness of mine. It's not much of a weakness anymore though!

I'm also getting close to breaking my lifetime PR in the squat which I set last year and bench press which I set way back in 1999! Even better news.... tomorrow is snatch day!!!!

weight loss for the New Mexico games

Well, it's a miracle. I started my diet yesterday. My only goal is to fit into my triathlon bib by the New Mexico state games held on May 17th.

On top of eating healthy and cutting my eating back by about 500 calories I also did cardio. Yup cardio, it's a 2nd miracle in one day! I did a Metcon workout that took me 16:36. It was 3 rounds for time of:
50 calories row
15 handstand pushups
50 double unders
C/D of 5 min easy cycling

olympic weightlifting bib

I looked up the USAW rules and my triathlon bib fits in their rules for competition. So the good news is I can use my tri-bib to compete in Olympic weightlifting competitions, the bad news is that I don't fit into my tri-bib anymore. I need to lose at least 10 pounds before the NM state games on May 16th. If I can't fit into my tri-bib I cant compete because we cant afford to buy a weightlifting bib right now. I'll be broken hearted if I cant compete. I'm currently 279.6 pounds..... Looks like I'll start my diet tomorrow..... or maybe Friday..... or perhaps Monday...... If I can't compete in the NM state games I'll just be all that much stronger for the next competition right?

what I live for

I've felt amazing the last week! I've felt rested, happy, and alive! I took 4 days off from work to spend with the family for their spring and Easter break. Nothing makes me happier than being with my wife and kids. During that time I slept a full 8 1/2 hours each night. It's not very often I get to sleep as much as my body needs.

In addition to time with the family I've made some awesome gains with my strength . In the last 2 training sessions I've set lifetime PR's at the clean and jerk, snatch, and deadlift, I'm hoping to break my bench press PR set back in 1999 by the end of this summer. I'm sure a lot of my gains has to do with catching up on my sleep, but I think the majority of my gains has to do with the feeling I get from competing. I've been training in Olympic weightlifting for 5 months now. I have my first competition, the New Mexico games, in mid May. This whole competing in weightlifting thing is totally new to me, and now that I'm getting close to my first weightlifting event I'm starting to feel alive! I haven't felt this good since I was training and racing for triathlons. I need to compete to feel happy. I've learned its the way I'm wired. There's nothing I can do to change it, so I might as well live it to its fullest, enjoy it for all its worth! That's what I'm starting to do. I'm getting back into the groove of training and focusing on competing. But doing well has never been good enough for me. I have to beat people who are great! When the dust settles I need to be on the podium, being better at what I'm doing than people who have better genetics and have been doing it longer than me. I have the drive to push myself harder than most people can. After only 2 years of swimming, cycling, and running I qualified for my first national triathlon championships. A year later I qualified for the 70.3 world championships. My goal is to do the same thing with Olympic weightlifting. I'm planning on breaking the 3 state records for the clean and jerk, snatch, and the total before I hit the 2 year mark of strength training. Wow. I live for this stuff. It fuels me, makes me feel happier and more passionate about all aspects of my life!

exercise nutrition during strength training

Now that my training sessions are getting longer I've been struggling to complete my weight training workouts. I've tried drinking juice during my workouts. That helps a little but a lot of the juices upset my stomach. So today I tried eating a Power gel half way through my workout to see how my energy levels were at the end of my workout. It worked AMAZING! I progressed from me struggling to finish my strength training to me feeling like I had so much energy I could have done a cardio session after my strength workout!! What a difference! From now on I'm eating a Power gel half way through all my weight training sessions!

And today I set PR's in the snatch, front squat, and deadlift! My snatch PR was 1 kilo higher than the superheavy weight state record for my age group!!!!!!

Brain injury problems and the angels who make me feel undamaged

I've had a lot of the problems listed below since my brain injury. I used to be awesome in social situations. Now I usually can't follow the ebb and flow of the conversation or I say things that don't fit, then things get uncomfortable for everyone. I see it, I feel it, and it hurts. I'm a people person. I love being around people and talking to them. Since the brain injury I feel alone a lot. Even when I'm around people I feel alone. When I'm in a big group of people I've learned to not speak unless asked a question directly because the chances are high that I'll say something stupid and everyone around me will get that "What the heck" look in their eye.

There's very few people who are patient with people who have traumatic brain injuries. There's a couple people in my gym, Faith A. and Jodi S., who seems to roll with any of my out of sync comments and coversations. They make me feel normal. I get so happy when I see them at the gym. Talking to them is some of the rare times that I talk to someone and not have the conversation make me feel like I'm abnormal or an awkward person to be around. I try to minimize my conversations with them because I don't want them to feel overwhelmed when they see me in the gym. I mean seriously, why do people go to the gym? Is it to work out or yap with the chatty dude?

On this blog post I just wanted to vent about some of the problems I've been having for the last couple years and to say thanks for great people like Faith A. and Jodi S. who are angels here on earth who make me feel like I'm normal and undamaged..

Communication problems can cause persons with TBI to have difficulty understanding and expressing information in some of the following ways:
Difficulty thinking of the right word.
Trouble starting or following conversations or understanding what others say.
Rambling or getting off topic easily.
Difficulty with more complex language skills, such as expressing thoughts in an organized manner. Trouble communicating thoughts and feelings using facial expressions, tone of voice and body language (non-verbal communication).
Having problems reading others’ emotions and not responding appropriately to another person’s feelings or to the social situation.
Misunderstanding jokes or sarcasm.
They may lack awareness of social boundaries and others’ feelings, such as being too personal with people they don’t know well or not realizing when they have made someone uncomfortable.

Beet juice and strength training attempt #2

Aparently what bothered my stomach was the beet juice. I tried drinking nothing but water and and small amount of beet juice and it jacked my stomach up for 18 hours!

beet juice for long streangth training sessions?

When I was a hard core triathlete I used to eat Power gels and drink Gatorade mixed with a little whey protein to make sure I didn't run out of energy during long workouts. Now that I'm training in Olympic Weightlifting and the weights I'm lifting are getting heavier its taking me longer to complete my workouts, and now I'm struggling with fatigue the later part of my workout. Rather than trying gels and Gatorade again I decided to try some fresh beet juice mixed with a little whey protein. It worked ok. I still had a little fatigue by the end of the workout, but not nearly as bad. The problem I had was by the end of my training session my stomach was upset. The stomach ache stayed with me until the next morning. I'm hoping it wasn't the beet juice that upset my stomach, but me drinking a combination of water, beet juice/whey protein and coffee- yes I drink coffee when I strength train. Coffee while training is something I started doing a decade ago, now I just don't feel worth a darn while lifting unless I have a hot cup-o-Joe to sip on in between sets. On Saturday I'm going to try the whey/beet combo again this time without the coffee. If I complete the entire workout without fatigue or a stomach ache I'll know beet juice was a good idea. If I still get a stomach ache then I'll know I need to switch to Power gels, Gatorade with whey protein, and yes of course..... coffee.

another 3 PR's!

Today I was barely able to wake myself up in time to make it to Miller weightlifting. I need a day of rest and recovery. An entire 24 hours where I can do nothing but sleep and veg out on the couch. I've been working WAY to much and I'm SO TIRED! But all that fatigue disappeared once I started lifting. The gym was virtually empty today. It was just Faith, me, and some kick butt music jamin' out from the Zia CrossFit side of the gym. It was the perfect environment and perfect company to throw some weight around. Faith A is a hero of mine. She's one of the strongest, fittest, fastest, and most humble athletes I've ever met. Virtually everyday someone says something along the lines of, "I wanna be Faith when I grow up." Ya, she's that awesome. Apparently all the conditions were right because I set PR's in the snatch, front squat, and dead lift. I completed 2 reps of my snatch PR, which happens to be a state record baby for the super heavy weight 40-44 division!

More good news, I didn't binge eat yesterday. That's rare now-a-days. Any day I don't binge eat is a good day.

blog update and Miller weightlifting

It's been a LONG time since I've posted. Anytime I stop posting on my blog it usually means I've fallen off the diet wagon and I'd rather not post at all than admit how badly and how much I'm eating. Emotional eating is my biggest problem. It's my way of hiding from emotions and punishing myself. It's a good thing I'm addicted to food and not alcohol because if I binge drank like I binge eat I'd have killed myself a long time ago. I've gained 20 pounds in the last 6 weeks. I'm back up to 280. This is the 2nd heaviest I've ever weighed. I'm trying to convince myself my weight doesn't define who I am. So far I'm not convinced..

When I was 12 my Dad's girlfriend told him him he had to choose between her or me. He chose her. A few years ago I tracked him down. He lives in Truth or Consequences NM, just a few hours from where I've lived since 1989. 6 weeks ago my grandpa (my Dad's Dad) died. Thankfully a cousin tracked me down to tell me, otherwise I'd never have known, my Dad didn't care enough to tell me.. My wife kids and I drove to southern Texas for the funeral. My natural father was there, along with his entire family. It was extremely uncomfortable. Everyone kept asking where I'd been, why haven't they seen me since I was a kid? I had no idea what to say without trashing my Dad to his brothers, Aunts, etc. It was very awkward.

Less than a month later my uncle died and we drove to Kansas for that funeral too. Same side of the family, same questions. It unburied a lot of my resentment and anger. I came so close to telling them the truth. That my Dad abandoned me when I was a kid and when I needed him most, that because he disappeared from my life even though he knew my Mom was unstable and abusive I ended up living on the streets, alone, a homeless teenager.

Because of the 2 funerals in less than a month, the loss of work, and the cost of travel I'm back to working 80 hours every 6 days. I'm tired. I'm burned out. I am so sick and tired of working in a prison. In the last month I've developed TMJ because the entire time I'm at work I'm so stressed I clench my jaws. It's causing migraines and a myriad of other irritating problems. I'm eligible to retire next year. 242 days left. I can't wait. It's so unhealthy and stressful in a prison for both staff and inmates, such an unhealthy place.

Because of current financial struggles I'm going to have to miss the NASA strength competition in Gallup NM in late April. I have to admit, that hurts. I wanted to compete in that so badly!

On the flip side, even though I've been stressed, eating like crap, working WAY to much, and not sleeping enough, my strength is shooting through the roof! In the last 3 days I've set 7 PR's, one of which tied the state record for the clean and jerk in the super heavyweight division 40-44 age group!!! Shane Miller of Miller weightlifting is a genius. I'm accomplishing things I never dreamed I'd be able to accomplish!

gaining strength and the Natural Athletes Strength Association (NASA) state championships

Today was a great day for training. I did my first clean and jerk with good form. It felt great and my coach Shane Miller said it looked great. I'm getting stronger and my form is getting better every training session. Today I squatted 99 K 5X5 easily. The last set felt like a warm up set, and last week I struggled with that weight. I also did a set of bench pressed, 5 reps at 93 K easily. I'm pretty sure I could have done 6 or 7 reps.

My best friend and I have agreed to compete in the Natural Athletes Strength Association (NASA) state championships held on April 26th in Gallup NM. I've decided to enter all three events consisting of:

a. Squat
b. Bench Press
c. Deadlifts
Full Power Sports Division:
a. Curl
b. Bench Press
c. Deadlift

Power press:
a. Clean
b. Bench Press.

The 2014 Missile man duathlon DNS (did not show)

My Grandpa died. During the week we were at the funeral, visiting family, or traveling I didn't train at all. This Saturday was the Missile Man duathlon at WSMR, NM. I figured the time off was nothing more than a taper. I paid for the race, packed, and even started to drive there, but an hour into the drive to the race I had realized there was no way I was going to be able to ride my bike in a race with vehicle traffic. I DNS'd (did not show). Getting ran over by a vehicle while cycling back in 2011 really screwed me up. I only have to complete 14 more races to accomplish one of my bucket list of finishing 100 triathlons or duathlons, but I'm beginning to doubt if I'll be able to do it now that I'm afraid to bike in traffic.

Yesterday was my 1st day back at weightlifting. Since I had taken a week off coach Shane Miller had me train with slightly lighter weights than usual. He's a smart man. Even with the lighter weights I'm still a little sore today. Today I rode my bike indoors on my Cycle Ops trainer:
5 min warm up
3 min hard, 3 min recovery
2 min hard, 2 min recovery
1 min hard, 1 min recovery
2 min hard, 2 min recovery
3 min hard, 6 minute cool down

I ate like crap the entire time we were traveling. I'm afraid to see where my weight is now.

Natural Athlete Strength Association (NASA)

My best friend and I have decided rather unexpectedly to go and compete in a strength lifting competition. I found that there will be 3 events held in New Mexico this year through the Natural Athlete Strength Association (NASA):

April 26th - New Mexico State, Gallup, NM
Septmember 27th - New Mexico Regional, Roswell, NM
December 27th - New Mexico Christmas Regional, Roswell, NM

The NASA has a lot of different divisions an athlete could enter, but their web site is very difficult to navigate. Here are the divisions:

Power lifting:
a. Squat            
b. Bench Press   
c. Deadlifts

Full Power Sports Division:
a. Curl
b. Bench Press
c. Deadlift

Power press:
a.  Clean 
b. Bench Press.

 

single lift events:

a. Curl -- Power Sports

b. Bench Press -- Power Sports, Unequipped or Equipped Divisions
c. Deadlift -- Power Sports

Competition takes place between lifters in categories defined by:
a. Sex,
b. Body Weight
c. Age.
d. Unequipped divisions
e. Equipped divisions

Mens Division:
Open Division: from 13 years upwards (No category restrictions need apply.)

Teenage Division: from 13 – 19 years of age.
Junior Division: from 13 years to and including 23 years of age.

Intermediate Division: 24 to and including 29 years of age.
Sub Masters I Division: 30 to and including 35 years of age.
Sub Masters II Division: 35 to and including 39 years of age.
Masters I Division. 40 years to and including 49 years of age.
Masters II Division: 50 years to and including 59 years of age.
Masters III Division: 60 years to and including 69 years of age.
Masters IV Division: 70 + years of Age and upwards.

Women’s Division:

Open Division: from 13 years upwards (No category restrictions need apply.)

Teenage Division: from 13 – 19 years of age.
Junior Division: from 13 years to and including 23 years of age.

Intermediate Division: 24 to and including 29 years of age.

Sub Masters I Division: 30 to and including 35 years of age.

Sub Masters II Division: 35 to and including 39 years of age.

Masters I Division. 40 years to and including 49 years of age.

Masters II Division: 50 years to and including 59 years of age.

Masters III Division: 60 years to and including 69 years of age.

Masters IV Division: 70 + years of Age and upwards.

 

Body weight Categories (Men)

52.0 kg Class up to 52.0 kg    

56.0 kg Class from 52.01 to 56.0 kg

60.0 kg Class from 56.01 to 60.0 kg

67.5 kg Class from 60.01 to 67.5 kg

75.0 kg Class from 67.51 to 75.0 kg 148.8-165.3 lbs

82.5 kg Class from 75.01 to 82.5 kg 165.4-181.9 lbs

90.0 kg Class from 82.51 to 90.0 kg 181.9- 198.3 lbs

100.0 kg Class from 90.01 to 100.0 kg 198.4-220 lbs

110.0 kg Class from 100.01 to 110.0 kg 220.5-242 lbs

125.0 kg. Class from 110.01 to 125.0 kg 242.5-275 lbs

140.0 kg. Class from 125.01 to 140.0 kg 275.6-308 lbs

140 + kg. Class from 140.01 to unlimited 308.7 lbs+

2nd treadmill tabata of 2014

Today I completed my 2nd treadmill tabata of 2014. This time I wanted to push myself harder than I have in awhile so I increased the treadmills elevation to %12 and ran at a 10:45 pace for the hard sets. The goal was to run 10 hard sets worth. Even though I pushed myself to the point where my legs were almost collapsing and I was getting dizzy I was only able to run 8 hard sets. Next time I'll decrease my pace to a 10:56 and try for the full 10 sets. Once I 'm able to complete the full 10 I'll start increasing the speed I'm running and the amounts of hard sets I'm completing.

This morning I received a call from a loved one to tell me my grandpa died last night. His funeral will be held outside of Dallas Texas. I usually cover any emotions I'm having with eating. I'm going to try really dang hard to do a lot of praying, working out, and talking to my family about my feelings rather than turning to food.

Finally a decent snatch, and I need a different goal!

When I was involved in all the other sports I've tried I would usually struggle for awhile, then get worse for a single practice or a week, then make a huge jump. My progress was almost never gradual or consistent. 2 steps forward, 1 step back. I've been training for Olympic weightlifting for over 2 months now and my snatches suck, my cleans are only a little better. Sunday was my worst training day to date, and then today I felt great! I actually completed a few reps that looked like a real snatch! I live for moments like that. Finally, some progress. Perhaps I'll be ready for the New Mexico state games this summer after all.

On another note, there's a guy I've blogged about a few times named Barry Schroeder. he's in my age group, and I hope to get down to the weight division he's lifting in, the heavy weights. I've said I wanted to continue to lift, progress, and eventually try to compete with him. Yesterday he hit a 400 pound squat. I think I need to find another golden carrot, a different person to try to strive to beat. my max lifts are ridiculous compared to his. My max power snatch was 152, bench was 270, squat was 280, and my max dead lift was 350. My best lifts are no where near his warm ups!

weight gained again. Paleo time?

Earlier this month I got down to the 250 pound range for the first time in a couple years. And now I'm back into the 260's again. I love food, I hate dieting. I'm getting frustrated. I lost 20 pounds in a few weeks of starting Olympic weightlifting and have now become stuck, bouncing around between 258-262. I think I'm going to try the Paleo diet again. Perhaps just until I lose this extra 30 pounds and I get into the 105k weight class. I've had great losses when I get onto the Paleo diet, but I also end up with the worst cravings in my life, which often times ends up causing me to binge and gain all my weight back and then some.

Oh how glorious it would be to be back into the 230's.....

My first Olympic weightlifting goal

I've been training in Olympic weightlifting for a little more than 2 months now. My form is still really bad, especially in the snatch. I don't think I've progressed enough to have picked any goal weights to hit this year, but I have decided I want my A event to be the 2nd annual Buffalo classic weightlifting competition held by Zia CrossFit November of this year here in Santa Fe NM. I have 10 months until the 2nd annual Buffalo Classic . That's 10 months to work on my form and build some more strength. I'm planning on competing in a couple sanctioned Olympic weightlifting events before the Buffalo Classic so that I can get used to lifting in a formal competition.

I posted a link to the 2013 1st annual Buffalo Classic weight lifting competition below.

https://www.usaw.hangastar.com/EMS_Events_Results.aspx

1st annual Buffalo Classic results

Event Name	Event Site	Event State	Event Date	Athlete Name	Wt. Class(kg)	Body Wt.(kg)	Best SNA(kg)	Best C&J(kg)	Total(kg)
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Biddle, Makalah Grace	69.0	66.00	40.0	55.0	95.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Schaum, Eliza	63.0	60.83	31.0	44.0	75.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Applewhite, Faith	63.0	62.02	43.0	59.0	102.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Kleinsmith, Marissa	53.0	52.84	48.0	59.0	107.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Stumbo, Jodi L.	75.0	72.40	65.0	78.0	143.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Werenko, Deborah D	58.0	56.44	35.0	42.0	77.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Miller, Vedder Rise	77.0	76.56	75.0	90.0	165.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Monroe, Logan	56.0	55.95	63.0	75.0	138.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Ferguson, Hunter T	85.0	77.23	75.0	90.0	165.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Farris, Dominick Ethan	105+	116.22	105.0	131.0	236.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Hernandez, Lorenzo	77.0	73.00	0.0	84.0	0.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Lovato, Leonard Steve III	77.0	73.70	0.0	89.0	0.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Harris, Nate	85.0	83.90	70.0	94.0	164.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	O'Connell, William	85.0	84.23	80.0	105.0	185.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Johnson, Martin William	105+	114.43	76.0	117.0	193.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Nester, Jacob E.	94.0	87.88	85.0	107.0	192.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Fletcher, Benson	94.0	91.80	85.0	98.0	183.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Robinson, Darrick	94.0	88.22	66.0	90.0	156.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Martinez, Mark	85.0	81.38	60.0	0.0	0.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Schaum, Christopher	85.0	80.67	55.0	65.0	120.00
1ST ANNUAL BUFFALO CLASSIC 42-13-05	SANTA FE	NM	11/9/2013	Longhurst, William L.	105.0	99.59	53.0	76.0	129.00

back pain and improper weightlifting form

The last week my lower back has been hurting. I knew it had to be from improper lifting form, but I had no clue what I was doing wrong. I've been frustrated. Yesterday coach Jodi and coach Linda pointed out my starting position of the snatch was wrong. Since it was the starting position it meant I was putting undue stress on my lower back every set of the snatch, clean and jerk, and dead lift. After my workout I spent an hour practicing my starting position. I'm hoping I've fixed my form and that my back will stop hurting.

I love Olympic weightlifting, but I assumed I'd be better at it by now. It shouldn't be as difficult learning the form as I'm having. I don't know. Maybe the brain injury I suffered when I got ran over by a vehicle while cycling a couple years ago affected me a lot worse than I thought it did. Regardless, I'll keep training as hard as I can. I'll keep showing up. Eventually I'll learn. Perhaps not as quickly as I'd like, but I'll get there. If it's harder for me than it is for others, then I'll be more grateful than everyone else once I get there right?

After I was done lifting Barry Schroeder pulled me aside and gave me some great advise about staying positive and enjoying the sport. It was wonderful advise and I was grateful.