There’s more to that title (incidentally yet another outstanding book by John Maxwell and a course that I train people on) in each of our lives. It’s particularly a philosophy that I hold dear. Why? Because I’m an experimenter and I’m prone to failures from the get go! And that’s totally alright with me (and is totally normal, in case you were wondering…).
It’s my last day in Seoul, South Korea and I’m celebrating! No, I didn’t qualify for the diplomat that I thought would be an outstanding addition to my repertoire. Thankfully, the door’s still open. I have six more months to get stronger in the lifts that I failed — the bench and military press. I didn’t attempt the deadlift strength test out of sheer laziness, I knew I could take the tests in my own time, which is more convenient to me as I follow an elaborate 12-16 week plan for my lifts. So, essentially for the record, I did fail.
One of the greatest learning that I’ve had during the past week incidentally also relates to the failures. It helped me reflect on the things that I haven’t been doing right: 1) not eating well (and enough); 2) you can have favorites when it comes to strength and conditioning but your programming cannot favor just one or two lifts. It has to be holistic; 3) proper technique is everything!
In fact, during the program, I learned about the concept of a TRM, which stands for a technical one rep max. So, a 1RM refers to the maximal weight that you can lift in a particular movement — bench press, squats or deadlift. The form or technique isn’t important. The weight is. A TRM flips the switch and focuses on the maximal weight that you can lift with the proper technique. And that’s a game changer! It forces trainees and trainers to prioritize safety and proper form than just numbers.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. I’ll be sharing some of what I learned here on the blog from time to time (as appropriate). The best part was about the community that I got connected to. It’s massive. It’s global and it’s got a heart. I’m proud of the fitness community at large for what it tries to accomplish on a daily basis — enabling people to get fitter and stronger so they can enjoy their lives to the fullest. For me, that’s one heck of a mission. And these guys live up to it!
Sure, I lost out a brilliant opportunity to be felicitated in front my community (well, one of my communities as I also belong to many others) and after the tests, I’ll probably receive the certificate via mail or worse, in PDF that I would have to print out before stashing it in that pile of “certificates” in my prestigious folder. But the learnings that I’ve had over the past 10 days have been magical!
I’m excited to share this knowledge with my community back home and my future clients who need help with programming to get stronger. Can’t wait for that!
So long, Seoul!
#PowerToYou