Well, that was fun. Five days and a bottle of Vicodin later and I feel almost human. I think I may actually be able to work out tomorrow for the first time in several days.
When I can't exercise I get cranky. Really, it's a mood enhancer for me. Which is why I'm such an addict. I wrote here about how it started, my bodybuilding past.
I did bodybuilding style workouts for 16 years, even when I was no longer a bodybuilder. I think there are huge benefits to lifting weights. After bodybuilding I ran (all distances from 5k to marathon), rode and raced bikes (road and mountain), and did triathlons (up to olympic distance). I threw myself into each sport with fervor and dedication. I ran 70 mile weeks when I ran, rode 250 mile weeks when I was a cyclist and trained for 12-15 hours per week as a triathlete. I don't understand moderate. Sometimes I wish I was one of those people that can go for a meandering 10 mile bike ride along the bay on the weekend. But unless there is some sort of way to compete with someone, or conquer a weight, distance or speed I haven't done before; I'm not too interested.
I've thought a lot about that, my competitiveness. And I think it's ok to be competitive. It's important to channel it to those places where it's appropriate. I always have an outlet in my life where I can compete in a healthy way.
The point is; I don't throw myself in halfway. When I started running my first training run was a 5k and I immediately started running 6 miles a day with stadium stairs thrown in once a week. When I bought my first road bike in college (days after I had finished a marathon and could no longer stomach even the sight of my running shoes), my first ride was 70 miles with a hill they called cardiac hill.
I'm still trying to make my point which is not that I'm a badass, but that I never got hurt. Nope. No knee problems or overuse injuries no matter what crazy shit I threw at my body. Why? I believe it is because I had such a strong foundation from lifting.
A few years ago (during my triathlon phase) I stopped lifting. I had just burnt out on the bodybuilding style workout...lift a weight you can manage for 8-10 reps, rest repeat...on and on for each body part. I was bored. I was bored with the workouts and bored with the gym. So I stopped. I did yoga instead.
I started getting hurt. Tendonitis in a knee that made cycling excruciating. Then a torn hamstring that impaired my running for a year (including the several months that I employed my usual treatment: ignore it and hope it goes away). It sucked.
So I started looking for a more interesting way to lift weights. I also was burning out on the hardcore endurance activity. During my triathlon training I discovered my body responded pretty well to interval training and i started doing more of that than the traditional "go lots of miles at a steady pace." Also, my own theories of weightlifting had evolved, I only wanted to do movements that gave me a lot of bang for my buck. Think pull ups instead of bicep curls, the benefit of pull ups is you don't only work your arms but your entire back.
As I got older, I found that shorter workouts of extremely high intensity were what I wanted to do. By accident I found Crossfit.
I love Crossfit. I love the intensity, I love the fact that there is skill work, I love the lifting, I love the competition. Crossfit introduced me to Olympic Lifting. So now I run, do crossfit and Olympic Lifting. I usually only run up to a 5k distance, once a week I run sprints. I am always going for intensity. I love the community I have at my gym. I am sure that if I ever get tired of it, there will be something new to get fanatical about.
Sometimes I run into people I haven't seen for years. When they ask me what I'm up to and I tell them about my latest thing they say, "You're so disciplined." Well no. I am actually doing the things I love. I loved getting close to nature on my long runs and bike rides, loved getting to places I wouldn't otherwise see. I love seeing a new city by running through it; nothing can compare. I love lifting a scary ass barbell above my head and encouraging my friends to do the same. I love doing all of those things with my son.
For me, this is just living.