Resilience is defined as the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness. This is something that is lacking in a lot of athletes these days. We are so focused on what is optimal that we forget that optimal only exist in the bubble we create it in. This bubble does not exist on the platform or on the field of play. Meet day is usually chaotic and stressful which is far from the safe space you’ve created at your gym.
I once saw a guy at my gym warm-up and then sit around for 30 minutes because he wanted to use a certain platform and bar that was currently being occupied. Mind you we have 5 ER racks in the gym all built identical, but he wanted this certain one he has been using this whole training cycle. I told him he can’t take it with him to compete, he just kind of chuckled and shrugged it off. Needless to say, the meet he was preparing for didn’t go so well and he underperformed in dramatic fashion.
Now I am not saying shy away from optimal performance, but I am saying there should be points in training where you step outside of your box and put yourself in uncomfortable situations and learn how to thrive in them just as you do when you are at your home gym.
I travel a lot so I use this time to build resilience, I eat intuitively without weighing or measuring anything, I don’t take all of my supplements, and I don’t follow a set training plan. I just do what everyone else is doing that day at the gym we are at. I have an intent for the day sure but that is it, I train for me in a very suboptimal way just to teach myself that I for one can do it and that it won’t make me worst off. Typically, when I get back from traveling I have great workouts and when I am traveling I have great workouts, I don’t stress it and I don’t overcomplicate things.
This last week we were in Tampa at an MI40 Muscle camp where we pretty much trained bodybuilding style two a days for a good portion of it. I am talking metabolic sets in the 20-rep range with minimal rest and pushing things as hard as possible. I was toast but it felt great just to be able to go with the flow, adapt to the things thrown at us, and still make the desired progress I was after. Now that I am back home and on track with my normal routine my body is responding tremendously and I know for a fact I can go anywhere and lift to my best capacity without having fear creep up in the back of mind because I am out of my element.
Training back at my gym in Portland, Oregon. Anyone in the PNW come on down and train at Strength Union.
5-27-19
BW- 246.8 – HRV 76
BP w/ Mini Bands and 40lbs of Chains per side- 155lbs for 12 sets of 3 reps
Weighted Dips- 80lbs for 12, 11, and 9 reps
DB Incline BP- 55lbs for 3 sets of 12 reps
s/s
Face Pulls- 3x15
Triple Set
DB Side Raises- 20x, 16x, 15x
Upright Rows- 3x15
Seated DB Front Raises- 3x10
Cable Flys- 3x12
s/s
Push Ups- 15x, 12x, 9x
5-28-19
BW- 246.2 – HRV 86
High Bar Close Stance Pause Squats- 517lbs x1
Belt Squats- 4plates ea side for 3 sets of 8 reps
RDL’s- 405lbs x6, 455lbs x6
s/s
Pull Ups- 5 sets of 8 reps
Cable Wide Rows- 3 sets of 15 reps
s/s
Back Ext- 3sets of 20 reps
Seated Good Mornings- 105lbs for 3 sets of 12 reps
s/s
Ab Wheel- 3x12
