Becoming an Athlete

We are all guilty of taking on too much too soon and burning out or getting overwhelmed.  The most successful selling fitness and weightloss programs are the  ones that are marketed as the most extreme. Lately, there has been a trend towards truth in advertising: extreme efforts will produce extreme results. That's great, but I've chosen a path of consistency.  I see my progress over the last decade and I am happy to say I am not the same man.  Most of my progress has come in the last 2 years, and much of my transformation has been spiritual and cognitive.  Christ has been growing his roots deeper and deeper into my heart, which has allowed my thoughts to become different. Panic, anxiety, and self destruction are no longer my go-to choices or reactions. Consistency of prayer has led to consistency of spirit, whcih led to consistency of thought, which led to consistency of action.  I no longer fear success or failure.  I fear only God, in the healthy ...

That's how a friend of mine greeted me on Tuesday night at the gym.  I think I look the same and have a further ahead of me than behind, but that comment from a friend at the gym (whom I haven't seen in about 2 months) reminds me that I'm my own worst critic, with one or two exceptions. I'm still hovering between 205 and 208 and need to hit 195 ASAP for Highland Games on 11/07, but I'm every bit as strong as I was in 2011 weighing 235 pounds.  My deadlift is up to 475, my squat up to 385, and my overhead press up to 180.  I haven't maxed on bench press in a long time, so I have no idea where that's at.  I'm stronger, leaner, and lighter. I just hope I can turn this strength into performance on the field.  I've been doing a ton of cleans and snatch grip high pulls to work on my explosiveness, but I have been more worried about making weight than sport-specificity of my training.  I don't expect it to come together for a peak till San Antonio i...