End of Phase 1: 

Learn Hurt ,Trust Pain, Embrace Struggle.

I came across this slogan on a website  - dreamloudlynow.com and ever sense its stuck with me, in part it really speaks to style of training I have endured over the past few months. About three years ago I started a push to lose weight and get faster. Living in downtown Indianapolis, I started to run 4-5 miles every morning. I weighted 245 at the time, by late spring I lost 30 lbs to 220. At 220, I realized at 220, I could no longer be a lineman. I spent the next 2 months looking for a home on the football field. I found one that required limited skill, at FB. I then spend the next two years lifting none stop, adding explosive power and raw strength. I went from a bench max of 305 to 430, a squat max of 405 to 550 struggling with 135 power cleans to a max of 265. I gained back every bit of my weight in muscle mass.

I hit 245 at my mass peak , strong as an OX, big as I could be. But I learned this came with a price. My flexibility, range of motion, ability to run and move decreased. I could no longer run the 4-5 miles I use to without pain. Another reality finally set in, that at 5’9” there was always going to be someone bigger, stronger, that me. So the wheels were set in motion this summer to begin the slim down and fix the damage I had done.

How does one fix being big? I backed off on the massive eating of protein, and fully backed off on the carbs. I moved my diet to paleo based natural foods. I begin to focus on faster feet and the ability to flow and catch passes. A few months ago I took the next few steps toward better athleticism  and began yoga to increase flexibility and increase core strength. I also began to finally remove the built up scar tissue from the previous two years though weekly deep tissue massages.

Each step of this three year transformation has hurt. It hurt to take the first 30 min. run. It hurt to lift that first 355 bench, it hurt to repeatedly maintain a core strength position. But you have hurt to move forward in progress.

I had to learn hurt, and trust when hurt became pain. You have to push yourself beyond the hurt level and balance to the point of pain. You have to push against that pain limit and move it to see growth but you also have to trust yourself when you cross that line and need to back off. And this entire time span of three years, I have embraced the struggle, sometimes lost or confused, most of the time determined. This journey has taught me so much about me.  Even today as I embrace some of the most painful training yet, I have learned to trust the hurt, for it is only growth toward your next goal.