ROD 022110
ROD
Sunday, 21Feb10
R-E-S-T Day
What weightlifting has done for athletes & others I have trained:
1) Taught them body awareness. Body awareness is SO important and can make learning new things a heck of a lot easier. Weightlifting is great for body awareness because you are lifting a heavy ass weight over your head, and if you have no idea where your body is in conjunction with the bar, then you’re basically screwed. Lifting teaches you to be in tune to each little movement of each little body part.
2) Taught them how to focus under stress. The great thing about lifting is the self – competition aspect. You work hard for and then you get to take all that hard work and try to reach another personal best. As great as it is, it is also makes you want to pee your pants from nerves! Its just you and the bar looking at you. That focus transfers over to almost every other aspect of life that requires focus.
3) Learned what it meant to be dedicated to something. Weightlifting taught them how to be committed to something and how to STAY committed even if they hit a plateau, that kind of commitment. The rewards they have received from the all of that hard work they put in just to be better than it was before. You learn to set goals for yourself and learn that you could reach each goal with persistence and dedication. Reaching goals, is an important feeling for clients to experience and weightlifting gives you so many opportunities to do just that.
4) Most importantly, weightlifting gave them confidence in themselves. There is something about approaching a heavy weight, feeling afraid, and lifting that bar over your head that makes you feel such self satisfaction and makes you feel extremely proud of yourself. The feeling of conquering your fears is a hard feeling to match. We all fear, yet we all have a choice: Do we let that fear control us? or do we control the fear? Olympic lifting allows you to feel that fear, accept that fear, and then punch that fear in the face, one lift at a time. With each fear you face, new confidence is brought about and you grow stronger and more confident. You believe in yourself more and more each day. And to believe in ourselves (as children or adults) is the hardest feat that most of us will ever have to face.