Is a rep scheme we see quite often in our daily workouts. In many ways this is a microcosm of life. We start with a big goal in mind. We are excited and charge hard into the work in front of us. Then we hit the middle…the round of 15 and the work looks daunting now. It is the same as we just finished but now we are tired and the task looks really, really hard. Hit the round of 9 and it’s over. Any goal in life is similar.

Start strong, trudge through the middle, sprint home. This is life. And it is in the trudge through the middle that real shift happens. Sometimes you just need to slog through. There is a point where getting through is the point. Put one foot in front of the other and make it to the end.

When you start something and do it for the first time, it’s exciting. When you are near the finish line, it’s exciting. It is the middle where the hard work gets done. It is in the middle where the growth really occurs. It is the middle where you want to quit.

Quitting in the middle is easy. It is easy to rationalize that you didn’t really want to finish. It is easy to get distracted by the next shiny new thing. In the round of 15 your mental strength is tested. Can you keep on keeping on? In the round of 15 you are going to want to quit; throwing in the towel and walking away. Keep your eyes on the prize, put your head down and slog through.

Before you know it you are in the round of 9 and the end is in sight. You can easily summon the strength and fortitude to sprint home. What you need to do is look at the round of 15 differently. That is the round where you can make the biggest difference. That is the round where your opposition is the greatest and you can make the biggest impact on your bottom line.

There are so many aphorisms about this…when the going gets tough, the tough get going. Tough times don’t last but tough people do. The bottom line is simple…in the middle you need to pull yourself up, stare the task down and get to work.

This is the way of our people.

John Mariotti
www.crossfitodyssey.com
www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com