I don’t know about you, but I hate working out. I hate going to the gym. I hate using exercise equipment. I hate reps. I’ve never liked working out. Some people seem to love the whole experience, but I just don’t get it. It’s boring, miserable, and hard – there is literally nothing to like about it.
“If You Hate Working Out So Much, Why Bother?”
There is only one problem. I love trials biking, which takes strength. When I first started trials biking, I hadn’t done anything to build strength for years. Nor had I done any sort of exercise, really. Not a great health combination at nearly 50 years old!
The more my trials riding progressed, the more apparent it became that I needed to do something to build strength, especially in my arms. While I still don’t go to the gym or use any weightlifting equipment, I did start doing pushups several times a week for the past year. I do several sets of slow pushups (count to 5 going down, hold for a 2-count, then count to five back up), followed by several sets of “regular” pushups. That pretty much sums up my strength-building regimen so far. And I can’t stand it – I hate every moment of it! But… it has absolutely made a difference in my riding.
Making matters more frustrating, I have had to stop a few times for weeks or even months at a stretch due to injuries or illness. Each time that has happened, it seems to take longer to re-build lost strength. This year in particular, I had an intercostal muscle strain that set me back two months over the summer, and then about a month of illness this winter. After 5 weeks of pushups, I’ve barely made any progress and I’m significantly behind where I was just a few months ago.
But you know what? I keep doing it. I track my progress with a habit tracker app and force myself to do these damn pushups three times a week (along with stretches and exercises to heal and prevent further injury of various things). It’s a struggle, every time. I get up 30 minutes earlier than I would otherwise, so I can do them in the morning, no excuses. I constantly want to quit. It’s hard work, does not feel good, and just generally unpleasant. But I do it anyway. Why? How? Because I keep that vision in my mind of my goal to become progressively better at trials biking. I know if I don’t, I’m going to struggle even more than usual when I ride, or could get hurt by not having the strength necessary. By making it a habit, tracking when I do it, and focusing on my “why”, I keep myself motivated to keep doing it, even when I just want to give up. This is the key – throughout the physical pain and mental struggle, visualize what it is you want to achieve.