As we have already established multiple times in my Be a Big Dog blog, I'm running this 100 miler because I'm a meathead. It's one thing to say over and over, it's another to prove it to you with past meathead moments. As my college friends will contest to, I never turned down a dare... we do not need to get into the details of those, just yet at least, since they don't necessarily help paint the best picture of my intelligence. Despite that, I have decided to start a series called "Because I'm a Meathead" to hopefully build your belief in me that I'm a big enough meathead to succeed at this 100 miler.
When I worked at Gettysburg College my second duty was a strength and conditioning coach, which meant I had the wonderful opportunity of helping put together and run the off-season workout programs with most of the sports programs. The head strength and conditioning coach, Shaun Weaver, and I would monitor the weight room while athletes would come in to complete their workouts. The football team was one of them. And every three weeks we would run the players through a range of tests to mark their progress, or lack their of. One of the tests we ran was a wall sit with a 45 pound plate weight on their legs. These "big, tough" football players would come in and barely muster a 3 minute wall sit. The longest was 6 minutes and change. I kept telling them they weren't trying very hard. They tried to convince me it was harder than it looked. I told them to be a big dog. They said they were. As you can tell, we went around and around in circles. Finally, when the second round of testing came, I attempted this wall sit just to show them it wasn't that hard. First attempt, I made it 7 minutes, purely because I had to prove to them it was all about mental toughness and being a big dog. Then, my meathead self came out and I told them that in three weeks when they tested again, I would really show them how it was done.
Awesome. Because that's exactly what I wanted to do in three weeks. As a 23 year old, I really wanted to be challenging 18 year olds to a wall sit while holding a 45 pound plate weight. I mean, seriously, who wouldn't be up for that challenge? I found a new hobby and, man, I was elated. Thrilled. Jumping out of my pants excited.
Fast forward three weeks. It was testing day. I had done no real training besides my normal lifting routine, but I wasn't worried, it was all mental toughness anyway. The word had been spread, there were volleyballs girls, football players and couple of my soccer players there to watch. No point in wasting anytime, so I just jumped right into it. Sat down agains the wall, placed the 45 pound plate weight on my legs and just let the time tick. Eight minutes in my calves started to shake. Still it was all mental toughness. Ten minutes in all of my legs were shaking and the thought that I could stop and still hold the "record" crossed my mind but the volleyball girls told me to get to 12 minutes. Insert more mental toughness here. At 12 minutes, I figured what's the difference between 12 minutes and 13 minutes? Just sixty seconds. If someone told you you only had 60 seconds to turn on and watch tv, would you even try? Probably, not. That's how little time I had to make it through. At this point a decent number of athletes had come to observe. 13 minutes turned into 14. One more minute. I mean 15 minutes sounds so much better than 14 minutes, don't you think? And just like that 15 minutes hit. I dumped the weight off my legs, slid my back down the wall into a sitting position. I. had. crushed. the. football. wall. sit. record.
Proud moment or meathead moment?
Unfortunately, I think it's the latter.
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