Solcana blog

I had a tough week last week.

I only made it to the gym twice – Monday and Saturday. There were so many things going on and I let them get in the way of my workouts. And I could feel it. My anxiety and restlessness were rearing their ugly head and for some reason, I let them.

I had two shows Friday night at Mystic Lake that took a lot of energy out of me after a long week (and full day) at the office and I didn’t end up in bed until 1am. I had my alarm set for 7am so I could get up, relax with my coffee, and eat a lil somethin’ somethin’ before heading to Solcana for the 9am Open Competition and powerlifing training.

Earlier in the week, one of my gym pals had reached out to me asking if I was going to be at the 9am Saturday because she was planning to come. And, she also asked about our standard 10am brunch date that I mentioned in a previous blog. It made me so happy that she was planning to come and join us for both because we don’t often work out at the same time, and I was looking forward to seeing her. She’s a bit of a kindred spirit – one can just tell these things.

So, fast forward to 7am Saturday as my alarm was blaring and I kept hitting my snooze. Every 8 minutes, that dang alarm would go off. And I’d keep hitting snooze. You guys, I didn’t get out of bed until 8:10. And that was after 70 minutes of deliberation as to whether or not I should EVEN GET OUT OF BED. I was tired. I needed a day off. I had so many things to do. I was so comfortable in bed. It’s been so long since I had a Saturday morning free….the list of excuses goes on and on and on.

But then I remembered my gym pal, Stacy, was going to meet me at Solcana. And that I’d get to see all of my awesome 9am women-trans-femme pals and I knew I would regret not going. Also, I was irritated at myself for even considering it, but I guess the brain does weird stuff when it’s tired.

I somehow managed to scarf down some coffee and get my dog to go to the bathroom and get dressed (though, sidebar: I was wearing Friday night’s makeup OK SOME OF US ARE NOT PERFECT THANK YOU) and get in my car to make it at 8:55am for the 9am workout. I know we often say it – it’s hard to get to the gym but once we’re there we never regret it. This statement could not be more true.

Accountability and community are everything.

I was so tired on the way to the gym. I wasn’t sure how the Open Competition was going to go because of this – I mean, the workout consisted of completing as many rounds and reps as possible in 8 minutes of:

• 10 push presses
• 10 cleans

Men push press 95 lb. and clean 115 lb.
Women push press 65 lb. and clean 75 lb.

Nicole and I partnered up and I opted to go first, because I JUST WANTED TO GET IT OVER WITH. I had no idea what I would be able to accomplish, though I could feel myself suddenly start to get amped up about it. I managed to knock out 70 reps (or 3.5 rounds) in the 8 minutes and I was pleased with my accomplishment. I mean, this is my first year competing in The Open so next year I’ll have a baseline to beat. I’m fine with that.

I put it all in to this workout and I actually remember consciously thinking “I’m so glad I came today because I would so regret it if I didn’t.” I even told my pals this, too. I woke up feeling like crap. Here’s the thing: I knew if I didn’t make it to the gym, I’d feel even worse. This is the key, you guys. Just go. You’ll never regret it. And it’s even sweeter when you have a crew of the best, most supportive pals in the world waiting for you and holding you accountable. And of course, brunch.

https://instagram.com/p/0NxG6Mumrp/?taken-by=jennschaal

NOT TO MENTION, if I wouldn’t have made it Saturday I would have completely missed out on witnessing two of my pals get engaged. This was the absolute cutest, you guys. If you know Matt and Marijke, then YOU KNOW. Check out this video below of their joy that they were so kind to share with me. I love these humans and it means so much that they experienced their joy (and pizza) at the same place I find mine. Solcana CrossFit is magical, you guys. See for yourself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6tHm4c7-o4