Humility and Wisdom

I wrote about humility in a previous post, but it is such a key attitude to my getting fit (among other things) that I wanted to expand upon it a little more. As I went to the gym today, I set up to do the deadlift. At one time, I had been able to deadlift 250 pounds. Not world class, but not too shabby for a guy who weighed 135 at the time. However, since my knee surgery and some back issues a couple years ago, I stayed away from the deadlift. This was the first time I had done it in about two and a half years, so I started with a very modest weight of 135 pounds.

There was a young guy next to me doing some heavy overhead presses. There was something inside me that wanted to put some extra plates on the bar. Fortunately, humility and reality kept me from doing something very foolish.

Besides keeping the weight reasonable, humility has allowed me to continue to try to refine my form. Watching one of Alan Thrall's tip videos on the deadlift, I learned a few things I needed to improve upon. Similarly, a previous video of his that I watched suggested doing some Romanian deadlifts (aka RDL's) to improve the engagement of my butt and hamstrings in the deadlift movement. I did so today as well and it felt great.

I'm not the only one who thinks humility is important to success and life. Tim Ferriss interviewed former Navy SEAL and world-class Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competitor Jocko Willink. In this interview, Tim asked Jocko about what quality separated great leaders from good ones. Willink very quickly replied, "Humility." Especially in the dangerous environment of combat as a Navy SEAL, He discussed how the lack of humility could get people killed. Jocko discusses the connection between humility and courage as well. The interview had many other insights about many topics, so I encourage you to check it out. (Small warning: there is some - but not a lot - of  profanity). 

Humility is very important if we want to improve in life - whether it be in fitness or when leading men in combat. It allows us to see things more objectively. It allows us to seek solutions and advice when we have problems. Also, it gives us the courage to do things we should even if we worry about what other people think. God bless you.

November 7, 2015 Workout

Time of workout: 6:30 PM; Location: YMCA

Warm-up: 3 minutes stationary bike

Joint Rotation

Stretching

Deadlift: 

1. 135 x 5

2. 135 x 5

3. 135 x 5

Romanian Deadlift: 

1. 135 x 5

~3 minute rest

Rowing: 1000m in 5:28.6 (stretcher setting=3; flywheel resistance=7) 

Note: The resistance settings on each rowing machine (or erg) is different based on how clean the erg is, how well maintained, and other factors. This was the far left ergometer at the gym.

Stretching: 5 minutes

Total Workout Time: 30 minutes

Post-Workout Comments

It was a good quick workout focused on the posterior chain - back, glutes, hamstrings). My general idea behind doing it this way as that the deadlifts would warm me up for the rowing. The deadlifts themselves weren't super heavy, but I was rusty, so the weight is appropriate. From a technique standpoint, I was okay, although I think I sat back a little too much, and didn't catch it until the 3rd set. I then felt a set of RDL's would help with the posterior chain connection that was missing because my technique was a little off. 

Rowing felt pretty good overall. I was very deliberate and careful with my technique because my back muscles were already fatigued from the deadlifts and I didn't want to risk injuring myself by pulling too fast (in case fatigue caused my form to suffer). The actual distance at this intensity was not too bad, so I can push it a little harder next time, which I will need to in any case to reach my goal. One thing to try is to just do a rowing workout, with just warm-ups OR give myself a little more time to rest between heavy lifting and the rowing piece.