Whew!

These last few weeks have been busy; filled with emotional ups and downs, big decisions, and some training highs and lows...and by low, I mean nightmarish.  So, what does it all amount to?  Well, the end result, regardless of the events of the past week or so, will be showcased next weekend at America's Strongest Woman in Denison, Texas; where I will compete against some of the best middle weights in strongwoman competition.

Two weeks ago, I missed out on my last chance of event training with my coach because I decided to eat something that gave me food poisoning.  Being sick all night and most of the day sucked the life out of me...hell, I almost fell asleep just driving to the barn.  I also lost three pounds in the process and can't seem to gain it back.  I know what your thinking...shut up and go eat some damn cookies.

The following tuesday, I bounced back with a pretty good pressing workout only to have somehow injured my quad tendon.  The swelling has thrown a curve into most of my workouts, including some event work.  I am still fighting that issue with ice and Aleve, but I did manage to wrap it well enough to get through some heavy work with the yoke as well as finally making progress with my keg clean and press.  Again, I know what you are thinking...you're a moron and should have taken time off to let it heal.  I do agree, however, I do manual labor for a living and "rest" isn't much of an option in that regard.

So, as stubborn as I am, I entered my final week of training with one single thought....overcome!  Not sit back, relax, and take it easy.  I have plenty of time after nationals to rest and heal.  This shit only happens once a year.  And again, I know, what if I make the injury worse and can not compete at all.  The way I look at it...if I said "what if" for every heavy ass piece of furniture I threw over my shoulder or for every time I scaled a twenty foot ladder with an eighty pound chair at work, I would be "what if-ing" myself to death and worrying about things I can not control.  Shit happens.  There is a belief in the basketball world that when you play scared or worry about injury, you are way more likely to actually get injured.  So, you go balls to the wall all the time, regardless.

Finally, the main reason I wrote this...none of it actually matters.  Everyone has issues, problems, things to worry about on a daily basis.  The fact that it comes on the heals of a big competition sucks, but there is nothing I can do to change it or control it.  Next friday, the only thing that matters is to put it all behind me and compete.  In other words....overcome!  No excuses.