If you were at BSAX at any point this summer you more than likely had the opportunity to witness history in the making. Jeremiah was in here every single day (often multiple times a day) putting in work. He spent countless hours preparing for a very important Olympic weight lifting competition. His dropping of weights could have easily registered on the Richter Scale. BOOM! BAM! SLAM! Jeremiah's awesomeness and dedication inspired a few of the staff to further our knowledge and give this Olympic weight lifting thing a try. Our early morning sessions have allowed for the proper teaching of movement, techniques, and great staff bonding time. I enjoyed the challenge of lifting and this experience of Olympic lifting has only exemplified that enjoyment.
When learning to snatch and clean our fearless leader/ instructor/ boss also taught us how to bail on a lift. Bailing is required when you cannot complete the lift or are at risk of hurting yourself. It is essentially removing yourself from the weights downward path.... get your body out of the way. Upon learning how to bail I started associating bailing with failing. In recent months I have become a little bit of a perfectionist when trying new things. I automatically want to be comfortable with what I am doing and I want to do it well. I don't want to fail. This overly critical way of thinking has lead to a great deal of frustration. Instead of accepting failure and using it as motivation to do better, I internalize the frustration and let it defeat me. Isn't failure and disappointment apart of all aspects of our life? We don't reach that weight loss goal. We don't get a job promotion we had hoped for. We don't reach our max out on a lift. We aren't selected for a position on a committee. Disappointment and the feeling of failure can be crippling, but we are the only ones that can control those feelings. I am challenging myself and you reading this to add those negative feelings to your fitness fire. Let it motivate you. Accept your bail or fail. Try again with more passion and determination. I dare you to fail and work your way to achieving your goals.