We all have the excruciating feelings of pain. We all know what it looks like and feels like. We all can share the experiences of emotional and physical pain. For many, pain is uncommon; for some, pain is very common. It is an animal and psychological instinct to avoid pain. Our bodies and minds are wired to flee from pain and to elude anything/anyone that could cause us potential pain. And yet, we always find ourselves in pain, both literally and metaphorically.
I have friends who are going through very painful experiences right now. I have friends who are experiencing pain due to relationships that oftentimes border on abusive. Some friends also are going through a painful decision on their relationship status and whether or not it is the right fit for them to be in a relationship with a certain person or not. I have a friend who was recently robbed. I have friends who are going through emotional struggles, physical struggles, and spiritual struggles. I, myself, have been through emotional, physical, and spiritual pains through my life. As a result, it’s normal to run away from the pain. It’s natural to avoid things that cause us pain. It’s logical that someone wouldn’t put him- or herself through painful experiences. And yet, I find myself disagreeing from time to time.
Once again, I am not surprised that my trainer Kelly Moran has put me in a position where I find amazing life lessons within my workouts. I will be honest in saying that my workouts are not for the faint of heart. They are not meant for the casual person who works out or the individual who takes his or her time between sets and repetitions. His workouts are fast, extreme, and demand a lot from the body and mind.
The pain that results from the workout is excruciating and long lasting (days at a time). As I’m writing this post, I am standing because my legs are so sore and in pain that sitting sounds like a horrible idea. Doing hundreds of repetitions without resting in between forces muscles to burn, tendons to tighten, and blood to rush towards the area. While the pain doing the workout is unbearable, the after effects are worse. Squatting down to pick something up is an impossibility. Walking up and down stairs is a task for the gods.
And then what do I do within 24-hours? I make sure I do the elliptical and then I do Cycle-X the next morning.
Kelly said something this morning that I believe is a great life lesson to learn, not only from a workout perspective, but from a perspective of lifelong learning and personal development.
There are many drills (all drills, let’s be real) that are painful to complete in Cycle-X, and one of the hardest drills is to sit down on the bike, and turn your tension to 10 (your maximum tension you can do without stopping your legs from pumping) and maintain that intensity for the duration of an entire song. A friend of mine was in that class, and I believe was her first experience with a 10-song. As she was progressing towards her 10, she did what we all have done in Cycle-X: the moment we feel that twinge of pain, we’re going to back off the tension and turn it back down slightly. Of course, nothing gets by Kelly, and he yelled:
“Embrace the pain, accept it, and use it”
What I believe Kelly means with this is that pain is going to be inevitable, especially when you engage in an activity that is difficult. When you are able to accept the pain and embrace it, you can turn it into a weapon for yourself. For the workout community, most people understand that there is an adequate need for pain during and post-workout that ensures muscle growth and cardiovascular strengthening. In the words of my friend Tasanee, "No Pain, No Gain."In the case of Cycle-X, embracing the pain that comes from essentially cycling through sand and mud for 4 minutes results in your legs getting stronger, your heart getting stronger, and your resilience to strengthen.
So how is this relatable to real life? I know some people may be skeptical and tell me that working out pain is much different than other pains in the world. Yes, I completely agree with all of you. The pain that results from a leg workout or from Cycle-X is incomparable to having your heart broken, to experiencing a death in the family, to having emotional and spiritual turmoil. And yet, while the pain is incomparable, perhaps the “how” we understand that pain may be applicable across many situations.
No one walks into a workout hoping to be in pain. No one walks into a relationship hoping to be in pain. No one enters life or engages in any activity hoping that pain is a result. We all hope and pray that as long as we put our effort in, positive experiences and progress will be the result. However, sometimes, unfortunately it does not happen for us.
And so what do we do? Oftentimes, we run away. We shut down. We vow to never do it again.
I will never love again.
I will never make that mistake again.
I will never pick up that weight again.
I will never [insert your activity].
It’s natural. I do it. We all do it. But what Kelly said in Cycle-X can be used right now.
Embrace the pain that has happened. That doesn’t mean to enjoy it or to like it. Embrace it, hold it close and acknowledge its presence. Pain is there. Your heart was broken. You made that mistake and it hurt badly. You failed miserably at that workout, test, etc. Your legs are in pain from running that mile, from being at a 10 on the bike at Cycle-X. Like life, pain is inevitable. We cannot escape pain. I wish we could, but we cannot.
So we embrace the pain. We accept that fact that we are going through pain. We should not deny the pain in our hearts, our bodies, our minds. If we choose to deny that pain, and to ignore it, we don’t learn from it. We don’t realize our mistakes, our learning points, our strengths and weaknesses. So after we accept that pain, what is a possible thing to do next?
Perhaps we make ourselves stronger. Like legs on a bicycle after completing the 10-resistance song, so can our minds, hearts, and bodies be strengthened once we embrace and accept that pain occurs in our lives. While it sucks, it does not end our lives. How we understand pain can result in a difference between growth and being jaded.
My friend made it through that 10-tension drill, and I hope she loved the feeling afterwards of knowing she met that challenge and go through it.
Life will frequently put our bodies, minds, hearts, and souls to the test. Life will ask test our breaking point. It will push, pull, twist, and throw us around. Through the blood, sweats, tears… the heartbreak, the headaches… the self-doubt, the hatred, the scorn, the feelings of being stabbed in the back…
Embrace the pain. Accept it. Use it.
Strength is the product of struggle.
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