I think everyone here knows Erin's story, but I'll post it again here for my two non-RFM blog readers just in case.
Erin joined RFM earlier this year while we were still at the old gym location on Mill Street. I had hardly gotten to know her when she was gone. Turns out she fell and broke her collarbone while doing the warm up lap one evening.
Ouch. When I heard the news I thought, "Oh well, guess we'll never see her again."
Wrong. As soon as she was healed up she came back like nothing happened. Now I don't know about you but a broken collarbone is nothing to laugh at. NFL football players are out for a whole season because of broken collarbones. Erin's got some sort of mutant healing factor or something.
Anyway the reason why I'm bringing up her story now is because I saw on her Facebook page last night that she did a handstand push-up for the first time since the accident. That's huge. Big props.
(NOTE: Erin told me later that she actually did a HANDSTAND, not a handstand push-up. It's still a great accomplishment though.)
See I've been injured, and after you're injured you start to favor that injured part of your body like it's your child. You don't want it getting hurt again and there's psychological barriers sometimes even after the physical scars heal.
Like I was scared for a long time to ever bench again after tearing my pectoral. And like how I didn't body board for a whole year after smashing my face into the reef. And like how I was freaked out the first time someone went for my face during sparring after a black belt elbowed my nose and broke it so badly it was a roughly 90 degree angle from it's original position.
But I digress. Needless to say I know about the fear, and if Erin broke her collarbone then she's probably had some fear about any sort of shoulder movement. It just comes with the territory.
So kudos to her and everyone else that works through their fear. It's not like how I bitch about sore muscles, a stiff back or exhausted legs. The fear is a more serious problem, at least I think it is. Like I don't ever know if I'll even want to try 275 ever again, which was the weight that I tore my pec with so long ago.
But maybe I will. Because before RFM I never even thought that I would bench again. It's funny, Bump was one of the fastest guys in high school but his mantra now is for all of his gym members to go slow and steady, which is fine by me. It's a good way to avoid injury. And the FEAR.
On another note. Anyone need a 10:30 a.m. slot for the Warrior Dash? My friend Eric paid for a spot but realized too late that the race was going to happen AFTER he left Hawaii. (See what happens when you don't check with your wife about the reservations?)
So rather than let his 50 bucks go to waste does anyone want to have the slot and pay him? I'll make the necessary arrangements, contact administrators, etc. I guess we can just get a refund but it seems like more and more RFMer's are signing up for the run every week so I thought I'd check.
Let me know.
Oh yeah, the WOD. Ten kettlebell swings, 10 lunges with weight and 10 box jumps. Thank you Kats for suggesting the 44 pound kettlebell. Five rounds and I was done.
Peace out homies.
Rod
Erin joined RFM earlier this year while we were still at the old gym location on Mill Street. I had hardly gotten to know her when she was gone. Turns out she fell and broke her collarbone while doing the warm up lap one evening.
Ouch. When I heard the news I thought, "Oh well, guess we'll never see her again."
Wrong. As soon as she was healed up she came back like nothing happened. Now I don't know about you but a broken collarbone is nothing to laugh at. NFL football players are out for a whole season because of broken collarbones. Erin's got some sort of mutant healing factor or something.
Anyway the reason why I'm bringing up her story now is because I saw on her Facebook page last night that she did a handstand push-up for the first time since the accident. That's huge. Big props.
(NOTE: Erin told me later that she actually did a HANDSTAND, not a handstand push-up. It's still a great accomplishment though.)
See I've been injured, and after you're injured you start to favor that injured part of your body like it's your child. You don't want it getting hurt again and there's psychological barriers sometimes even after the physical scars heal.
Like I was scared for a long time to ever bench again after tearing my pectoral. And like how I didn't body board for a whole year after smashing my face into the reef. And like how I was freaked out the first time someone went for my face during sparring after a black belt elbowed my nose and broke it so badly it was a roughly 90 degree angle from it's original position.
But I digress. Needless to say I know about the fear, and if Erin broke her collarbone then she's probably had some fear about any sort of shoulder movement. It just comes with the territory.
So kudos to her and everyone else that works through their fear. It's not like how I bitch about sore muscles, a stiff back or exhausted legs. The fear is a more serious problem, at least I think it is. Like I don't ever know if I'll even want to try 275 ever again, which was the weight that I tore my pec with so long ago.
But maybe I will. Because before RFM I never even thought that I would bench again. It's funny, Bump was one of the fastest guys in high school but his mantra now is for all of his gym members to go slow and steady, which is fine by me. It's a good way to avoid injury. And the FEAR.
On another note. Anyone need a 10:30 a.m. slot for the Warrior Dash? My friend Eric paid for a spot but realized too late that the race was going to happen AFTER he left Hawaii. (See what happens when you don't check with your wife about the reservations?)
So rather than let his 50 bucks go to waste does anyone want to have the slot and pay him? I'll make the necessary arrangements, contact administrators, etc. I guess we can just get a refund but it seems like more and more RFMer's are signing up for the run every week so I thought I'd check.
Let me know.
Oh yeah, the WOD. Ten kettlebell swings, 10 lunges with weight and 10 box jumps. Thank you Kats for suggesting the 44 pound kettlebell. Five rounds and I was done.
Peace out homies.
Rod
Thanks Rod…but I’m not worthy of a blog post – for two reasons. First, unlike NFL players that break collarbones tackling 300+ pound men at high rates of speed…I merely tripped over on my own two feet (although I hope I managed to do it with some grace). Second, it wasn’t a handstand push-up…just a handstand :( …although for me that was a huge accomplishment!
ReplyDeleteWith that said…injuries can certainly mess with your head and prevent you from wanting to try again. I was lucky enough to have everyone at RFM to keep me motivated. After being embarrassed by my fall and telling Robert and Oran (as my head is bleeding and I can’t lift my arm) “…don’t worry it’s just a bruise, I’ll go home have a few drinks and be back in 48 hours.” Wow…was I wrong. However, I figured I needed to back it up…somehow. It took me a month before I set foot back in the box…but during that month I became an RFM blog stalker…it kept me motivated, excited and eager to get back to the box.
Once back at RFM, everyone has been great about helping me modify workouts for one arm and keeping me motivated...so thanks! After 7 months…I finally feel like I am back to 100%!
Just so everyone knows…I did not misrepresent below is the FB post…there is no ‘push-up’ after that handstand…but Rod you have me motivated!
"Great night at RFM - new PR on back squat, first handstand since my broken collarbone (thanks Ikaika Kaia and Bertram Kats Kikuchi for the help!) and a solid performance on the WOD! :-)"
You are correct! It was not a handstand push up but a handstand, which is still a big accomplishment after a collarbone break. My apologies but I was excited to write about this because this was the first legit blog post that I've written in a while with some real substance to it. Fear in the gym is real and I haven't had a chance to talk about it until now, so thanks for the excuse! Good job again Erin!
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