Swallowing My Pride and Taking a Step Back 💪
In April of this year, I joined The Pump a fitness app co-created by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Adam Bornstein. I was inspired after reading Arnold's The Pump daily newsletter, which approached fitness and health from a positive and scientific perspective. In a world full of fad diets, supplements, and misinformation, it was nice to find someone using common sense and evidence-based research to have an honest conversation on how to live your healthiest life.
When Arnold and Adam announced they were starting an app, I was intrigued. I had recently begun a basic bodyweight workout by Nick and my health had been on mind after recently being diagnoses with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. When the app launched, I was able to get an invite and after a short discussion with my wife, I made a $250 commitment and purchased a lifetime membership. The idea of a positive community with a wide selection of workouts led by Arnold Schwarzenegger sounded right up my alley.
I began the Bodyweight Foundation workout that consisted of basic bodyweight exercises such as squats, planks, pushups, etc. It was difficult for me, coming from leading an almost sedentary adult life to working out three to four times a week, but I grew stronger and as the reps and sets increased, I handled them well.
I felt bigger, stronger, and arguably the most in shape that I've felt since I was twenty years old. Things got even better when my friend Michael joined The Pump and began working following the same workout, just a few weeks behind me.
Then the big day came, August 16th, I finished up The Foundation: Starting from Scratch phase and in my haste, I selected the Next Level Bodyweight Workout to begin next. For some folks, it was probably a natural progression, but for me, I wasn't quite ready for it.
The increase in reps, sets, and exercises became a struggle for me. Getting in my workouts every other day became both a chore and something I grew to dread. I began missing a day or two, then I got sick, and well... in a little over five weeks, I've completed just six workouts.
That's not to say I wasn't in the gym. I was still working out, doing my own things, throwing the kettlebells around, and doing some of the stuff I learned in The Pump, but it wasn't the same. I'd lost my dedication and my faith in the app because I was a little out of my league.
Tuesday, I got my workout in, and I felt good about completing it, but I hurt. It was too much. My foundation is not strong enough for that level of intensity, and so, I decided to swallow my pride, and take a step back. I reached out to customer service about resetting my workout. I wanted to go back to the Foundation. I wanted to do it all over again, this time better with better form and more intensity. I wanted to master that so that I had the muscle and the stamina to truly do the Next Level without having to break it into two parts or skipping a set or two.
The Pump App is still in its infancy, so it took a few emails, but my account is being reset. For a moment or two, I felt embarrassed and even like a failure, but then I realized I'd feel worse if I spent $250 on something to use it for five months and then quit because it got too hard. While reading over some of the articles posted in the app, Arnold and Adam even mentioned how they recommended repeating the Foundation for a lot of folks, and that made me feel so much better. I had just gotten a little too excited and had maybe a bit too much passion for progress instead of meeting myself where I was, instead of where I wanted to be.
I feel good about my decision, and I can't wait to recommit myself to The Pump and continue my path to being healthier.