Today is Day 37!
I'll need to give a little more background, I suppose, in order for you to know what it is I am talking about.
37 days ago, I started a workout...experiment. I was going to say regimen, but that isn't accurate. Experiment is much more apropos. Here's the summary: on Day 1, I did 1 pushup, and 1 situp.
Day 2 - I did 2 push-ups, and 2 sit-ups.
Day 3 - I did 3 push-ups, and 3 sit-ups.
You see the pattern emerging here, I hope!
So, today is Day 37! I've managed to keep it going, every day, for 36 days. Today, on Day 37, I will do 37 push-ups and 37 sit-ups. All but one of those days I was able to do all of them in a row, too, no breaks. Day 35 was a particularly draining day, and I am not sure why but I could only make it to 26 before my arms stopped responding to my order to push up. I had to take a 15 second break, and then finish the last up.
Last night, 36 in a row, both exercises!
I have discovered a few things along the way.
First, I am stronger physically than I was on day 1. Yeah, no duh. That should be obvious to even the least athletically inclined person out there.
Second, it is habit forming - it's becoming addictive! It took a couple weeks, and then it happened: I have started looking forward to the challenge every day. Not just the physical part - the mental challenge of "I can do this!". I don't want to miss a day. It would be like cheating on a test. And I am trying to do it all out, all in a row, every time. I have started to ignore the physical part, because the mental game is much more difficult, more demanding, and I think in the end will be more rewarding.
Here is what I mean - getting to 35 push-ups in a row was hard, and I failed at it. I still completed all 35, but that break in between was a little demoralizing. The next day I analysed myself and was thinking "What did I do wrong last night? I did 34 in a row...why was 35 so hard? If I couldn't do 35 in a row, what am I going to do for 36 today? Split it in half and take a break in between?"
I had thoughts like this all day. When I finally set about to do 36 push-ups, I did this instead - I counted to 12 three times. Amazing, I didn't feel fatigue hit me until I counted 8 on the third set. Why was that small, seemingly insignificant change so monumental? The reason: my brain told itself: "I can do 12 push-ups. 12 is easy! I've done 12 push-ups many, many times before. So there is no problem with that, right? Another set of 12 - sure! I can do 12! A third set of 12? Absolutely. I can do 12, we've already discussed this."
Remember this: your subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between fact and fantasy. It just believes the information it is given. Yes, you can 'trick' yourself into doing more, simply by reminding yourself that you've already done it before, or by changing the rules of the game in your own favour.
How far can I get on this 100 Day Challenge? I don't know! But it is a learning experience that I am looking forward to, every day.
