9 weeks of Insanity were truly 9 weeks of torture for me. Undertaking such a workout routine while dealing with chronic pain isn't easy and on top of that I managed to twist my ankle middle of the program. Plus a 5 day vacation planned months in advance also happened to coincide with week 7. In summary, I had enough reasons to take a break from the program - usual fibromyalgia pain that had flared up due to this tough routine, twisted ankle and the first vacation of the year that I was so looking forward to. But I did not take a break - not one day - I even worked out (ran or swam) on the rest days prescribed by the calendar.
One can call is sheer stupidity or one can call it sheer will power - I will simply call it discipline. I had signed up for the program knowing that it might aggravate my pain, knowing that it will clash with my vacation and twisted ankle was manageable with kinesiology tape. There was no true hurdle standing in my way of completing it. So I stayed at it and finished it in time. What this program taught me was two things:
One...things will go wrong (not always but mostly) and what defines us is how we choose to deal with those hurdles. If you give up once, you will give up even more easily the next time. So giving up is not an option...you stay at it...may be not with same intensity...may be not with all your energy...but you don't give up
Two...the key to building physical endurance is mental endurance. One cannot build the former without the latter. When I gave up in the middle of Fit Test that I undertook in 2012 wasn't just because I was physically weak. I was weak mentally as well. Half way through the test, I told myself - this is too tough for me, I am not ready for it, it will increase my pain and that is why gave up.
When I took the same test in 2013, I didn't think about completing it, I didn't think whether I would be able to do it or not - I basically didn't think about the goal or the end. I just decided to take the test and see how it goes and lo & behold I performed as good or better than the two participants on video. Even when I decided to do the entire program, I just took it one day at a time. I never made my self sick thinking about 9 long weeks - the next day of workout was scary enough for me. I would go to bed every night a bit scared of how will my pain ridden body manage another intense workout next day. But come next day, I would tell myself - lets start, lets do the warm up at least, lets do one set, lets do second set and so on...I once told someone that while doing the workout, I would think only of the 30 second breaks.
I hated yet enjoyed every moment of this crazy, insane workout. I reveled in the physical pain brought on by it because that told me how much tougher I was getting mentally. Completing this workout was symbolic of me conquering fibromyalgia and helped me remove mental blocks that I had created ever since I was diagnosed with it. This program also made me physically & mentally ready for the hike to Everest Base Camp that I undertook a year later!
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