Archives for September 2010

Ralph Waldo Emerson gave us both of the following quotes:

“We acquire the strength we have overcome.”

“We gain the strength of the temptation we resist.”

Both are brilliant, and touch on the dedication and effort it takes to achieve strength- physical or mental- and also the restraint it takes to keep on a path that will support that strength.
One without the other will only hold water for so long…

Let’s examine something quickly:

tired – Definition [tīrd]
(adj.) Exhausted of strength or energy; fatigued.

lazy – Definition [lā́zē]
(adj.) Resistant to work or exertion; disposed to idleness.
(adj.) Slow-moving; sluggish: a lazy river.

We know tired. Those of us that have been training for a while have even made friends with it.
Lazy, however, is no one’s friend, especially in the environment we play in.

Tired can be dealt with and managed through mental focus as it occurs, and the results of doing so can often be very rewarding.
Lazy needs to be dealt with prior to ever entering the training room, and once it is addressed within yourself, the results of doing so can often be very rewarding.

Be as tired as you want; make yourself as tired as you want.
Maintain form, use the fatigue as fuel for progress, and see it through.

Do not be lazy.

It is unsafe, sets a poor example for the people training with and around you, and is an unsightly and gross distraction in any environment that values and thrives on effort, focus, and composure.