Conquer Your Fears

A 2K row. Being inverted. Maximum deadlifts. This is a post about our natural tendency to avoid those physical activities that we fear. We all have them. The biggest, baddest, strongest athlete in this gym is no different than the brand new-comer. Our fears may come from simple lack of experience, or relative levels of physical discomfort induced by some activities. Pay attention to those. They are generally signs for the things you need the most. Every fear that you conquer brings you one step closer to the goal of authentic fitness, and every fear that you don't conquer keeps you limited in both breadth and depth of fitness.

Here's the best strategy for conquering any fear: don't keep it a secret. Tell someone - or many someones - that you are afraid of something. You'll find people in this gym will typically become your champion in overcoming it; encouraging you and holding you accountable for the necessary steps in conquering it.

By the way, conquering your fear doesn't require that you develop a desire for the activity, it only means that you will forever more include it in your regular work.

In case you missed the Twitter post, if you're still providing safe harbor for grains in your house and think that you are somehow immune to its effects, this article from the Wall Street Journal ought to change you mind.