A quote from MMM.
The acronym stands for Mick the muscle man (otherwise known as my personal trainer). From the perspective of distance (i.e. the other side of the world) I am adding a 4th M - for motivation.
Just to put this into perspective generally: Mick came into my life (courtesy of Nat) at a time when I was completely burned out and blah. I was an increasingly solid couch potato and everything I did (which wasn't much) caused extreme fatigue. I was spending a lot of time and money at the doctors having increasingly obscure tests to try to find the cause of my fatigue.
Along comes Mick ... in six months he has changed an old lady into somebody who well .. can lift her own suitcase in and out of a car (with ease), climb several flights of stairs (with relative ease) and chuck around an 8kg kettle bell (a birthday gift from MMM ... gotta love it) and pretend I am some sort of weightlifter (that is I have the form but I can only lift about 30/40 kgs - on a good day and not often). Most amazing of all; in all the time I have been training with MMM I have never had an injury - which is saying something considering the state I was in. To me this is one of the real skills of being a trainer - to pace the work so that it is pushing the envelope every time but to ensure that there is good enough form so that there is no injury. If I wore a hat ... it would be hats off to you Mick!!
Now for the 4th M. When I work out with MMM I work really, REALLY hard but I don't generally push myself; MMM does that for me (a combination of sayings like the one above and telling me how many seconds I have left for a round, plus of course a bland disregard for anything that sounds even vaguely like an excuse). The real motivational qualities are seen only now: when he is not around.
I am determined to return home without having lost too much condition so that MMMM will not be disgusted with me and to that end have been working out 5 times a week. Not only that but I am zone eating as much as is possible in a country that has some fairly restricted choices. Pretty good - to be able to motivate from so far away!!
The funniest part is that guys at the gym (instructors) ... and you need to remember that this is a hotel gym so people sort of "play" at fitness ... anyway the instructors now stand around and watch the workouts and compliment me on how strong and fit I am!!! They cannot believe that an old lady like me can possibly do that sort of workout. MMM of course would laugh at the workout but at least I am keeping potato-ness at bay!!
Thanks Mick!! Without being too coy or twee ... you are a genuine inspiration and I am grateful to you.
Comments