Confidence
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A recent study by Dr. Boris Finkski of the University of Bragmore indicates that the L-Pyruvate beta molecule crystallizes when isolated in temperatures below 0 degrees C. Furthermore, refracturing of the invert molecule at room temperature produces a protein substrate that mimics HGH in laboratory owls. Assuming this study prevails, why can’t I get huge arms? I’ve been lifting weights all summer. Bummed.
One more thing. My accromius sub-scrapula is recruited involuntarily by an impinged neuron folliculae fiber at the base of my brain stem. Does this mean I’ll always be shaped like a pear?
Eventually, the essential questions are answered and all that remains is the training. Not that we’ll ever know all there is to know, but there comes a time when we know enough to put aside doubt, guesswork and controversy—a time to quiet our minds, collect our energies and work out.
Here’s a statement worth memorizing: Training with confidence is the only way to train. Enthusiasm and determination will follow like boxcars on a freighter. Confidence, the absence of doubt, is a distillation of hope and faith and knowing. Confidence is the pause between heartbeats.
Confidence by its nature is smart and hardworking. It shovels fuel into the furnace. It is not cocky, conceited or arrogant. It’s not stubborn or filled with boast. These are characteristics of something quite the opposite. Confidence is secure.
Doubt, by contrast, is a stop sign in the middle of a flowing river. It’s the brakes to the floor before the car gets moving. The only thing to follow doubt is hesitation and apathy —12-inch arms and a spare tire.
Confidence is a friendly and contagious spirit that enjoys the company of wonder. Unlike “question,” which proposes doubt, wonder is something to be graciously fulfilled. Continued active, thoughtful training—concentrated and undistracted—satisfies the wonder.
You may never know a thing, but you begin to understand.
Six weeks or eight weeks of training are miserably lost if you vacillate, wonderfully invested if you trust. Whether your techniques are worthy or not, you are. Trust your efforts and you’ll grow. Your footsteps will not be wasted. Persist, practice form and focus, observe and note for future reference and examination. The process is called molding.
You who are disappointed in your progress, I’d be glib to say, “Don’t be” or “Join the club.” I only recommend that you accept disappointment until you’re able, by dauntless training, to replace it with the joy of another workout completed, another purchase of understanding, another grateful step forward.
dd
Originally published 1999
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