What Doesn't Kill You...

Today Marcelo (a trainer at my gym) took me aside and told me how much he enjoyed training me. I don’t do private sessions with him. I just take his classes (he’s the one who introduced me to both boxing and capoeira). But it’s rare that there are more than 3 people in his class on any given day because the truth is that most people are afraid of him. They have their reasons. Marcelo is tough and he will kick your ass. The plus side of that is that after getting your ass kicked a few times it will tone up and start looking a lot better in your jeans. But the reason why Marcelo and all the instructors who I train with enjoy working with me is because I never ask for breaks. I will rise to whatever physical challenge they put before me and I will not complain…much.

I’d love to tell you that I am able to do this because I’m youthful, buffed and in amazing shape but that’s not really true. Most of the people in my classes are in their 20s and I’m…not. Some of the people in my classes are much stronger. Some even do triathlons and all sorts of other things that I couldn’t imagine doing in a million years. Seriously, if I did a triathlon I would drown or in a moment of delirious exhaustion drive my bicycle into a wall. It would be like attempting suicide in public.

But I can survive a 1-2 hour workout. And if I seem to be better at it than some of my classmates I know it’s simply because I’m more determined. For one thing I absolutely refuse to allow anyone to break me. It’s my way of proving to myself that I’m tough because lets face it, it’s a lot easier to be physically tough than emotionally tough (I’m still working on the latter). There are so many aspects of my life that are totally out of my control, but my body? That I can do something about. I can make it look the way I want it to look and I can make it strong by just lifting a few weights (over and over and over again). Emotional strength takes years to build up, sometimes a lifetime but I can build up my muscles in a matter of weeks. It’s instant pay off. Keep in mind that I’m not talking about weight here, I’m talking about strength. Obviously there’s not much I can do to defend myself against a gun but I like knowing that if someone tried to punch me then maybe, just maybe I could take him out. And when I get through a tough training session, when I look in the mirror and I can see the definition of the my triceps some of that physical strength slips inside my soul and makes me stand just a little bit taller. I can’t make my ex-husband be a better dad to our kid or help me out in anyway. I can’t change the economy or make the New York Times review my books. I can’t even get rid of my allergies but I can make my body stronger and that feels good.

And ya know, if you can feel good about yourself the disdain of the New York Times isn’t such a big deal.

Special Note: I will be speaking at the Glendale Barnes & Noble at the Americana Thursday night (tomorrow) at 7:00. Please stop by and tell me what little things you do to make you feel good about yourself. We can make it a book signing/self-help meeting if you like…totally up to you.


Kyra Davis
Bestselling Author of:
The Sophie Katz Murder Mystery Series,
and
SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING
Order LUST, LOATHING AND A LITTLE LIP GLOSS on Amazon or Barnesandnoble.com today!