I'm Starting to Rethink That "Bring it on" Thing

So, I feel it’s time for a formal update on my last post. Good news, I have found the perfect program that will push me and build endurance. It is also free! Can you beat that? I think not. however, it is the Marines and it hurts like nothing else!

How did I get the wonderful opportunity to go to a Marine training workout 3 times a week you ask? Well a month ago I was seriously researching the Marines but I decided to wait out on that commitment till after my mission. Then, 2 days before state swim got over, my Marine recruiter sent me a text asking if I wanted to start their PT training with them 3 times a week. What perfect timing! I told him I would start that next week. It sounded great! Jogs with a drill instructor shouting out, “left! Right! Left! Right!”, supervision of weight lifting to insure I was trying my hardest or a punishment would follow. It sounded just like a movie, where I could enter an average scruffy Joe, and leave confident, poised, and ready for the world.

Well, that whole discipline thing looks real clean, sharp, and structured on TV. But when you’re living it, it is not nearly as romantic. We did the entire workout in a deserted Albertsons parking lot. We started out by sprinting a set of ladders with an entire column of parking stalls (gradually sprinting the entire parking lot back and forth about 30 times). And I felt like a real hot shot, just cooking along, but after one time of that I wanted to die. And sure enough, there was the drill instructor telling me, “Hurry up, too slow, all the way to the line” etc. Our breaks consisted of 2 minutes of either max out push-ups, crunchers, or mountain climbers. After 4 cycles of that (and several people puking and me just about passing out), we were done.

Boy, am I excited. I get to do this 3 times a week! I guess it’s easy to say “Bring it on” when you really have no idea what “it” is. Wish me luck, I am going to do this.