Post Push-up Challenge Blues and a New Plan
I haven’t posted for a while for two reasons. First, my work-related responsibilities have increased substantially since September. Secondly, I have to admit to a post-push-up challenge letdown. It’s time for a new plan.
I had worked so hard at this particular challenge, and I was absolutely psyched to reach my goal of 60 push-ups by my 60th birthday. While I fell short, I met my personal best (57). What I did not anticipate was the emotional letdown after the challenge passed.
From my perspective, a life without goals or purpose isn’t worth much. Without goals, life feels aimless. You just float aimlessly during the day until you go to bed. Rinse and repeat. It feels unfulfilling. I fucking can’t stand that feeling. I believe that all of us were put on Earth to achieve something. Eating a Big Mac, french fries and a soft drink while watching TV isn’t why we are on this Earth.
It took me a while to figure out my next goal. I started training in Modern Arnis in February 1998. This means that my 30th anniversary is February 1, 2028. Now, I’m getting somewhere!
First, I had to devise a vision for my three-year goal. Simply put, it’s to elevate my Modern Arnis skill to a much higher level than where I’m currently. My skill level has come a long way since I started teaching in Canada in 2008. That said, I feel that my skill level can go higher. What better player to emulate than Professors Chuck Gauss and Ken Smith? All right, I have a vision in my mind.
Check out the video from 2010, where Professor Chuck beat me up!
If you’re not able to view the video, go here.
As of now, I’ve divided the three-year goal into one-year segments, which have been divided into four 90-day milestones.
In list form, it looks like this:
- Three years.
- 1st year divided into four 90 day milestones.
The three-year plan will commence on February 1, 2025. I have a 90-day experimental phase that commenced on November 1st and will conclude on January 31st. I have set workout and private lesson goals for each 90-day segment. All that said, the experimental phase will give me a chance to fine-tune my three-year plan.
One Potential Complication
The potential complication is my right shoulder. I had a shoulder separation in the spring of 1986. I recovered from it nicely. Then, I suffered a dislocation a year later while doing a dive roll. I got snagged on the belt while diving over it and landed awkwardly on my shoulder.
My martial arts buddies looked at me in horror. I immediately went to the restroom and saw myself in the mirror. The shoulder was out of place. I popped the fucker back into place like Mel Gibson in “Lethal Weapon” and immediately went to the ER. I had one follow-up appointment with an orthopedic doctor who said that I was fine, and I have not seen an orthopedic or shoulder doctor since then.
37 years later, it’s catching up to me. Nowadays, I experience considerable pain in my right shoulder at the end of the day, especially if I have taught multiple private lessons or worked out at the gym. Most nights, I take Voltaren to relieve the pain.
During my yearly checkup, I asked my doctor to refer me for an right shoulder X-ray. As soon as I get the results, I will request a referral to an orthopedic or shoulder doctor and proceed from there.
As many of you know, my right hip was replaced in January 2023. In hindsight, I waited too long to have my hip replaced. This time, I am going to be more aggressive in addressing my right shoulder pain.
Back to My Three-Year Plan
All that is to say, the right shoulder may throw a monkey wrench into my three-year plan. At this point, I have not built a contingency plan if….gulp….I need surgery on the shoulder. I hope the shoulder doctor prescribes physiotherapy for my shoulder and go from there. Stay tuned!
By the way, after my push-up challenge on my 60th birthday, I announced that I would still push for 60 push-ups and 10 pull-ups before the end of the year. I’m going to be realistic here. Due to the increasing pain in the shoulder, that is not doable. That really sucks.
No worries! I’m still working out but I gotta be honest. Most days end with shoulder pain.
One Last Thing
Yes, that’s the number one question in my mind. Is this fight pre-scripted? I sure hope not.
Other Stuff I wrote
In axe throwing, you get the most points for hitting the bull’s eye (duh). But you still get points if you come close. And 57 push-ups is pretty damned close! I’m not a “goal” person myself. I’m more of a “continuous improvement” type. When I started axe-throwing 3 months ago, most of my axes ended up on the floor. Now, most of my axes stick AND I’m hitting that bull’s eye or next to it a lot of the time. Setting hard (as in both challenging and strict) goals works for some, but it’s not the only road.
Hi RoseAnne,
Thanks for reading and commenting. I strive for a balance between hard goals and continuous improvement. I think both CAN be done. I’m not sure that I can go only for hard goals only or focusing solely on continuous improvement. I need both! 🙂
Inspirational Master Brian,
You only missed on the 60 push up challenge because you set the exact goal I think if you went for 100 you would based on your performance hit 97 exceeding your actual goal !
Good luck with the shoulder it is just another challenge of the mind.
Continuous improvement is the key although it can be incremental at times.
Sensei Charles, thanks for reading and commenting. The shoulder issue has flared up in the past couple of months and I’m scheduled for an x-ray next Tuesday. I’ll keep the blog fans like you updated!