Stacking 5 more pounds on the barbell always feels good, but what happened yesterday blew my mind.
It was back day. Last week I got 5 sets of 10, so it was time to increase the weight and drop my reps back to 8.
So I warmed up, stuck in the pin at 145 lbs on the seated row, and grabbed the close-grip.
Last week I struggled to get 5 sets of 10 at 140, so I was surprised how light 145 felt this week.
1…2…3…4…5…6…7…8…the stack slams down with a clang…
45-second rest and 1…2…3…4…5…6…7…8…clang…
45-second rest and 1…2…3…wait, what the?!?!
Mid-rep I looked up at the stack and realized I stuck the pin on the wrong plate.
I wasn’t lifting 145… I was lifting 165!!!
I accidentally added one more plate without realizing it and I was lifting 20 more pounds than I thought I could.
(In fact on the seated row, I’ve NEVER lifted 165 in my life!)
The lesson was as clear as day:
We are capable of SOOO much more than we think we are.
When we remove our self-imposed mental barriers and stop retelling ourselves the story of what we can and can’t do, we uncage our inner superhero.
