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During this time the emotions of anxiety, fear and a lot of anger come up. I start thinking about things that I do my best to suppress throughout the rest of the day.
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I am in a world where emotions and thoughts start flowing. While this all may seem familiar to anyone who lifts, what is probably not familiar is what is going on inside my head. This zone creates the red face, shaking tired legs, the raw calluses, and, on good days, a new personal record. The first pull is always the hardest, but once I gain momentum I am in the zone. Once it is time to pull heavy I put on more chalk, tighten my belt around my stomach, position my legs, look myself in the mirror and then pull. After chalking my hands, I do my three warm-up sets to get ready for my heavy sets. That could involve putting knee sleeves on for squat, chalking my hands for deadlift or tightening wrist wraps for bench. Depending on the day of the week, I get ready for my main movements.
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I put my headphones in and listen to music, a podcast, or motivational videos from YouTube. The growth that lifting has provided me has been instrumental to helping keep me alive. Lifting has been my escape, where I grow not only my muscles, but myself as a person. We have all heard that exercise is good for the body, but for me weightlifting and powerlifting have been more than just about lifting heavy and creating a better physique.