Setting the bar higher
Hurrah! Just did my first lift: 60 kg power clean (65 kg bodyweight). Finally, after 45 days, received my (barbell) bar, and the delivery saga is over. I’m somewhat afraid of piling on the weight right at the start before I put in the time on technique work, but I’m somewhat pleased that right off the bat I could post some lifts that feel comfortable, and deadlift everything I bought. It’ll be a while before I can pile it on, but I’m looking forward to getting fitter with my new toy.
At some point though, I would quite like to take up actual sport. I plan to spend a few months concentrating on just fitness first, and then have a go at something new. You see, there’s a long list of things I want to learn to do sometime in my life, but before I go off and join a club, I feel I’d better put in some work gaining some of the prerequisites for each sport before turning up as a gormless time-waster. Can you imagine me arriving now for some gymnastics? “Well, we can’t exactly put you doing handstands with the little kiddies. Why don’t you show us where you’re at with a few somersaults and a vault or two? Oh, you can’t flip, jump, vault, muscle-up or even do any handstand skills? Remind me why you’re here. Go home and gain some basic fitness and kinaesthetic awareness to show you have at least some interest in training here.” In short, I’m too embarrassed to start something without giving it a go on my own first, to find whether I like it and make sure I have some of the preliminary physical requirements dialed in.
On the list of things to choose from, in rough order of priority, to be well-rounded I reckon I need at some point to tackle these: weightlifting (olympic of course, zero interest in powerlifting); hurdling, the jumps, and the sprints; the throws; gymnastics; rowing; swimming; cycling; tennis; fencing; rugby. At some point this year I’d like to pick one and give it a decent bash.