Before I left, I had someone tell me I do not try hard enough. Well this is one of the things I do, for me. Four months after surgery I needed to get back up. Everything I do in life involves my whole heart. My family, my work, and if you watched my squat and deadlifts, you can tell I pour it into my lifting.

Training away from home and stepping outside of my box two weeks away from Nationals is always a pleasure and a key component for me. Having people get in my space and changing what I see in my peripheral helps so much. I am so used to my own space and having my useable sight clear. Having the blurs of faces or arms etc. as well as multiple voices and different acoustics helps with my mental training and my physical training.

As I head down the road to nationals, I have to get up and utilize my support system. It does not make me stronger to go without. I'm talking about the support system outside of my family, the people that keep me moving. I have the amazing advice of my coach who can tweak and adjust things as I need, but also the different therapists and professionals that keep me moving.

Personal training may or may not be for you but it comes down to what you really want. Is the investment worth it? Of course, an all-inclusive trip for two to Mexico sounds like pure bliss when you compare it to the blood, sweat, tears, swearing, aches and pains that are going to come from my next seven months of training but the choice is yours. Make an investment in your health. I am, and it's been one of the best decisions of my life so far.

Ever since I started working at Flaman, I've always wanted to give the famous Bowflex Treadclimber a try. I've seen the infomercials that are so convincing and I, even though I work in marketing and know all the tricks of the trade, have been compelled to buy one. So, I figured that if I am going to buy one, I should obviously try it first.

My absolute favorite lift had fear wrapped around it, the fear of pain and fear of failure. I had to identify this and work on conquering it before I could even pick up that bar. I had to find where the fear was and use some tools to work with it.