This past weekend I had a very moving conversations. I received a phone call from a former client, that had recently gone through a serious rough patch in her own life. She had told me she had recently filed for divorce after watching her own husband fall prey to alcoholism. Despite the severity of her circumstance, this woman had thanked me for posting a few blogs up about my own struggles over the past few years, and for writing about how to strength train after rising above my own odds.
“Watching you continue to train is inspiring, and the message behind this all is so important” said my former client.
Sunday morning, I wake up to the epiphany that my main message and writing theme has shifted to that of strength training and recovery. I had mentioned that in my first post this year, after having nearly taken an entire year off writing. What I am astounded by is how other people, especially now other women, I have personally met or worked with in the past are now coming to share the same kinds of stories, much attune to my own struggles from before.
We have a saying in our kettlebell community, and that saying is “Strength has a greater purpose.” Truly, I believe that the greater purpose strength has is to not just rise above our own personal obstacles, but to share those experiences with others to do the same for themselves.
I’ve seen a lot of incredible feats of personal strength over the past two years. I have seen people hit rock bottom and turn their lives around to the tune of starting up their businesses again, going back to school, or even establishing their own families through their own recovery journey. I have also seen a lot of tragic downfalls as well, some of which ended in the death of people I knew through treatment or living in 3/4 houses. Addiction is truly a frightening disease, but as we learn to pull ourselves up through the madness one day at a time, we can inspire other people to do the same. It is a level of strength training of sorts, and though it may not be easy, though there may be days where we simply don’t want to get up and work out, staying committed, dedicated and persistent is what will ultimately lead us to a life of safety, happiness and health.
On that note, I could think of no better lift to focus on from the ground up than the pull-up itself, and this week, I will be launching a beginner friendly pull-up program to master the art of pulling power to enhance your own personal level of strength, both on the outside and from within.
My name is Janelle Pica.
I am an athlete in recovery.
Today, I am reminding you to stay committed to living the life you deserve
to live, to continue to pull yourself up, and to share your story.
Let nothing stand in your way.
Press on!
