Greatest Physical Success

Carneyje3

What is the physical achievement you are most proud of? It could have been from before your fitness journey that now acts as a goal, it could be a modest step you are most proud of.

Mine would be any number of moments on my cycling trip. I spent two months cycling from Vancouver to San Diego about three years back. I trained leading up to the trip, but I'd never done a fully packed ride and never gone further than 35 miles. At the beginning of the trip I was weighing 210lb (not far from my current weight) and truthfully after a week I was worried if I was even capable of the trip. Fast forward to a month or so later, down to 190 lb, biking 60-70 mile days with 100lb of gear. The feeling of hitting the top of a 5 mile hill, conquering Big Sur, or hitting a new mile record keeps me motivated now! I know that I've been at a high level of fitness, I just need to put in the work now.

quiksylver296

Holding the state deadlift record for my age/weight.

MikePTY

I had a small one yesterday. I train at a pretty hardcore Krav Maga gym, and we train in one group of all levels, so I'm frequently one of the least, if not the least, in shape person in the classes. But I've been slowly making progress. As part of our normal 1st 30 minutes, which is all cardio and core work, we usually do a bunch of these double jumping jacks that can be killer. Basically ever 2 normal jumping jacks counts as 1. So when we do a set of 50, it's really 100. Normally during it, I'll have to take at least a few of them off to rest. But yesterday, I did both the first set of 50, and the later set of 40 (which I led the count for), and didn't have to take any of them off. I had some other gains yesterday, but that was the one that really stood out to me.

kgb6days

I ran a marathon - my first - at age 60.

mulecanter

The hardest thing I've done is a marathon, the training prior is probably my biggest achievement going from a max distance of 6 to 19 in a few months. That was at age 38. I'm now 59 and the fact that I still snow ski makes me feel good although I was on a lift last year with a guy who was 82 so I was humbled. Free skiing is my new goal (free lift tickets after age 70).

solieco1

My 1st Half Ironman was a big confidence builder. It's always the first of something for me that's most memorable. 1st century ride, 1st 5k swim. Proof that it's a mental game for me. Now, as I ramp back up after a year of much less due to an injury, they still motivate me because I know I can.

daveredvette

in September I completed a Ironman triathlon at 53 yrs old, 16 hr 22 min. trained for 9 months and learned how to eat properly.

RandyInOklahaoma

I was able to squat 500 pounds 10 times, bench 225- 45 times and 400 12 times, clean and jerk 440, snatch 293 at a body weight of around 227. Wish I could just get back to 227 pounds

neugebauer52

Wearing a pair of pants which have been hanging in my cupboard since last century.

fishgutzy

Pool swim 17.6km. Took 6 hours and 25 minutes.
Too much degenerative osteoarthritis to complete. No triathlon ever in my future.
Was never a swimmer in school. Didn't start trying to swim for fitness until around 2001.
This China trip I want to extend that distance to 20km. I figure about 7.4 hours four this one.

kdbulger

Running 10 kilometers (having already run 5k the night before, so 15km within 14 hours).
Running was always considered torture in my mind. Even as a child I dreaded having to run.
Now it's something I look forward to every day.

Carneyje3

I'm loving all these responses! We've got a bunch of impressive stuff here.

AnnPT77

A few years back, medaled (third, but still ) in the first annual World Indoor Rowing Sprints, a virtual rowing machine race sponsored by World Rowing and Concept 2, right after losing 50+ pounds, in my (then) new age & weight class, age 60-69 lightweight.

I was a beneficiary of it being the first year, so fewer high-level indoor rowing athletes participated, and of the lightweight weight class at my age being less speedy than my former heavyweight grouping (where all the tall and super-strong women are ). Still, I was just thrilled.

solieco1

@daveredvette Congratulations! Chattanooga?

cwolfman13

Probably high school...was ranked 3rd in the state in the 100 meters briefly. I didn't hold it very long, but I still finished the season with a top 15 time in the state.

jo_nz

Wow, you guys are awesome!

I'm more on the "modest step" side of things - right now I am proud and excited that I can run...at all! I had an injury a few years ago and thought I'd never run again, but another surgery this year, as well as sorting out some health dramas that popped up along the way, and I can finally do a lot more. I've started a new fitness program and am able to keep up and also doing small bits of running while walking the dog (which she absolutely loves - it's quite motivating to see her so excited).

funjen1972

I'm working on a 5 minute continuous forearm plank. I hit 4:05 a few days ago and was simply in awe of myself. Seriously...I just did that!?!?! I'm looking forward to accomplishing the 5 minute hold, hopefully by Thanksgiving.

rainbow198

For me it was my first hike up, around and down Mt. Royal in Montreal. It was near my first year of maintenance anniversary a few years ago.

It was a dream for me not just to be able to do that and enjoy it, but to do it without training, without getting tired and without getting sore the next day. We put in a ton of miles too.

After experiencing that, the sky was the limit for me and I still continue to try new activities and keep pushing myself physically.

klovesd84

My absolute two greatest physical achievements we’re giving birth twice with zero pain medication. My brain went absolutely bananas from the hormonal explosion meeting my beautiful boys. It was like a brain orgasm. If I could relive any day, it would be my youngest’s birth. I can’t imagine anything feeling better than that after the marathon of child birth. I feel good just thinking about it.

daveredvette

solieco1 wrote: »

My 1st Half Ironman was a big confidence builder. It's always the first of something for me that's most memorable. 1st century ride, 1st 5k swim. Proof that it's a mental game for me. Now, as I ramp back up after a year of much less due to an injury, they still motivate me because I know I can.

Mental game for all of us. the mind is a powerful thing. Our body will physically adjust to what we are trying to accomplish.