Perspective in Growth

Yesterday afternoon I was emailed one of the most encouraging videos of my brother I have ever received.  He started Crossfit this past week.  The video is of him performing his first couple snatches.  Growing up, he was less interested in the weight room (understatement) and would likely admit that he saw my workout routines as lunacy.  He is a nuclear engineer in the Navy now and it seems his passions have served him well.  However, the weight room and him have not always (never) been best friends.
My brother is 6’0″ and weighs 135lbs.  When I got this video of him snatching I couldn’t help but think he looked like a newborn horse trying to stand up.  Obviously his technique leaves something to be desired but this video of him was a good reminder to me on perspective.
The first time I tried to snatch I dropped the bar on my head.  There was 65lbs on the bar.  My first weightlifting competition was a bench, squat, clean competition and I cleaned 155lbs (see picture above) and it was a HUGE PR.  My first USAW meet I TOTALED 152.5 kg.  My brother’s video was a good reminder to me that we all start somewhere and that sometimes, when training is hard, it’s wise to look back at where we were last year or 10 years ago.  It’s hard to see your own growth if you don’t widen your perspective every once in a while.
I have faith that Winston will look back on his early days in the gym and laugh a little bit.  (Probably not as much as I am laughing now)  It helps me to look back on video and meet records as a reminder of growth.  Training can become monotonous and PRs less frequent.  That’s the nature of the sport.  I have always been able to maintain proper perspective and be encouraged by looking back.  Give it a shot.  Look back at your first days in the gym or your first days at your job or your first days as a husband and look how far you’ve come.  If you just started take a look at how much room you have to grow and be encouraged.  Tomorrow starts a new training week that will likely be hard, potentially discouraging, and monotonous.  Take a look back before you start and press forward knowing that growth has always happened.  It’s not going to stop tomorrow.
You really want to be encouraged… this is the first recording I have of a lifting meet.  I look like a 5 yr old.