Pick Heavy

Pick Heavy. When given the choice. Always. Pick. Heavy.

One week ago, I had my last weight training session before I travel to Las Vegas on Thursday to compete in the Worlds Weight Lifting  competition. At the end of it, my trainer handed me this piece of paper with all of my suggested lifts listed (in pounds) along with those two simple words written at the bottom, ‘pick heavy‘.

I didn’t think much of it at first; they’re just two rather unimportant words. Until later that week when I wrote this post about progress and why it is so personal to me. In this post I wrote, “This little white piece of paper – it is progression. It is a symbol. One that I use to quiet the voices that tell me I’m not worthy, capable or strong.”

That little tiny piece of paper, with numbers on it, represents progression. And the words ‘pick heavy’…they represent my ability to do hard things in this life of mine. They represent trying what might have once seemed impossible. They represent strength, grit, fortitude. They represent passion, courage and bravery. They represent facing fear and failure, hardship and overcoming.

Individually, these two words have fairly simplified and unemotional meanings:

     Pick = to choose, seek or attempt

     Heavy = of great weight, hard to carry, of great force or intensity

But when you put them together, you have something much more profound. Something that makes me pause.

Pick Heavy: To choose or seek that which is of great weight, hard to carry and of great force or intensity.

Think about it. That’s how we could choose to live our life, isn’t it? And if we did, can you imagine the adventure and sense of purpose we might have?

In the post, Why Progress is So Important, I wrote, “It is the progression of self that is the most important to me. It is the progression of spirit, mind, heart and soul.” It would be hard for me to progress in spirit, mind, heart and soul if I didn’t take a chance and pick heavy.

Is it scary? Yes. Might we fail? Yes. Might we realize at times that we cannot actually do the heavy? Yes. But how could we possibly know what we are capable of, if we don’t try? The thing is, when we pick heavy, we choose belief in ourselves. When we pick heavy, we choose courage, a willingness to try, a belief that we can. That we are enough.

When we pick heavy, we pick ourselves over fear. And that is the very beauty of it all, isn’t it? Finding out just how much the human spirit can overcome…I’ll live by that mantra any day.

Will you?