I am guilty of what I call the ‘Spiderman Phenomenon’. In the movie (and comic, obviously), Peter Parker gets bitten by a radioactive spider. He is a very small boy, not really remarkable physically, picked on by the bullies, and hopeless in athletics. The morning after being bitten, he wakes up to find that he is extremely muscular and very athletically talented.
I find myself guilty of this in my training from time to time. I figure that I’ll be able to do something eventually as ling as I’m training hard, but I repeatedly miss out in achieving certain things because I don’t put in the effort needed to actually become able to them in the first place.
Addressing weaknesses directly and intentionally is very important in our journey towards elite fitness. And we do want to be elite, don’t we? Then we need to get rid of weaknesses that hold us back. Here’s the interesting thing: when we strengthen our weaknesses, our strengths benefit as well. When we work only on our strengths, out weaknesses become thar much more glaringly obvious.
Think about the back lever for a second. What benefits do you think you would gain from becoming capable of holding a 30 second back lever? Aside from the obvious coolness factor, think about how much more load your back would be able to handle in the squat or deadlift. What about your press? Might you be able to handle heavier loads overhead? Could your body handle the dynamic loading of a snatch or clean? What about your grip strength? Total number of pull ups you can do? Shoulder stability?
My challenge to you is this: choose a weakness (or two) that you are going to systematically address. Build them into your warm up, rest days, and post training times (within reason). Spend at least a month (probably more) working hard on them until you’ve reached your goal. While you are doing this, keep an eye out for other benefits that you see from changing a weakness into a strength.
Post your goals here, and report back soon!
Coach ‘going hard after the weaknesses’ A
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