One day more….

Tomorrow is a big day for Greggo. I will be competing in my first ever Strongman competition. This is something I have never done before (obviously if I called it a first ever) but I’ve always been intrigued. I have competed in half marathons, triathlons and bike rides but never a weight lifting type event.

This all started about 12 years ago. After I finished a half marathon in which I wound up with a partial tear of my Achilles. The orthopedic doctor told me, “You’ve got to stop running. You’re killing your knees. You’re built more like a linebacker and not a long distance runner.”

After that I stopped running and started biking more and more. I also joined a gym and started weight lifting. I had never lifted weights before so this was all new to me. As I kept lifting and kept lifting I really liked it. I switched my workouts to morning workouts. Lifting weights at 4am and doing my cardio in the evening time.

Fast forward to last year and I went to a Celtic Festival about an hour away from my house. They had Highland Games that were happening and I thought they were really fascinating. People wearing their kilts and competing in these events. Around November I started looking at the events for the Celtic Festival and I noticed they had a Strongman Competition as well as the Highland Games. I read all the events of the Strongman and decided to sign up.

I’ve been training and lifting heavy weights but I’m still not sure what to expect tomorrow. This is completely different than the weight room. I’ll be lifting and throwing rocks. Stuff that a normal weight room can’t prepare you for. My nephew asked me what my goal was for the event. To win it? My response was simply, “My goal is don’t die.”

I’ll be leaving in a little while to go weigh in. I’ve gained some weight since I started training. Eating 275 grams of protein a day and working out a ton has added muscle for sure.

All I can think about is “One Day More…” and it makes me think of this song from one of the best musicals ever.