I've just finished a November challenge to run 111 miles in the month. It's the first of December 2015, and the friend who talked me into it has a new one. Five thousand squats and push-ups. In December.
I like rest days, so in real life that's about 200 reps a day. For me, that's a lot.
A strong start
Day one, 100 reps. Day two, 200. Day three, 250. Day four is a rest day, and the pattern holds for about a fortnight.
Then I get busy and miss a couple of days.
By day 17 I'm trying to make up for lost time, so I do 500. On day 18 I can feel a cold coming. A bit of a sniffle, a tight chest, more tired than usual. A couple of rest days will sort it, I tell myself.
Catching up
Day 21 and I'm forcing myself to keep resting. That's hard for me. When I've set myself a challenge, backing off feels like losing, and the target starts to look impossible.
Christmas Day, day 25, I manage 25 reps. It's not much, but every rep counts. Day 26 I feel a lot better and do 600. Two-thirds of the way there. Maybe I can do this after all.
Day 27 I wake up and my chest is worse. Rest day. Day 28, the same.
Day 29 is when I admit the challenge is over.
Quitting well
I hate giving up. I also know it's the right call. There'll be other months and other challenges, and none of them get easier if I make myself properly ill trying to finish this one.
Looking back, the lesson wasn't really about squats. The real damage happened on days 14 and 15, when I let it slide, and then on day 17, when I tried to cram it all back in. It's the same thing I learned training for marathons. You can't fake the build-up.
Sometimes the strong thing is to keep going. Sometimes it's to stop, and say no to a target you set yourself. The trick is being honest about which one you're facing, and listening to your body when it's trying to tell you.
First published January 2016.
