Life – The real Endurance Test.

The final day for entry into the Endurance Test at the gym has come and gone. I won the competition with only one entry. I didn’t bother with entering other times, since the gap between first place and second place was a difference of 8 minutes. There was no real competition for me.

I claimed my prize last night.

The end result of training for the Endurance Test? My butt is toner, but there is still a lot of fat to lose. That’s the physical results.

The mental results…? Well, other than the fact that I recognise that no matter what challenge I take on, I know my body can do “that” little bit more. My brain knows that the pain barrier is just a barrier, and once we get past that, it won’t hurt anymore.

On a philosophical level…it has gotten me thinking that life is like the epitome of all Endurance Tests you could ever experience. And I wonder how long this pain barrier will last before I can ride things out smoothly? There is supposed to be a point where you realised that the barrier has been surpassed and is left behind you. I haven’t come to that point as yet.

Life is to be enjoyed and you also have tests along the way, so that you fully appreciate and enjoy your life. I’m not really enjoying much these days. My knee is starting to ache again, right under the knee cap…so I’m taking glucosamine tablets again. My right arm feels numb, I’m worried that I might have a blood clot in there somewhere…or maybe I’m about to have a heart attack, but I shouldn’t have a clot. I exercise far too much for my blood not to be flowing smoothly. So, whats the go?

Last year, I broke my left ankle. That was a trial in itself, because while in the cast I had a blood clot in the leg. Then came the warfarin treatment for 3 months. Then the physio for about 2 months…I am still trying to get the balance back in my left ankle and it annoys me that it has been almost a year to date, and I’m still not back to my old self.

The hard part of all this was the whole healing process. It was long and arduous. Technically, I am still healing. I go to my Body Balance classes twice a week in hopes that the more one legged balancing acts I do, the more balance and strength will be restored to my ankle. Its obviously an ongoing process.

I don’t know if I can manage if the doctor finds another blood clot in my body. If it is in fact in my arm, its actually more fatal than when it was in my thigh. (Any clot above your knee is potentially fatal, as its free to move upstream to your heart and cause a heart attack, or clog your lungs and you could die from a pulmonary embolism). My arm is of course, much closer to my heart than my thigh is.

A person can only endure so much. I, can only surpass a number of barriers in my life time. I cant keep on overcoming every obstacle that comes my way. Its not that I wont try. I have to try. I will try. But that doesn’t mean that I will succeed with every challenge that gets put in my path. I’m not perfect, so its not going to be a perfectly smooth trip. Will I know that this is the One? The One that I wont succeed in overcoming?

I’m tired. This test is one that I didn’t ever realise existed until now. Ignorance is truly bliss, isn’t it?

So, what did I actually win as a prize for the Endurance Test at the gym? A Hoyts movie pass, a free entry to the gym for a family or friend, a fluoro green t-shirt and a fluoro green cap.

I wonder what the prize would be for succeeding Life’s Endurance Test. Eternal happiness, perhaps.