Becoming fit to live-Wheelchair Weightlifting! Wheelchair weightlifting is responsible for getting me in shape and keeping me fit in a few different ways, physically, mentally and emotionally. Let's face it without the muscles in our trunk and lower body we need all the upper body strength we can build! With hard work and determination accomplishments are made and our accomplishments directly affect our mental and emotional health.In the beginning becoming motivated to work out can be difficult. After a spinal cord injury many chemical changes are going on in our bodies and our emotions are on a roller coaster ride. So developing and maintaining a workout routine can be difficult. After such a traumatic injury many of us could barely even raise our arms to pick our own nose, we were extremely weak and stamina was basically nonexistent. Staying motivated was very difficult and nothing comes easy and fast, but it does come it just takes patients hard work and determination and of course time.
Unfortunately it took me almost 3 years before I came to terms with and excepted my fate. There were times where I was motivated and ready to take on the world, and then there were the times where I wanted to hide and cash it in. It was right about three-year mark post injury where I came to my crossroads and was ready to make a change. I was no longer content with someone else taking care of me and I was no longer content with being a spectator watching life go by. I was miserable and the mental and emotional pain I was going through was enough for me to decide and change my life. Pain is the ultimate motivator!
Before my injury I was lifting anywhere from three to six days a week and doing cardio on my off days. I was eating a very healthy high protein nutrient dense diet and using my favorite supplements. So when I started lifting again I found it very easy to get discouraged. In the beginning I could only lift a fraction of what I used to, and there were exercises I was no longer able to do. Being paralyzed with no trunk or lower body control I was limited to the amount of exercises that I could do. Fortunately I remembered when I first began lifting before my injury that what I had gained did not come overnight.
When I started lifting again I had to start out very small using 5 pound weights for most of my exercises and no weights for some of the others. I would fatigue very quickly, sometimes after five minutes I would be ready for bed. Sometimes my workouts only lasted 10 minutes, but during those workouts I gave it 110%. Within two weeks I noticed a considerable difference and it was enough to keep my motivation up and stick with it. After a couple of months I was able to transfer myself in and out of my vehicle and was able to take showers on my own. These were the accomplishments that were directly responsible for helping nurse my mental and emotional health back to health.
Becoming fit to live-Wheelchair Weightlifting! Today I am very pro fitness and I fully believe weightlifting and fitness should be made a part of everyone's life (especially the younger spinal cord injured) the benefits that are gained physically, mentally, and emotionally are priceless. I am in the process of obtaining my personal trainers certification so that I may help other people (especially the younger spinal cord injured) achieve the benefits from fitness and weight lifting. By making fitness/weightlifting a part of our daily lives helps give us an edge when taking on the challenges we are faced with in life.
Push past your limitations!
Michael C.
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