Like in life, sometimes in the gym you can get stuck. Your growth feels stagnant, and it seems like you’re not making any progress at all. But most times, growth isn’t linear. It’s not always loud either. Sometimes it’s in the small, almost unnoticeable steps in-between. It’s in the journey.
You might think success is that one big moment, that final rep, but most times it’s been building long before then. That moment is just the tipping point.
In the first few seconds of this video, you’ll see me using four dumbbells to do an incline bench press. The bigger black dumbbells are 30kg, and the smaller silver ones are 5kg. I’ve been stuck at 30kg for a while. A couple of months ago, I tried jumping straight to 40kg and failed woefully. I felt terrible, not going to lie. But I didn’t give up.
Fast forward to yesterday, I decided to take smaller steps. My current gym doesn’t have 35kg or 40kg dumbbells, so I improvised. I used the 30s and added the 5s. It was tough, but I managed 3–4 reps. And I felt really proud.
I could have abandoned it and convinced myself it wasn’t worth trying again. But I told myself I needed to improve, to go beyond my current level. And I did.
So if you’re reading this, here’s your reminder: don’t stop just because you’re not seeing instant results. The progress is there. It’s compounding. Keep showing up.
Most importantly, challenge yourself. Failure is fine if you fall forward. Don’t get too comfortable where you are, try to go one step further. Who knows what you’re capable of? Well, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk. Till next time. Ciao.
