Nothing Like the Sledge . . .

The sledgehammer is my friend.Next to the barbell, it might be my favorite piece of equipment in the entire gym.Why?

• It's not for the repeatable, measurable, observable progress of sledgehammering.
• It's not for some super-hyper rationality-centered argument about best usage of metabolic pathways and the sledgehammer's role in developing metabolic capacity.
• It's not even because it's sexy and functional. (But it is.)

I love the sledgehammer because I can beat the snot out of the tire with it.I can take the sledgehammer and smash the ever-lovin' sh** out of that tire and it feels good. Every frustration of the day, every piece of annoyance, every spot of anger gets coiled up in my body and comes crashing down onto that tire with the force of the sledge.Yeah. Take that, life.And take that too. And, yes, you may have another.See, life demands most of the day that we behave and do the right thing and act politely and "simmer down now." But put that sledge in our hands and guess what? Nice goes out the ever-lovin' window.Hello darkness, my old friend.And that's okay. We need that too. Better that we acknowledge the darkness and deal with it and get it out.Better that, if you have a bad day, you come in and spend 5 minutes in the warm-up with the sledge. Spend some time after the workout too, if you need to. Much better than if you took that anger out on your spouse, or your kids, or your partner, or your mom, or your dog.The tire can take it. Use it. Abuse it. Beat the crap out of it. And then go home and be a nicer person than you ever thought possible.Fitness is about so much more than making your body fit. It can help you make your life fit too.So go ahead and beat the crap out of the tire. It's okay. Take that, life. And, yes, you may have another.