Twenty Minutes Late, But I Showed Up
Why dragging myself out of bed for Camp Gladiator before dawn has become one of the best decisions I’ve made this year.
I was 20 minutes late to my 5 a.m. Camp Gladiator class this morning because I’d talked myself out of going. I was sore from Tuesday’s intense arm workout and had spent the week working in the garage of our newest estate sale. I was tired—so tired. But the couple of times I’ve missed since starting two months ago made me feel far worse than the soreness of a workout ever could. So I went.
Three times a week, I get up at 4:15 (okay, 4:40) for an intense outdoor workout with our fearless leader Jenny Baum, and a loyal crew of early risers. Despite this being the one activity in my week where I talk the least, I genuinely enjoy the social side of doing something difficult together. And even with minimal conversation, I’ve learned a lot about the people in our group: a former NASA employee, missionaries, immigrants, moms with kids at SGP, teachers, and several grandmothers. Many of them are older than me—and they work harder than I do. It’s one of the most inspiring parts.
Jenny and I share a passionate love of ’90s music (okay, all music), and she cranks the jams while making us do 40 pushups and burpees on our birthdays —walking around reminding each of us how awesome we are. The workouts are as hard as you want them to be. She keeps it challenging, but always leaves room for you to choose your level of effort.
Camp Gladiator isn’t the cheapest workout in town, but here’s the truth: I had a cheap gym membership for years and went sporadically at best. I’ve worked out more in the past two months with CG than in the past two years combined.
All that to say—start doing that “thing” you’ve been putting off because it feels too hard. Do something today that challenges you mentally, physically, and spiritually. It builds perseverance and self-confidence. You won’t regret it.
I get nothing from Camp Gladiator for writing this—no perks, no promotion. Just gratitude. But if you want to try it out for free for two weeks (and at a much more reasonable hour than 5 a.m.), visit campgladiator.com