Team Maggot

I have noticed over the last couple of months all the unique and often entertaining excercise styles people have. Everyone has their own special moves. There is the lady who practically bounces of the treadmill as she marches along, the woman who throws her elbows back and up in such a way that I often wonder if she is not attempting to take flight.
There are the old men who move along so slowly that I am amazed the treadmill even registers that they are using the machine….then again there is the old man who tears off full bore on the thing (all of whom wear jeans and sweaters while working out). Then, of course, there is crazy elliptical lady. We can never forget her.
Then today….Jim showed us a sweet move of his own.

The point is, sometimes you just have to take notice of how special and unique people are. I know that working out would not be nearly as much fun otherwise.

     Today something happened.   First of all, Mandy (the spokeswoman of the Maggots)  could not make it to the gym to workout.  That was the catalyst.  Jim and I were left alone to face the endless tirades of the elderly patrons on our own.  Jim was doing great.  He answered all of the questions about where our third was; why, when and how.  He made the apologies for being absent the day before . . . he even worked out on the elliptical machine!  But, just as we were closing out the day, heading over to do our ab workout….we turned the corner and there it was!   Someone had left their sweatshirt on the thingie on which we normally work out our abs. Jim and I froze.  Each of us looking at the other with a futile hope that the other would know what to do. Now, if Mandy had been there she would simply have gone over there and tossed it aside with no thought of the consequences.  But, alas, she was not there!

    We conferred for awhile, weighed the possible alternatives, considered foregoing the ab workout altogether, but after moments of heated discussion Jim decided to man up and remove the shirt himself. 

   As he walked away, as if in slow motion, not knowing what fate lay in store, I thought to myself, “There goes a brave, brave man.” 

    He reached up, hesitated only for a moment and then . . . silence ringing in my ears . . . gently placed the shirt atop a nearby machine.  He looked up, gazed around.  Relief  was palpable as we both realized we were in the clear.

    We resumed normal workout procedures and once again thanked God that there is a Mandy.

One thing that I learned when I was still a member of the “respectable” corporate world is that you can force people to work together, but you cannot force them to be a team. Simply calling a group of people a “team” is not enough. Referring to each other as “teammates”, or to the coach as a “team leader” doesn’t cut it either. People can even work together in a spirit of friendship, pulling for a common cause, and still lack the cohesiveness of a team. Hundreds of thousands of dollars are wasted each and every year by corporations on so-called “team building” exercises, only to have the intended “teams” slide back into the daily grind of mutual and overwhelming resentment. Team building, it would seem, is as elusive as it is rewarding.

Over the last 10 weeks or so, I have had the rare privilege of watching and being a part of a growing and thriving team. Team Maggot didn’t start as Team Maggot, or Team Anything for that matter. This bunch started as a couple of friends who just wanted to get in shape, one of whom had a husband similarly motivated. The husband, luckily enough, not only had once been through the rigors of getting in shape (and then out) himself, he also happened to have a background in management and team building. As that husband, who supposedly brought the “important” ingredients to the table, I am humbled to observe the transformation of these three from “two friends and a husband” to Team Maggot.

This is where I would love to brag about my insights as a manager. Or, better yet, I’d love to brag about my prowess as a personal trainer. This paragraph could end with me singing my own praises about my awesomeness in general. After all, Team Maggot is a shining example, in every way, of what a team truly is and, hey, I am the guy holding the notebook. Looks, as they say, can be deceiving.

Before I expose myself as the most minor member of this extraordinary trio, let me tell you a little about why Team Maggot is so unique.

Contrary to what people may think, simply “choosing sides” does not make a team. As I have said, even working toward a common cause often does not cut it either. While a common cause (or causes) is critical to success, the sense that we will “sink or swim together” is absolutely paramount. Team Maggot exhibits this trait in spades. If one member is down, so is the team. If one member experiences success, so do the others. Struggles, difficulties, triumphs and successes are shared by all. There is strength in a team that is impossible when alone. No one is alone. Ever.

Any blind fool can see that the strength of Team Maggot lies squarely in Mandy. Her consistent loving attitude towards the team shows a confidence that inspires the others. No one is more genuine than Mandy. Keenly aware of the feelings of others and eager to provide help, she is also aware of one’s personal space; both physical and emotional. Her unique combination of intelligence, compassion, toughness and tenderness is rare, to say the least. Even more rare is the trueness of her beauty; again both physical and emotional.

The confidence that Mandy exudes, Courtney seems to lack, and that’s too bad. One would be hard pressed to live one or more lifetimes and meet another person as special as she. Perhaps her apparent unawareness of that fact is also endearing. Smart as a whip, funny, quick, emotional and vulnerable, Courtney brings to the team critical missing pieces unable to be provided by the other two. If Team Maggot had ancient, apostle-like names, hers would be “Courtney the Beloved.”

Me? I am just the guy holding the notebook. Sure I decide what exercises are done when and what weight should be used. And, almost daily, I am forced to tell the other members to step it up and quit yapping. I probably even look like I am in charge.

But, if you think that is the way to build a team, then you have not been paying attenton.

Jeremy Longest chose to play basketball with his friends last night….even though his skinny body was totally sore from working out with the Maggots the previous day. So, Kudos, Jerm.

Hey Maggots, just wanted to go on record and say I’m so proud of our weight loss and our stick-to-it - ness. Because I cheated and weighed myself on my Mom’s scale and it LIED and told me I had lost 9 lbs, the “shock” of only losing 4.5 was too much for my little head to take I think. Had I not weighed myself (as coach Jeff suggested) I would have been over the moon with the 4.5 lbs. Sorry I was a big baby and wasn’t my normal bubbly self at the gym today. For now on, I’ll wait and weigh at the gym. I now am settled down and extremely happy with the 4.5 lbs. Can’t wait to see what next month brings.

GO MAGGOTS!

    I wanted to go ahead and post what my personal goals are at this point in our workout.  When we began I just didn’t want to be fat anymore (lol), but as we have been steadily getting stronger and as we have started to become a more unified and dedicated team, my goals have changed somewhat as I am sure they will continue to do as we progress.

    My goal now is not so much centered on my appearance (all though it is a motivating factor) but on my overall health both physical and mental.  Before we began this process I was feeling a lot of depression, loneliness, disappointment in myself and embarrassment.  I didn’t want to leave the house even to go to church. I had trouble in most social situations actually. Not only because of my body image . .  . but because of my general self image. 

   In the last few months I have all but left those feelings behind.  This is due to both the work we do at the gym (which leaves me with a sense of accomplishment and pride) and also because of the camaraderie of my team mates. 

    So, my new goals as of right now are :

1>  Stay dedicated.

2> Support my team mates, both at the gym and in life.

3> Stick to the correct diet .

4> Appreciate the small changes that are taking place and do not get discouraged.

5> Continue enjoying the time I get to spend with friends as we all work toward a healthier and longer life. 

6> Remember I am doing this not just for me, but for my family.

    I may not keep every one of these goals every day and I may slip up everyday.  But I have these goals in mind and one day they will be no longer be goals, but just a way of life.  And on that day I will post a whole new set of goals. 

   Jim showed me a photo of a famous statue called “The Self Made Man”.  The statue showed a man forming himself out of a block of stone.  He chiseled away day by day.  He struggled, he fought, his way out of the stone.   He had to work at it, but he had the proper tools at his disposal and he made the choice to use them.  I am making the same choice.

   One odd thing about that man in the stone, though….how did the tools get in there with him?  Humm, Jim?

We have team names:
Jim is Jeff
Courtney is Gold
Mandy is Bloom

(just think about it)

    I missed going to the Y today.  It was not an easy day. Not that I didn’t get together with the Maggots.  We met later in the day at (of all places) McDonalds.  We all were able to resist the allure of Big macs and chicken nuggets.  It was not easy…but Maggots are not weak….at least not all together. Our kids played together while we discussed past and future and enjoyed the present.  It was a wonderful, rainy afternoon. 

    This evening or morning,  we talked on facebook until almost 2:30 am.   Maggots really love talking to each other….LOL.  Tomorrow is lower body and back workout. I can not wait to hit the gym.  Let’s go Maggots….oh and Mandy and Jim….Whatever….really.

Now, you might have read the above title and thought it was the same as the previous, completely awesome, post that Courtney published a few days ago.  And, although Maggots do indeed rule, there are a few things everyone should know; the Maggots’ Rules

1.)  Maggots do not talk badly about themselves or other maggots.  Other people outside of the maggot colony are fair game, especially those seen at the Y using the machines incorrectly.

2.)  Maggots encourage one another not only in working out but also in life.  If one maggot is down, all maggots are down until such a time all maggots are happy again.  No maggots left behind.

3.)  In the unlikely event that one of the maggots loses him or herself in a bag of Cheetos, the rest of the maggot team will do everything in their power not to slap the weakling and make them do extra lunges as penance.  Ha!  Whatever!  We lay a guilt trip as thick as Texas so next time he or she would not dare to put one of those things in his or her mouth for fear of retribution.

4.)  Each Maggot must hold a special primordial power to help one another while working out simply by laying a single finger on the machine.  What once was so heavy that not one more repetition could be made, magically becomes as light as a feather.

5.)  The leader of Team Maggot, Jim (AKA Jeff), does his best to keep us on track and lifting the correct amount of weight.  He ensures that our mouths are not the only things getting a work out and has full authority to tell us to do more repetitions.  If we make him mad (by talking about his rather large noggin or his similarities to the Asian people for example) the amount of weight will increase.  Period.

6.)  Last but not least, when we are all hot and have rippling muscles we are going to so rub it in every one’s face.  And if one single person says something about being “lucky” about having these wonderful bodies we will line up and punch them in the face.  THIS IS HARD WORK PEOPLE!

    I realize how cliche the title to this blog is, but c’mon it has to be known. Is there any better team in all of Washington’s YMCA?  I defy you to present them. Maggots have the heart, the confidence and the brains to reach the goal!  We really do rule!  Have you seen our choreographed lunges? Seriously, that doesn’t just happen!