Drop and Give Me 50 Pushups!

By Ross Forman

Brad Cain is an honest, hard-working, motivating friend of mine. Known worldwide by his alter-ego, Lodi, Brad is a pro wrestler who made a name for himself in World Championship Wrestling (WCW).

One of my favorite Brad stories dates back to January, 2009, when I was in Brad’s hometown – Charlotte, N.C. – for about a week in conjunction with a Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling show.

I went to Brad’s gym (shameless plug: http://www.yourflexappeal.com/) for a few workouts under his watchful eye.

I had, at that time, already run several marathons, and since Brad had not run any at that point (and still has not), I was quick to brag. Probably not a good move on my part.

Naturally, Brad abused me with some strenuous leg workouts. He also got me good with some upper-body workouts … and then the pushups.

Yep, the simple pushup. Brad told me to do 50 pushups at one point, so I dropped into position.

And did, oh, about five.

Brad laughed. He’s probably still laughing at the memory.

To this day, Brad hasn’t forgotten, and has reminded me way too often about my atrocious pushup performance.

Fast forward to New Years Day 2011, I started the Insanity workouts, run by Shaun T, as part of my training for the Tel Aviv Marathon on Friday morning, April 8. Insanity is cardio-based, with plenty of plyometrics, jumping, squatting … and pushups.

Yep, those damn pushups, again.

I’ve done more pushups in 2011 than at any time in my life, though that's my choice. I do them in Insanity workouts and also do them on my own. I focus on perfect form, and while I do the set number each Insanity workout, I also do varying numbers on my own – at Bally’s Total Fitness, in a hotel room while traveling, or at home.

I want to do 50 pushups in a row, with no stops, and most important, with perfect form. Might not happen today, or tomorrow, but soon, very soon – and Lodi then better carry a sign to his next match boasting my feat. And yes, the pushups help the running.

It’s now a matter of days before I head overseas for the Tel Aviv Marathon. I can’t wait. I’m super excited, even though I really know nothing about this marathon – the course route, the expected weather, the number of participants, etc. I haven’t seen much in English about this marathon, unfortunately.

But, I know I’m ready – Shaun T and Insanity made sure of that. Shaun T was my coach, of sorts, for Tel Aviv, and when I return to the U.S., I will begin coaching marathoners through the Team To End AIDS (T2) endurance-training program. I know it will be a difficult task for many T2 participants, but we will Dig Deeper all summer long while running along the lakefront in Chicago … and then rock it on race day!

Can’t wait to report from Tel Aviv … and do more pushups, believe it or not. Shalom!

Ross.

PS … If you want to know more about Insanity, P90X, Shakeology or any of the other Team Beachbody products, please visit my website: http://www.runwithross.com/.

PSS … And if you want to know my current favorite song, see below.