🇪🇸 Versión en español abajo
A few months ago I told you in one of my posts that I had a calisthenics competition coming up. And just now I realized it’s been almost two months since I actually competed, and I never shared how it went. Time flies! So I didn’t want to miss the chance to tell you about the experience.
A few days before
In the days leading up to the competition, I was training hard and pushing myself to the limit. But suddenly, during the last week, I started to feel tired and unmotivated. Even the day before, I had even less energy and didn’t really feel like competing.
My mind was full of thoughts like “Do I really want to spend my whole Sunday there when I could just rest at home? Do I want to travel an hour and a half just to get to the venue?”
Everything changed when the organizers sent the competitors list and the running order to the athlete's group chat.
At that moment, I felt a strong mix of nerves, adrenaline, and excitement. My lack of motivation completely disappeared, and I had trouble falling asleep because of how hyped I was.
Competition Day
The original plan was to go by train with my coach, but that day there were no services and we got delayed by about an hour and a half. Luckily, my dad was able to drive us, so we arrived on time.
The venue was amazing compared to last year: more bars, more space for athletes, and a much better organization overall.
Since my category was one of the last, I had to wait a lot before competing. In the meantime, I tried to stay calm, watched other competitors, and chatted with my coach.
How did it go?
I competed in the PRO Streetlifting category, where the challenge is:
- Pull-ups with 24 kg.
- Dips with 32 kg.
Both rep counts are added together to form your final score.
I’ll spoil it right away. I didn’t win…
But I left quite happy with my performance.
- Pull-ups: I hit 18 reps. In training, I was doing 15/16, so I actually broke my own limit. At the moment I didn’t know, because they weren’t announcing the exact numbers of each athlete, but when the official sheet came out a few days later I realized I had done the most pull-ups in my category!
- Dips: In training, I usually reached 23/25, but that day I only managed 19. I think I didn’t start them properly and my form was off. I was a bit unsatisfied here, but that’s what competitions are for — to learn and improve.
In total, I scored 37 reps (18 + 19) and finished 13th place out of more than 20 competitors.
Reflections
I went from not wanting to compete at all to finishing with a hunger for more. That’s the beauty of competitions: they push you, make you grow, and let you discover what you’re capable of.
That’s why I always encourage my gym mates to compete, even if they just train for fun or health. Competitions aren’t only about beating others they’re also about challenging yourself.
There’s a quote from Socrates that I really love:
“It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.”
That’s how I lived my preparation and competition day. I didn’t leave fully satisfied, but definitely happy and motivated to keep training harder.
Thanks for reading 💪 And if you’ve ever competed (in sports, games, or anything else) or are thinking about it, I’d love to hear your story! See you in the next post.
🇪🇸 ESPAÑOL
Hace unos meses les habĂa contado en uno de mis post que tenĂa una competencia de calistenia en camino y pensando en de que podia hablar en mi proximo post de Hive me di cuenta que ya casi pasaron dos meses desde que competi y no les habia contado como me fue. El tiempo vuela y no querĂa dejar de compartirles cĂłmo fue la experiencia!
Unos dias antes
En los dĂas anteriores venĂa entrenando bastante y buscando esforzarme para superar mis limites, pero la Ăşltima semana de golpe me senti cansado y sin ganas de competir. Incluso el dĂa anterior sentĂa todavĂa menos motivaciĂłn.
Muchos pensamientos distintos, tener que pasar todo el domingo alla pudiendo quedarme en casa a descansar, tener que hacer un viaje de hora y media para llegar al lugar, etc
Todo cambiĂł cuando los organizadores mandaron al grupo de atletas la lista de competidores y el orden en el que Ăbamos a salir. En ese instante sentĂ una mezcla de nervios, adrenalina y emociĂłn. La falta de ganas desapareciĂł y me costĂł dormirme de lo motivado que estaba.
El dĂa de la competencia
El plan era ir en tren con mi entrenador, pero justo ese dĂa no hubo servicios y nos demoramos hora y media. Por suerte, mi papá nos pudo llevar y llegamos a tiempo.
El lugar estaba increĂble comparado al año pasado: más barras, más espacio para atletas y mejor organizaciĂłn.
Tuve que esperar bastante, porque mi categorĂa era de las Ăşltimas. Mientras tanto tratĂ© de relajarme, mirar a otros competidores y charlar con mi entrenador.
Como me fue?
CompetĂ en la categorĂa PRO de Streetlifting, donde el desafĂo es:
- Dominadas con 24 kg.
- Fondos con 32 kg.
Se suman las repeticiones de ambas pruebas y ese es tu puntaje final.
Ya les adelanto que no gané...
Pero me quede bastante contento con mi desempeño.
- Dominadas: hice 18 repeticiones. En los entrenamientos venia llegando a 15/16 por lo que supere mi limite para marcar uno nuevo. En el momento no lo supe ya que no decian todos los numeros de cada competidor pero unos dias despues cuando enviaron la planilla con los numeros de todos me di cuenta que fui el que mas dominadas hizo en mi categoria!
- Fondos: en entrenamientos llegaba a 23/25, pero ese dĂa logrĂ© solo 19. Aca decai mucho, creo que no entre bien a hacerlos pero de estas experiencias se aprende. No niego que me quede un poco insatisfecho.
En total sumé 37 repeticiones (18 + 19) y terminé en el puesto 13 de más de 20 competidores.
Reflexiones
Pasé de no querer competir a quedarme con ganas de más. Y creo que eso es lo lindo de las competencias. Te obligan a exigirte, a crecer y a descubrir de lo que sos capaz.
Por eso en mi gimnasio siempre motivo a mis compañeros a participar, incluso si entrenan solo por hobby o salud. Competir no es solo contra otros, también es competir contra uno mismo.
Hay una frase de SĂłcrates que me encanta:
"Es una pena que un hombre envejezca sin ver la belleza y fuerza de la que su cuerpo es capaz."
AsĂ vivĂ mi preparacion y dia de competencia. No me fui satisfecho del todo, pero sĂ feliz y motivado para seguir entrenando.
Gracias por leerme đź’Ş y si ustedes compitieron alguna vez o estan pensando en hacerlo cuentenme! Nos vemos en el prĂłximo post.