Week 9

We are continuing to gather advice about strengthening our form, technique and bodies.  More than one service member and one of our own family members told us to try the ‘Perfect Pushup’ device.  Sounds great!  A tool that will perfect our pushups and help us reach our goal numbers in order to pass the test.  Just like that, the device showed up in the office thanks to a kindhearted service member.  We were thrilled.  If you’ve never seen this apparatus, it is two round disks (that swivel) and there are handles on top of each disk. We immediately tried them out, figuring that they were the magic wand that would fix everything.  Wrong!  We had a tough time figuring out how to use them correctly and the swiveling made us very unsteady.  We looked online for more information. The person in the video we found made it look so easy. We tried again. No luck. 

We asked our co-worker Sgt. Sanders for help since he was the one who first mentioned the device to us. With grace and ease, Sgt. Sanders performed several perfect-form pushups and instructed us patiently when we tried again.  We can see how the device could be helpful, but have decided that it is, unfortunately, still beyond our skill level.  Back to doing pushups the old fashion way!  

Lesson of the week:
What works for some does not always work for others.  This is true for mental fitness as well as physical fitness.  The only way to know what suits you is to listen, watch, gather lots of ideas and then try them. Those that work, add them to your list of techniques.  Those that don’t...well, as with the ‘Perfect Pushup’ device, it is a learning experience.  

Commentary by Courtney J. Lynch and Tracy K. Ward, Psychological Health Coordinators