In the 21st Century – mental health has taken center stage. Therapy, psychology – it’s all being rammed down our throat – along with medications. However, for some of us – doctors and pills are the last thing we have time for. So, we turn to old faithful – our best friend – the iron. Training, lifting heavy, destroying ourselves in the pursuit to be bigger and stronger – that is our therapy. Let’s get into this…
We all have personal baggage. As “normal” as your childhood may have been, even if it was Beaver Cleaver-esque – odds are – there’s some trauma that has left deep and in some cases, debilitating scars. We become protective of these scars – because it’s in these old wounds where we’re most easily wounded.
The kids call this “triggered”.
So, many of us do what we can to hide or cover up these scars, so they’re not as easily seen. Some of us talk to therapist, others of us talk to friends and still others talk to themselves.
However, for some of us – none of these options work. We talk to the one thing we can trust not to spill our deepest darkest secrets to the rest of the world. We confide in the one thing that we think can help us protect ourselves…
The iron.
In a world filled with noise and chaos – some of us turn to the gym as our sanctuary. For us, this isn’t about vanity or chasing likes on social media. No, for us, the gym is a battlefield – and every session is a fight against our inner demons.
We don’t lift weights just for aesthetics – we lift to survive. This is our therapy – our redemption. It’s our way to silence that screaming voice in our head that calls out for vengeance on those who have wronged us.
Now, this doesn’t mean we look down on those people who talk to therapists or take pills to feel better…
We just prefer the iron.
We embrace the pain, the sweat, and the blood because it’s real. It’s tangible. Every rep, every set is a testament to our willpower – and warning to those who look to inflict any more damage. We will not be so easily cut.
What can you do to us that we’ve already done to ourselves?
It’s hard for anybody to hurt us because we punish our bodies ourselves. Punish it to quiet our minds – while pushing through the pain barrier to find a moment of peace, located just between the pump and and last rep of the last set.
Of course, we don’t talk about this. We don’t share the fact that our daily gym sessions are more than just a way to build up our bodies. Much like the first rule of Fight Club is that you don’t talk about Fight Club…
The first rule of Iron Therapy is that you don’t talk about Iron Therapy.
Even more, while some people get better and stop their form of therapy – this kind never stops. We keep lifting and lifting until we can’t or we die. It’s that simple.
As you can tell, this isn’t some feel-good story. It’s raw, unfiltered and… effective.
However, unlike other forms of therapy – we get something MORE out of the iron. We learn discipline, resilience and self-reliance. While the world sleeps, we’re the ones who wake up at the crack of dawn to get to the gym before all the “normies”. The silence and solitude we get in those early AM sessions is invaluable. Other than the occasional fellow iron therapist, the clang of weights is our only company.
We don’t care about the latest workout trends or what supplements are in vogue. For us it’s about the work. We will do the same workout year in and year out – as long as it’s working for us. We are examples of grit, determination and the relentless pursuit of self-mastery that we wish others would be.
There’s no whining in the gym…
No room for excuses. The barbell doesn’t care about your problems. It doesn’t care if you had a bad day or if life’s been kicking you down. It demands respect and gives none in return. And that’s exactly why we love it. It’s the one place where the only thing that matters is the work you put in.
The only thing that counts is how much pain you can endure and still keep going.
For us, this ritual of self-destruction is a form of creation. We break ourselves down to build something stronger. Something harder to hurt. We find clarity in the struggle, peace in the chaos.
The gym is our church, the weights our confessional…
And every drop of sweat is a prayer for redemption.
So, while others might see us as obsessed… we know the truth.
We’re not running away from our problems – we’re confronting them head-on, one brutal workout at a time. This is our therapy, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Confidence comes from victory, but strength comes from the struggle.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
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