It was a beautiful spring day; the sun was shining, and birds were chirping. New England is comprised of two types of weather: snow, or the surface of the sun. For one week out of the whole year, there is a fine medium, and today was one of those days.

The workout on tap? It has many names, but it is comprised of a 20-1 burpee ladder. You pick a spot on the ground, do 20 burpees. Walk 5 yards, do 19 burpees. Walk 5 yards back, do 18, and repeat until you have completed all sections. All in all, you're going to do 210 burpees.

How did I come to this workout? Well since you asked, I had just finished working the Atlanta Sprint in March 2017. I capped off the day with some pizza and a few beers, so I was, as you imagine, really fueling my body for a prime workout. While perusing the internet, I read a headline that said "Marines do THIS workout to get in shape." This oughta be interesting. I set down two towels in my hotel room, and got to work. I finished with a respectable(?) time of 23:35.

Fast forward to May 2018, and back to the aforementioned field. I knew this workout was going to hurt, but hopefully would be done less than 25 minutes later. While I was in better shape than I was 14 months prior, I wasn't too gung-ho about this workout. What follows are my truest inner thoughts as I worked my way down this burpee ladder.

Descend the Ladder

20 burpees in - "I have HOW many more to go?"

74 burpees in - "This is never going to end, and Marines are in far better shape than I am."

132 burpees in - expletive of choice

165 burpees in - "Nice work, idiot, you just spit right where your chest lands."

174 burpees in, 10 sets completed - "SINGLE DIGITS BABY!" high-fives random stranger

195 burpees in - "Who even invented exercise?"

204 burpees in - "That's either the light at the end of the tunnel, or I'm delirious."

210 burpees in - sings "Sweet Victory" by David Glen Eisley

The Aftermath

Drenched in sweat, dirt, and grass, I check the timer on my phone and see...24:37. Well, there's always next time. Was I pushing as hard as I could? No. Could I have been in a better mindset rather than a "just get it done" line of thinking? Probably. We can always strive to get better.

Tag your workout on social with #Spartan210 and maybe I'll favorite your tweet.

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