I went to a birthday party (for an adult!) at a ninja warrior style gym on Saturday night. I knew I wouldn’t have the physical strength to do a lot of the activities, but I was surprised at how much fear I had at even TRYING them, especially ones that required a running then jumping start, or starting up high then jumping start.
When did I lose my nerve?
I think I started to on July 4th, 2009. Gosh, when I was only twenty-four? That was when one of my stupid care-free stunts (going down a man-made water slide) resulted in an injury (torn ligaments in my wrist). I’m still up for thrills (water-skiing, hang-gliding, hot air-ballooning, helicopter rides, ziplining), but tend to be more cautious.
And now that I’m even older, and more susceptible to aches and pains, my cautiousness has gotten worse. One move I tried at the gym immediately gave me a crick in my neck. I didn’t try that again! Another bothered my ankles. I didn’t want to hurt myself. OR BREAK A NAIL. Sigh. Lame.
(Note: nearly everyone I hang out with is older than me and rolls their eyes when I say things like “now that I’m older.” I’m not trying to point out that I’m younger or make people older than me feel older! I’m just commenting on how things have changed for me over the years. Geesh.)
So I got home and was telling Steven how the gym was set up and he asked me about the different stunts he knows from American Ninja Warrior and if I tried them. Most of the answers were no. Or, “I got up there to try it and let go after I jumped” or “it immediately hurt my neck so I stopped.” Ha. I’m so cool.
But, I was able to do the 8′ and 10′ warped wall (I didn’t try the 12′ or 14′), and a few other things. I’m not completely lame (just partially)! And I’m usually still game for thrilling events… I’m just more aware of the short (and long!) term side effects.
(I can see resilient kids totally loving going to a place like this. They bounce around and fall, get back up and keep going, feeling fine. I can’t imagine many adults (except maybe those with a really athletic or gymnastic background) being that naturally good at this stuff! Of course, most adults who go probably are trying to get better at it, and not just checking it out at a party, like I was!)
I think of you of someone who is adventurous when it comes to physical activity, so the different stunts must have been quite challenging! I do hear you about getting less fearless about these kinds of things as you get older – our bodies do get less resilient and take longer to bounce back, and we’ve all had bad experiences that make us aware of this, so we become more cautious about taking physical risks. I guess it’s pretty normal, right?
Aww, thanks 🙂 I think someone with a lot of upper body strength (who can do pullups) and a low body weight would find these easier!
I think it’s totally normal! Just kind of a “what happened to me?!” shock since we humans are so good at living in the past 😉 Or remembering how we were in the past!
I love ninja gyms but I’m definitely scared of some of the obstacles, especially anything where I’m up in the air. Luckily I’m fine with looking like I have no idea what I’m doing, or stopping something before reaching completion.
I think going is much more enjoyable if you have those two characteristics, especially the first one!
Do you want to go to a workout together sometime??? I just bought a 10-pack to Windy City Ninjas because they had a great Cyber Monday deal 🙂
Thanks for the invite! I didn’t enjoy it much, so I am going to pass!
I never had much nerve, but after hurting myself several times over the last 10 years and as a result, not being able to do my normal activities – hell yes, I’m a lot more cautious! Sure some of that stuff looks like fun but if it’s going to quite possibly sideline me, well then no thanks.
And you really get a sense for what is going to hurt you (the more you do it), right?!
I don’t think you’ve lost your nerve, but eh, some things just aren’t for everyone! I’ve never had any desire to go to that kind of gym or do that kind of race so I think it’s cool that you went to the party even knowing it’s not your thing!
LOL I have definitely caught you calling yourself old in boxing, but it’s all relative. Sure, 35 probably feels better than 50, but it also feels different than 25!
If nothing else, it looks like you got to spend the night with a lot of fun people 🙂
They definitely aren’t! Especially the OCR type race. It’s fun to see the people so passionate about it do their thing, though!
It’s all relative to how you take care of your body, too! I bet I know some 50 year olds who feel better than people in their 30s! LOL!
I went to a ninja warrior-style gym last spring, and I was definitely worried about breaking myself! I had a race later that week, so I especially didn’t want to break myself. I don’t think fear was the *biggest* thing that stopped me though – the biggest thing that stopped me was the fact that I just couldn’t do most of the obstacles! My hands were not up to the challenge. I did like the warped wall, though.
Oh man, during race week?! No thanks!
Yes, re: the hands! Mine were sore from the get go! I kept chalking over and over, and they definitely had broken blood vessels under the skin (no broken skin though, yay) yesterday!
And also, if I wasn’t scared, I still couldn’t do them. Ha.
Yes! I took Cooper to a trampoline park last week and I was afraid of everything! EVen more so than I was a few years ago when I went (also for an adult birthday- I love when people do interesting things for their parties instead of just going out to dinner). I think for me its because I am cognizant of how much I need to be mobile to take care of Cooper and to do my job. Looking back it amazes me the things I did as a gymnast growing up without a second thought.
Back then you could be care free, right?! And really, probably would have recovered faster, anyway! I want to try one of those places. I need one of my nephews to visit so I can take them. Or to get invited to a kid party there. What did Cooper think of it?
You definitely need to take your nephew, Cooper loved it! He couldn’t quite figure out the 2 foot bounce, but he loved running across the trampolines, jumping into the foam, and giant slides. Bonus is that he tired himself out and took a great nap after. It was so fun to watch him having such a blast!
I am having fun just hearing about it! Jumping in to the foam sounds like a lot of fun to me. If it’s not from two high. Ha. My oldest nephews might come in March and I think I will suggest it!
I went to a ninja gym for my nephew’s birthday, but it was more geared towards kids. Those kiddos were so damn fearless! But man, everything looked like SO much fun. I’d like to go to a more adult-friendly one. Maybe for my next birthday 😉
Let me know what you think if you go! I think kids would just have a blast at this 🙂
Ha, I think I was born without any nerves. I’m such a chicken. Can you still ride roller coasters, or do they slap you around too much? (I remember my mom saying that she was too old for them now and would get aches and pains from the wooden ones especially.)
Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep!
I can ride the smooth ones, but not the wooden ones 😉 And I can’t do them as frequently in that day – I need more time in between. It’s like my equilibrium changed!