I want to talk about failure in the context of strength training.

For me, failure is a core experience and skill in strength training. Learning to fail is one of the things that made it click for me, helped me stop looking for excuses to blow off going to the gym.

Failure is when I try to do to a lift and it doesn't happen.

Failure is not "It feels really difficult and like I might not be able to do it so I'm giving up."

It's also not "My form is breaking down, so I'm stopping for safety."

Failure is "My form is good and I am doing that thing I do to make my body move (whatever that is), doing it it as hard as I can and it's JUST NOT HAPPENING. Hmm. OK. Time to set the weight down safely, like I practiced."

To become strong, I had to make friends with failure. To learn to fail safely out of each lift I practice. To become confident in my ability to fail without hurting myself.

Failure can be frightening if we haven't practiced failing.

We may tend to shy away from it, which keeps it awkward and scary.

One thing I value about failure is that it's not up to me. I follow my program, I do the best I can, and it either happens or it doesn't happen. I don't decide.

This is freeing.

Learning to fail replaces the fear of failure with confidence and surrender to the real.

Another thing I value about failure is that it tells me where I am and what is possible.

When I succeed, I know what I have done, but I don't know what more I could have done.

When I fail, I know that I am at the line dividing possible from impossible.

Strength training moves that line.

That's the other thing that made it click for me.