07/09/2026
For someone who's constantly asking others to step outside of their comfort zone I can't honestly say I practise what I preach all that much.
Photo taken in lingerie? No problem. I'm very comfortable with my body, it's not a stretch.
BUT, realistically I generally go out of my way to stay WITHIN my comfort zone, which is not really fair is it?
So, this weekend, on my birthday (this is incidental, it's the day the thing was happening) I did something wildly outside my comfort zone.
I went to a deadlift coaching session.
This probably doesn't sound particularly dramatic. I deadlift every week. It was run by my excellent PT - MP Bodywork - and I wanted to go.
But it involved driving somewhere unfamiliar (no thanks), parking somewhere unfamiliar (definitely no thanks), walking into a gym I'd never been to (hate gyms), and then, probably my least favourite thing, Doing Things In Front Of People (all of the 'nope').
I am friendly - one to one. I am overwhelmed immediately by group dynamics.
Naturally, I gave myself a ridiculous amount of extra time to get there.
The parking directly outside was full. No problem, I'd already spotted that there was more parking further into the business park.
Which was blocked by a van 😭 I genuinely considered going home.
Instead, I drove back out, found somewhere about a five-minute walk away and walked back.
I still arrived five minutes early, because this is why anxious people leave approximately three working days for a 20-minute journey.
As I walked towards the gym I could hear a lot of noise. As I got closer there was music, a massive noisy fan, people talking, people kind of...shouting.
The sensory overload was intense and I was hit with "I absolutely cannot stay in this space for an hour and a half"
(Hello clients, I see you 🤣)
I said hello to the organiser whilst simultaneously thinking "This is not my place, I should not be here".
Instead of bolting (which I really, really wanted to do), I closed my eyes and did the slow breathing I use in yoga until my nervous system stopped yelling ABORT MISSION quite so loudly.
And then we started, and it was fine. Not "I suddenly realised there was nothing to be anxious about" fine. I stayed anxious.
I hated arriving. I hated the noise. I hated not knowing what was going to happen.
The point, for me, was to not give in to the anxiety. To be uncomfortable, and still do it.
We took turns lifting. I talked to people and right at the end, we were asked if anyone wanted to try for a personal best.
I didn't particularly. 70kg had already felt quite heavy, thank you very much. But I also didn't want to demonstrate that fear of failing was a reason not to try. I don't know if that was for myself, or for anyone else.
So I tried 85kg - which I've never lifted before. And it went up!
I'm glad I went, and at the same time I probably wouldn't do it again.
And I think that's the bit we sometimes leave out when we talk about doing things outside our comfort zones.
You don't have to discover that you secretly love the scary thing, or become a different sort of person. And you don't even have to want to repeat it.
Sometimes you can just prove to yourself that being uncomfortable doesn't mean you can't do something.
And then deadlift 85kg while you're there.
Anna
xx
