#lydiavalentin

Have you ever had to nod and smile your way through life? It is slightly terrifying and somewhat fun for the same reason: You almost have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.

I went to Brazil to visit DTM (who has been working there since the beginning of June). It was my very first time going to a country where English is not spoken. I know very little Portuguese. In fact, I know two words I can use with 100% confidence: Obrigata (thank you) and desculpe (sorry). I did try to learn more before so I could muddle through a little better but I am not great with language (including English). I had flashbacks to my high school Spanish classes where I probably needed real tutoring to pass the basics. I am not sure why my brain doesn’t want to make my language skillz a priority but...there it is. So I nodded and smiled my way through the trip and had a ton of fun, a little frustration, and a huge realization that I need to get out more. 

During this trip my macro experience/experiment sort of went by the wayside. I started the trip with the idea that I would do my best to track and hit the numbers I needed to hit but not to worry too much about it. About six days in (I went to Ohio first, where I could talk to/understand almost everyone! My two and a half year old niece Cecily is a little bit of a mush mouth, so she tripped me up) I gave up. Mostly because it was a toss up of what I was actually eating. Google translate was super helpful but, as with all languages, there are nuances that don’t really get translated. Many times I ordered one thing with a certain expectation and received something completely different. For example, we were at a nice little bistro when I ordered something that I was 100% sure were scallops. The word in the description was escallope and file mignon (which seemed to be any type of steak, really--not that I am picky). What came out was 2 cuts of beef. Awesome! Because two steaks are better than one. Also 100% not what I expected! There were other incidents but that was the first and probably funniest because I was so baffled at what was happening. After that, I did my best but didn’t worry about it. I plan on getting back on the horse tomorrow (mostly because I need to grocery shop and food prep today). Plus, I had more important things to do. Like watch the 75kg Women weightlift. At the Olympics. In Rio. FOR REAL!

I was already in awe of these women but seeing them live and in person was amazing. I picked to see the 75kg women because my favorite lifters are in that weight class (plus it is also my weight class): USA’s Jenny Arthur and Spain’s Lydia Valentin.

All the women were amazing and it was truly a one of a kind experience. My words could never do it justice. They were lifting weights that I can only dream of lifting. To put it in perspective, 135kg is roughly 297 pounds. Like, almost 300 pounds. Which makes this conversation super funny:

“DTM, I am in this weight class and these weights are astounding.” “Are you even close to lifting any of them?” “Yeah. If they were in pounds.”

Watching these women, these beautiful, strong, wonderful women, was life changing. I am so proud to be part of this sport and count myself lucky to have the chance to do what I do. It’s incredible. And there is no way to put a macro count on that.