Physical Intelligence - Day 29

It is only a matter of coincidence and luck that I have timed my workout sessions with watching a record winning performance from my beloved Tottenham Hotspur. Their 9th win today was the one that most Spurs fans have waited over two decades to see, to finish above our traditional nemesis called Arsenal. Today I did not notice being 90 minutes in the gym simply because I was watching soccer history unfold on the screen and I just happen to be exercising. Spurs have won 9 straight league games which is their best sequence since 1961 when they last won the title. They also closed the gap to Chelsea to 4pts. All of this made being in the gym so easy and the only conscious connection that I was in the gym was piles of sweat that poured forth, as my attention was superfocused on Tottenham's 2-0 victory.

The Guardian put together a good pre-match primer why today's win means something for me :

It would be nice if everyday there was something to keep me superfocused to the point of not noticing the sweat and gym time. Last night in the early hours that superfocus was not football but boxing as British Heavyweight Anthony Joshua beat Wladmir Klitschko though I already knew the result but heard it was one of the best fights in recent history. It definitely was that.

Watching victory is far more fulfilling than sharing defeat, so the gym sessions with LIVE Tottenham games have been timely and helpful. This is the fourth time I have watched a Spurs game while engaged in gym, all of them kept me in the gym for more than a hour and in that time Spurs four wins netted goals scored 11 times - goals conceded 0 times. That record surely cannot continue with games coming up against West Ham on Friday and another game of great significance for a Spurs fan - which is the last home game EVER at White Hart Lane. The new stadium is very visible as it emerges in construction around the Northumberland Park side of the the ground. It will be an emotional farewell to a ground with many memories and it is this historical perspective which is most timely with my exercise. I could not have planned this better - which is a reminder that it is a chance moment rather than an expected given.

I have to be mindful that I handling gym equipment when it is I celebrate Tottenham scoring and when Deli Alli scored his first ever goal against Arsenal, it was a bad idea to jump in joy, so I must be mindful of slips, trips and falls and recognize that safety in gym is not platitude but a really important part of attaining physical intelligence. Had this been last year when Spurs season fell apart at the end of the season, it would not have been helpful to be in a gym and encounter bad team results, especially the last game of the season when Spurs went to relegated Newcastle and inexplicably lost 5-1, allowing Arsenal to take second place. It would be hard to shake off that memory and instead of engaging for 90 minutes, it would feel like a sucker punch, except this is spiritual in form rather than physical.

So Day 29 in the gym was all smiles and euphoria, the like of which have not been witnessed by any Spurs fans acknowledge in terms of league title aspirations, is the best in living memory. Deli Alli was not even born the last time Spurs beat Arsenal by a score of 5-0. Today that score should have been bettered had it not been for more wasteful shots and brilliant saves from Arsenal keeper Peter Cech.

Tomorrow the gym session will be more down to Earth, as I focus on "flexibility".