Summer of '98

Many people remember the summer of 1998 for the great homerun race between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. The two were attempting to break Roger Maris' single season homerun record of 61 in '61. As a baseball fan and amateur historian, of course I was sucked into the phenomenon.

But I was sucked in to another phenomenon that summer, which happened to be even more enthralling: the beginning of my GAINZ journey. I didn't have a summer job, no girlfriend (obviously), and my only semi-obligation was to my summer league basketball team. What was I gonna do to pass the time before senior year of high skewl?

Eventually I decided I would "lift weights" to get in better shape and supplement basketball development. Without the funds to pay for a gym membership, the only option available was my aunt's home gym in her garage. She lived about two miles away and I had a bike; problem solved. So pretty much everyday I biked to her house in 95 degree heat, let myself in, and got after it.

The garage was dark, dank, and smelled like cats and their excretions. Space was limited. But as I would later realize and come to preach, GAINZ can be made anywhere. I remember benching 75 lbs. and struggling. I remember using old school DBs where you'd have to unscrew the nut, add or remove small weight plates, re-screw the nut, lift, and repeat for another set. I remember doing the exact same workout routine Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Same sets, same reps, same order! Ditto for Tuesdays, Thursdays. Needless to say, the training was rudimentary.
But as the homeruns began to mount that summer, so did my GAINZ. Having started at square 1, anything I did was gonna produce some GAINZ. As I got in better shape I increased weight and reps. At the end of the summer I was in better shape and ready for more. Eventually I got a gym membership and actually started working muscles other than those named "chest," "biceps," and "triceps."

The point is that GAINZ is relative to the individual and everybody has got to start somewhere. My start happened to coincide with a thrilling (performance-enhanced) homerun race, and while I wasn't juicing, the parallels between the phenomena are obvious. Production, excitement, passion, ....GAINZ. Now I'm 10 years deep in this game and really only getting started. I look back on that summer with fond memories and realize that was my "eureka" moment. Start somewhere, even if it has to be a smelly garage gym, and you'll have your own "Summer of '98" nostalgia and motivation to keep getting after it.