Module 6b: Valor
Tenacious, noble, defiance. | Module 6 - Anaerobic Capacity and Valor | Somatic Essay
Previously we talked about resilience (strength endurance) and fostering a sense of confidence which is only brought to fruition through experience. Specifically, a breadth of experience that allows us to predict and adapt to outcomes. That’s not to say it is a belief that we’ll never fail, but that we can persist whatever may come.
When that confidence is unjustified or over-reaches our experience we set fragile grounds for our expressions of power (anger). We start grabbing desperately for something to attach ourselves and our identity to.
Inevitably, we must choose how long we will hold onto that anchor. How deep we will let it pull us into the abyss? We must find a reason to continue that begins intrinsically; whose circumstances we embrace with open arms.
In other words, our defiance isn’t a vain shriek, but a silent stance in protest of our struggle -- tenacious, noble defiance.
When I was working on the original definitions for this project, the first thing that came to mind regarding anaerobic capacity was “trauma.” Now, obviously that’s not something I would want to evoke in others. However, it had occurred to me that metabolic “dumpster fires” are sometimes accompanied by a physiological trauma response like vomiting or defecating.
If you must know, for me it it’s usually the latter. Explicitly, I rode an Echo Bike hard enough to shit myself... twice. I’m not exactly proud of that, but it’s an illustrative picture. Likewise, I’ve heard of people doing aggressive enough breath holds to drop their O2 saturation low enough to lose bladder control. Again, not recommended, but it illustrates a clear connection.