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July 29, 2010, 04:32:20 pm |
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Topic: Ask Deanna (Read 20718 times)
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Mark Saranchuk
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
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Posts: 1133
"If you don't have it don't hit it"
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About 19 Canadian Records in powerlifting!...most of which still stand 20 years later...not too shabby...
And we all know Deanna probably had more potential then any woman back in the mid 1980's in bodybuilding but chose not to become a freak show. I can't remember who said it on the "Welcome to Ironage Deanna Panting" thread but they described her as a true thoroughbred...I can't think of a more apt description.
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Deanna Panting
Global Moderator
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Natural Born Ironager
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Hhmm,
That is a good one Bob, it actually depends on the people. Any partner of an athlete has the unenvialble job of being there through the day to day grind but being left behind come competition day either due to travel or just sitting in the audience or back stage when the athlete is getting the accolades.
I have had a lot of relationships go by the wayside in part due to the stresses of being in the "supporter" role (OK THAT didn't sound good but it's true). If someone is intimidated by your drive or success, they are not there for the right reasons & you need to distance yourself.
It is also harder, I think, for men to settle into this role as it is not as prevelent as, say the hockey wives we have here in Canada. That said, there are special people out there who want you to succeed for you & are very selfless in that pursuit. Hopefully, down the road, they get their thank you's.
But the life of any athlete, male or female is hard.
When I raced World Cup skeleton, none of my male counterparts were ever asked about who is caring for their children when away but it was a constant question from the european media. I missed every christmas concert of my son's from grade 1 to 5th. He always understood so maybe I am making it easier for the next generation of female athletes as his generation has had more athlete moms to learn what it's like.
I apologize for going on like this here...don't mean to bore you but it is not an easy answer.
I have been blessed to currently have people in my life who are proud & supportive.
Now that I am a skeleton coach, my schedule remains the same, just without the medals!
So... in my long winded way... any of you competeing in ANYTHING... the people close to you should be the ones who love you for you & are proud of your effort because at the end of the day, results come & go, trophies get broken or tarnished but I am lucky to have some amazing memories to share with people I care about.
I hope I have answered you Bob!!
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Deanna Panting
Former Pro Bodybuilder
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Mark Saranchuk
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
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Gender:
Posts: 1133
"If you don't have it don't hit it"
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...articulate and easy on the eyes...what a combination!
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Mark Saranchuk
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
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Gender:
Posts: 1133
"If you don't have it don't hit it"
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Deanna here is my question:
How did your background in bodybuilding/powerlifting help you physically/mentally (if at all) to become a world class athlete in your most recent sport of Skeleton?
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Deanna Panting
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
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Posts: 1761
Natural Born Ironager
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Hello Mark,
Well, surprisingly, I think if I had not been in bodybuilding I would have never been successful in World Cup Skeleton racing.
It may seem like an ulikely duo but I think about it this way...
In bodybuilding, you subject yourself to unblinking scrutiny. It is really mindboggling to the majority of the masses that we would have the confidence to stand, pretty much unclothed, infront of an audience & judges & be picked apart & flaws be searched for! Yes, there is the stereotype of the insecure gymrat but all of us have insecurities... possibly it would be best described as "courage"?
I remember standing there for what seemed like an eternity at some shows & if you are on you game & everything is going right, each passing moment, your confidence can grow. But stand on stage out of shape, having missed your peak or sick & you just want to crawl under the floorboards of the stage. But still... you have to stand there & accept your results. Again, most of the population would never subject themselves to that!
In Skeleton, especially at the World Cup level with live Eurosport transmissions of the races with millions of people watching, it is the same concept & here is where bodybuilding prepared me for it...
Cameras follow EVERY move, every corner & the perfect race is like the pursuit of the perfect golf game... rarely, if ever does it happen. Any mistake along the track is seen & scrutinized. Where there is not tv coverage, people watch live timesheets on the internet & will know every place you lost or gained time so there is no hiding. There is no button to push to get off the "ride" if it is a mounting disaster &, trust me, EVERY racer has had races like that, even Olympic Gold medalists!
At the finishline, a camera is in your face when you take your helmet off & good run/bad run, 1st place or dead last, you have to face it & accept that that was your performance.
So you see, Mark, at first glance, they are total opposites... one is months of prep can make or break you result the other is prep but largely an "in that instant" performance. Mentally, though, they are character building exercises that really, most people would never experience.
Let's face it, "arm chair" quarterbacks by far out number athletes on the try- out field!
I encourage all of the athletes I work with to embrace the experience of growing as both athletes & people at the same time. I feel that in both bodybuilding & skeleton you can come away a much more "complete" person if you approach it properly.
Again... my apologies for the long answer... I promise if I get an easy question, the answer will be shorter!
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Deanna Panting
Former Pro Bodybuilder
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Mark Saranchuk
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
Offline
Gender:
Posts: 1133
"If you don't have it don't hit it"
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Excellent answer Deanna...thank-you for that.
And sorry, you're not going to get off with easy questions...
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Mark Saranchuk
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
Offline
Gender:
Posts: 1133
"If you don't have it don't hit it"
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Hey you guys out there think it takes a lot of guts to get under a heavy squat...try flying head first down a mountain at 70 mph....
Check out the focus in Deanna's eyes...
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Deanna Panting
Global Moderator
Olympia Level
Offline
Gender:
Posts: 1761
Natural Born Ironager
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Hi Intenceman,
I am still waiting for an easy question because that's a tough one...
Bodybuilding, as all of you know as well as I, is such a long, arduous battle with the day-in & day-out dieting & training. I found after a while, it could become almost a habit (for lack of a better term) & somehow that made it easier for me to "just do it".
At the time I dealt with a lot of difficult personal situations & dramas at that time so training/dieting and, for lack of a better word, thriving under those strict conditions probably helped as an outlet or coping mechanism. I relished in the training & breaking thru the pain barrier everyday & I found the more I saw from the dieting, the "easier" it became as I wanted to see more.
So while it is a task that most people in the world would voluntarily take on, it was almost a comforting to me to find I could overcome hunger & self-critisism & self doubt to get to the gym everday & keep it up. I felt indestructable inside.
That said, I had a relativly short BBing career, 3 years but it was an amazing time in the sport that it all flew by & didn't have a chance to "get old" for me.
It was definitely the most difficult TIME in my life but the sport of it was unbelievably fulfilling. I also have to say that there are some people from that time in my life that if I didn't do the sport, I would not have known & my life would have missed out on some great friends. So it was probably the most rewarding.
Powerlifting, this was the easiest for me... I was strong, both by nature & from the BBing training, so I went in meets & lifted heavy weights...period.
My second organized powerlifting meet was the 1987 IPF Worlds where I was 2nd so I can't take credit for any special training... I am just stupidly strong. My 13 year old son has managed to inherit that trait one as well.
Skeleton, was the toughest emotionally for me. My World Cup racing took me away from my son & I missed a total of 2 years of his life from 4-11years old. I did math homework on the phone from Germany, had tearful conversations when in Lativa with him saying simply "come home". That said, he is proud of how I did & foregave me for being gone so much but the rollercoaster of emotions I went thru was something... not to mention guilt.
That's the personal/emotional side of it.
From the physical side, I returned to my track/sprinting roots & had to re-train my body for speed again. All of this over the age of 30. I raced WC from 34 - 41 years old. After a massive calf tear in 2001, I came back the next year to have top 5 start (50m) times in the sport but, trust me, that was training that felt like hell.
I would say it was the most difficult physically as well. Not only do you train for speed/power but training runs would beat the hell out of you if you crashed or hit a wall. I would spend my winters covered in bruises, packing ice on wounds & I broke my left hand a few times. I also suffered a serious concussion that took a lot of patience to return from.
There is a fearlessness you need to develop which is best described as ignoring all of your survival instincts & learn to relax & focus in intence situations. It was amazing to me how, with time, I could train my brain to have incredible reactions. Where new sliders just hold on, I could slow everything down with the calmness in my mind & concentration for the runs to be almost zen-like.
I encourage anyone to pursue any sport/endeavour that allows you to train your mind that way. I swear you can take on the world when you can control your fears & adrenalin like that.
And I should add, as tough as skeleton was, I travelled the world over more times than I can count, met countless people & even managed to hear my national anthem while standing on the top of the podium... so, it was the toughest but I am so happy I went through it... actually, I wouldn't change doing any of these sports.
Apologies again for being so long winded...
Deanna
Ok I have a question. Deanna, you've competed at a high level in several sports, which is amazing. Which did you find the hardest? Easiest? Most fun, least fun? Most rewarding?
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Deanna Panting
Former Pro Bodybuilder
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intenceman
Olympia Level
Offline
Gender:
Posts: 2009
Old school Heavy Duty Trainer
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Hi Intenceman, I am still waiting for an easy question because that's a tough one... Bodybuilding, as all of you know as well as I, is such a long, arduous battle with the day-in & day-out dieting & training. I found after a while, it could become almost a habit (for lack of a better term) & somehow that made it easier for me to "just do it". At the time I dealt with a lot of difficult personal situations & dramas at that time so training/dieting and, for lack of a better word, thriving under those strict conditions probably helped as an outlet or coping mechanism. I relished in the training & breaking thru the pain barrier everyday & I found the more I saw from the dieting, the "easier" it became as I wanted to see more. So while it is a task that most people in the world would voluntarily take on, it was almost a comforting to me to find I could overcome hunger & self-critisism & self doubt to get to the gym everday & keep it up. I felt indestructable inside. That said, I had a relativly short BBing career, 3 years but it was an amazing time in the sport that it all flew by & didn't have a chance to "get old" for me. It was definitely the most difficult TIME in my life but the sport of it was unbelievably fulfilling. I also have to say that there are some people from that time in my life that if I didn't do the sport, I would not have known & my life would have missed out on some great friends. So it was probably the most rewarding. Powerlifting, this was the easiest for me... I was strong, both by nature & from the BBing training, so I went in meets & lifted heavy weights...period. My second organized powerlifting meet was the 1987 IPF Worlds where I was 2nd so I can't take credit for any special training... I am just stupidly strong. My 13 year old son has managed to inherit that trait one as well. Skeleton, was the toughest emotionally for me. My World Cup racing took me away from my son & I missed a total of 2 years of his life from 4-11years old. I did math homework on the phone from Germany, had tearful conversations when in Lativa with him saying simply "come home". That said, he is proud of how I did & foregave me for being gone so much but the rollercoaster of emotions I went thru was something... not to mention guilt. That's the personal/emotional side of it. From the physical side, I returned to my track/sprinting roots & had to re-train my body for speed again. All of this over the age of 30. I raced WC from 34 - 41 years old. After a massive calf tear in 2001, I came back the next year to have top 5 start (50m) times in the sport but, trust me, that was training that felt like hell. I would say it was the most difficult physically as well. Not only do you train for speed/power but training runs would beat the hell out of you if you crashed or hit a wall. I would spend my winters covered in bruises, packing ice on wounds & I broke my left hand a few times. I also suffered a serious concussion that took a lot of patience to return from. There is a fearlessness you need to develop which is best described as ignoring all of your survival instincts & learn to relax & focus in intence situations. It was amazing to me how, with time, I could train my brain to have incredible reactions. Where new sliders just hold on, I could slow everything down with the calmness in my mind & concentration for the runs to be almost zen-like. I encourage anyone to pursue any sport/endeavour that allows you to train your mind that way. I swear you can take on the world when you can control your fears & adrenalin like that. And I should add, as tough as skeleton was, I travelled the world over more times than I can count, met countless people & even managed to hear my national anthem while standing on the top of the podium... so, it was the toughest but I am so happy I went through it... actually, I wouldn't change doing any of these sports. Apologies again for being so long winded... Deanna Ok I have a question. Deanna, you've competed at a high level in several sports, which is amazing. Which did you find the hardest? Easiest? Most fun, least fun? Most rewarding?
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The unexamined life is not worth living-Socrates. .'It ain't about how hard you can hit, but how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward
'-Rocky Balboa
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panting_deanna041125.jpg
