Interestingly enough we didn't meet in the fitness industry. Sharing another common path, we met several years back when we both were doing business in the Wedding industry. Rialand is still a Master of Ceremonies on the occasional weekend when he is not helping clients slay fat.
We reconnected after my transformation and I started following his inspirational posts on social media. I have learned quite a lot from this guy so grab some paper and pen, you might want to take some notes.
There I was. Looking at my reflection in the mirror. Counting my reps. Concentrating on squeezing the muscle I was trying to demolish. The reps started getting higher. 12…13…14…15…then I felt it! I was doing standing dumbbell lateral raises and my shoulders started feeling like they were on fire. I mean it burned so bad I literally wanted to throw the dumbbells down and lay on the floor so I didn’t have to hold my own arms up.
That’s the moment when my reflection spoke to me. It’s said, “You’re not a damn fireman so stop trying to put out the fire in your shoulders!” Of course my reflection didn’t literally say that. But that little voice in my head did. So I took a deep breath and blasted through those last 3 reps.

Here’s the big problem though. Most people act like firefighters when they workout. As soon as they start to feel that burn, they stop. Even if they haven’t done all the reps they were supposed to do. Is that you!?! Are you a firefighter in the gym!?! When you feel that burn do you cut your set short so the burning stops!?!?
You better cut that out! Because you’re cutting yourself AND your progress short! You exercise to get results right? Right! When it comes to lifting weights (resistance training) the last few reps that burn help you maximize your results.
There’s no need to get into the sciency nerd stuff behind why your muscles start to “burn.” Just know that the burn is something you should be trying to achieve instead of trying to avoid. It’s literally one of the most important parts of your workout.
Just like the chorus in that old Usher song, “Let it burn. Let it burn. Gotta let it burn.”
So next time you’re working out and you start to feel the fire in your muscles, just let it burn. Trust me, if you do that consistently you’ll see a lot more changes in your body and a lot better results. Let the real firefighters do what they do best and stop trying to be one of them when you’re in the gym.
Now go be awesome!
Rialand Jones aka The Fat Assassin®
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