“Alright, Jack, last set. Let’s count ‘em down.”

Jack gripped the dumbbells tight in his hands. He took a deep breath, bracing himself.

“Ten.”

Curl. Easy. The first one always was.

“Nine.”

Curl. Slightly less easy. It always amazed him how different the first set felt from the last. He had blazed through those first ten reps no problem.

“Eight.”

Curl. God, he was struggling already. He’d hit all his sets so far today. He was so close to a perfect workout.

“Seven. Stay in the zone.”

Curl. He was focused. He was in the zone. Nothing on his mind except getting to the end of this set.

“Six. Halfway.”

Curl. Halfway. Repeat what he’d just done. Totally possible.

“Five. Don’t overthink it.”

Curl. Don’t overthink.

“Four. Blood to the muscles, not the brain.”

Curl. Muscles, not brain.

“Three. Don’t think, just move.”

Curl. Don’t think. Just move.

“Two. You can drop when you’re done.”

Curl. Drop when done.

“One. Almost there.”

Curl. Almost there.

“Zero.”

Drop.