Friend Off Collection

*CLANK* “No, you don’t just drop them when you’re done!” Cried Rainbow dash as twilight let the dumbbell crash to the ground after completing a rep. “You lift it and slowly put it back down, otherwise there’s no point in doing it at all!”

Twilight didn’t look Dash in the eyes as she attempted to try lifting the weight again. Ever since the Running of the Leaves, Twilight had begun to like the idea of getting in shape. Every book she had read on pony physiology had commented on the importance of physical exercise and though twilight was far from being unhealthy, she admitted that she could do better.

“Alright, slowly curl your foreleg as you bring the weight up. Keep your back straight!”

Twilight let out an exhausted sigh as she dropped the weight once again, and regained her normal quadruped posture. Twilight had also read about the importance of having a physical trainer to help her, and Dash happily took up the offer. The floor of Twilight’s library was not littered with books, but an assortment of dumbbells, bars, and equipment that Twilight had never even seen before. Dash put a hoof to her forehead and readjusted her sweat band. She reached for her whistle and blew. This would be a bit harder than she thought.

“Okay, maybe starting on curls was a bit too ambitious. Maybe we could just do some pushups?” Twilight nodded and began to lower herself to the ground. Despite her tendency to be on all fours during the day, this position was uncomfortable, and caused plenty of tension in her forelegs. Dash blew her whistle and began to count.

“One!” Whistle. “Two!” Whistle. “Thr- Back straight, Egghead!”

Twilight pushed her hooves deep into the ground. Her forelegs began to shake as she brought herself up. Down closer to the ground she strained to avoid crashing her head into the ground. The books never said that it would be this hard! As she tried to lift herself again, her forelegs began to give out. She looked up at Dash who frowned and shook her head. Twilight tried to think of a way to keep going. As she held herself half way off the ground, she glanced up and caught her horn in her peripheral vision. With a furrowed brow she began to slowly channel her magic and levitated her body slightly, relieving the pressure from her forelegs. After reaching the apex of the push up she used her magic to carry her through the motions, the hue of purple guiding her body up and down in near perfect form.

“A-Amazing Twilight!” cried Rainbow dash, not aware of the magic at work. “Thirteen! Fourteen! Fifteen! I can’t keep up!” Twilight began to move faster and faster, and in a moment of pride switched to only one hoof. However the shift caused her to lose balance and she toppled over on her side, leaving her torso levitating in mid air. It took Dash a second to realize what was exactly going on. At first she felt a twinge of confusion, and then a moment of anger. “You! You were using magic! That’s cheating!”

“I’d hardly consider it cheating,” the mare replied matter-of-factly.”The point of exercise is to work out the muscles; I was simply working out my brain at the same time.”

“Even I’m not falling for that one Twilight.” Dash said with a frown, flicking Twilights horn. The purple mare slammed to the ground. “Magic doesn’t solve everything, remember Winter Wrap Up? The time travel thing? The Want-It-Need-It Spell?” Twilight eyed the floor as she brought herself back up on all fours. She was still a bit shaky as she shook her head in reply. Dash used  her hoof to bring twilights eyes to meet her own. “Magic is your thing, I get that. But wouldn’t it be good do something on your own, with your own body?” She removed her hoof and began to fly around the room. “Knowing that you’re faster, stronger, healthier!” She began to speed up. “All of that because of the effort YOU put into yourself!” Some books began to be sucked off the shelves as Dash reached a higher velocity. “All of that because you invested in yourself using what you were born with and making it better through pure willpower!” She stopped hovering in mid air while the airborne books fell to the ground. “That’s what being fit is all about.”

Twilight prodded the ground with her hoof, raised her head and smiled. Dash reached for a dumbbell and put it in Twilights hoof and blew her whistle. “Now, keep your back straight and try again.”