Near as I can tell, it’s been 7 weeks since my last workout.
Probably longer than I have ever gone without working out in my entire life.
To be clear THIS WAS NOT ON PURPOSE.
Well, that’s not entirely true.
It started off on purpose. It was supposed to be a two week forced break from working out while I researched and wrote about taking time off from working out (see my last two blog posts).
I figured, ‘If I’m going to write about it, it only seems logical that I experience it’
So two weeks went by without training…not a big deal.
Then on the night when I was SUPPOSED to start training again I had the unfortunate luck of being rear-ended on my way home from work.
Luckily, no one was hurt, and the kids weren’t in the car..
However, for lack of better terms I somehow ‘messed up’ my foot (the one that was on the break) and my back.
Again…nothing major, but definitely enough to keep me out of the gym for another two weeks.
Now here is where it get’s interesting…
When those two weeks were up I could have started training again, but I didn’t.
The reason?
“I just wasn’t feeling it”
Weird, and looking back at it now it was obvious what was going on…back then I couldn’t see it, but now it’s clear as day.
I was losing the habit.
Then…I had to shut down my gym while we did some quick reno’s.
Next thing I knew…almost 6 weeks had gone by with no training.
WAY longer than I wanted.
And here’s what I can report.
I felt horrible.
I have no idea what happened in terms of muscle loss or fat gain…really for the most part, I looked close to the same.
(Nothing I can’t fix)
But the feeling was horrible.
Sloth <– best way to describe it.
Now after taking such a prolonged break I’m smart enough to know I’m not about to jump into Adonis or Anabolic Again style workouts.
That would just be silly.
I know myself well enough to realize that I would stubbornly try to go too heavy right out of the gates, and possibly end up hurting myself.
But I desperately wanted to get up and move.
More than anything…I want to move sweat and feel exhausted.
I want my heart to pound a bit more than usual.
I guess what I was craving was the feeling of Effort.
I’m also craving routine.
So my take a way lesson from this experience is that I think I have a MUCH better understanding of the mentality of people who are either A) just starting out or B) trying to make a comeback.
There is a need to feel like you are in control, that you are creating effort, and there is a need for a routine, something to follow.
Last week I talked to Craig Ballantyne about all of this.
I wanted routine, but something that was new and challenging. If I designed my new workout, it would basically end up being some form of Anabolic Again.
So I needed a ‘fresh mind’ approach.
I also really wanted to incorporate intervals into my workout for the next couple of weeks…just to feel my body move again.
BUT…despite the fact it would be a great book title..the last thing I wanted to do was “Run Walk Run”
Not my cup of tea.
That’s why I was really happy to find out that Craig has a series of ‘non-run-walk-run interval exercise routines’.
(Non-Run-Walk-Run Approved)
So my plan is simple,
Step 1: Use these workouts.
I’m not going to alter them in any way..just follow…mindlessly almost, so I can feel my body moving again, and to create the habit and the routine.
Step 2: Start fasting again.
Obviously, I’m a big fan of fasting, but I can tell you in these last couple weeks it’s been hard to motivate myself to even fast once a week. I really think fasting and working out go together..one motivated the other I guess.
Step 3: Start the basic lifts…Shoulder Press, Bench, Squat, Dead, Dips, Chins, Rows…
Just to get the groove back, and to work up SLOWLY to a decent working weight.
All leading to…
Step 4: Once I’m feeling up to the challenge I’m going full blown Anabolic Again starting in January.
Now, I do need to point out that Craig is having a Christmas sale on these workouts that I personally think is such a good value it should be on WagJag, Groupon and girlitup.blogspot.com.
You can get those three workouts above for a combined price of 19.95, which is a great deal no matter how you cut it.
If you want to take advantage of Craig doing his best WagJag impersonation, the go to www.AbsLikeCraig.com and get your books, from looking at his site it looks like there are only about two days left.
Craig’s Holiday Sale –> www.AbsLikeCraig.com
Finally, If you’ve been on an extended lay off, I can tell you that I “get it”.
I get the feeling of just wanting to ‘move’ but not being able to simply because the habit isn’t there…this is the true meaning of Sloth…it’s almost like there is some unseen force keeping you from getting to the gym, even keeping you from dropping to the ground to do a couple push ups.
And I know how horrible that feeling is.
If you are in this situation right now my advice is to move.
Don’t worry about following a complex weight training program or anything along those lines (that comes later). For now just move, and try to do your best to make it a habit.
And PLEASE don’t over think it (this was my mistake the last couple of days).
Grab a routine and follow it. There is something to be said about taking the complexity out of the equation and just following a pre-planned workout routine.
BP
PS- And Yes – I’m fasting today 😉
