Monday - The holidays are officially over

Monday -

This is a big Monday.    For me, the  Christmas/New YEars holiday season is officially over.  Why did I drag it out through the 5th?

Well, College football season effectively ended for me on the 3rd with the conclusion of the Cotton Bowl,  (and ends for everybody else tonight) -- then follows a weekend -- and then there's Monday.

I may sneak over to the YMCA with my cell phone cam at the ready today to see the fresh meat.  The newcomers who approach with equal parts trepidation and enthusiasm.  Crisp and fresh workout wear and new sneakers .   People pushing and pulling and jogging  ---
 -- gonna be a lot of sore bodies out there tomorrow.  A typical 30 something without some base fitness does not realize how little they can do before soreness sets in hard.   If the pump feels good, then its likely too much until you get a couple of weeks under your belt

If you wake up sore -- rejoice --- its your body telling you that you're still alive , still viable and that when this discomfort subsides, you'll be ready for round 2

I actually will leave the camera at home ---- no sense in having a laugh at other's expense  --- just like the old adage about people in glass houses --
      --- oh - what the heck -

  but I am curious, -- take a cross section of 100 New YEars resolution newcomers and it will be like the selection process for a tough military school
  -- after 2 weeks, 25 will drop off
  -- after 4 weeks - another 25
 - in 6 weeks -- another 25 will fall by the wayside

If you make it 6 weeks - you're in  -- welcome to the pack

This all goes back to what I mentioned in the blog posts from December 13 and 14th called -- A Poor Worker Blames his Tools - Parts 1 and 2 -- especially the point about "I'ts Friday - I'll pick up where I left off on Monday"

That closes the doors on many right there --- justifying skipping a workout for whatever reason , leads to skipping  a 2nd, a 3rd,  - then before you know it, a month has gone by


So you may ask ---  "Well what are you doin' today Big Dog?  you talk a good game ! "

Easy --- I started out today with a protein drink with 30g of protein,  followed up by breakfast 2 hours later that just consisted of 2 eggs and 3 slices of low sodium turkey

Since this is the Monday after the holidays, -- some unwanted crap has built up in the pantry , so I'm going to deposit things like tortillas, hamburger buns, chips, leftover holiday candy,  unwanted alcohol products -- straight into the round file
  I haven't consulted my workout schedule for the day yet, but there is one scheduled ----I believe its a muscle failure day, with some rowing mixed in,       and I have rest days scheduled too 
 ---- that brings up another point


The Rest Day

 -- a lot of newcomers blow themselves out quickly by thinking they have to workout every day  -- wrong -- even  CrossFit has some rest days sprinkled in their program
  You can't make gains unless you make time to rest and recover adequately -- taking the whole weekend off can often lead to poor decision making for many of us though, so I don't recommend that- but its ok to take off one of those days

.......... unless your this guy -- he hasn't missed a workout  since 1986

Epilogue:

 I will add that if you haven't taken care of yourself and fall into the category of a NEw YEars Resolution Newbie,  relax, you're not alone


Throw on the headband , dust off the British Knight high tops and get out there - pace yourself , try something new and its ok to have fun your first 3 or 4 weeks --- there will be a time to knuckle down and start "getting serious" soon enough



   -- But until then - for the sake of everyone else there, wear some underwear if you're doing squats in jean shorts ----  this one is complicated even more by the fact that the Green bumper plates are the 15 pounders !  yes -- this dude blew out his ass on a whopping 75 pounds

Also -------- keep your hands to yourself if your taking a pilates or yoga class  -- unless your over 65, then apparently you can do whatever you want
  

And lastly, keep this very accurate gym sign in mind , because I have it from a reliable government source that this is true

Thanks again to everybody who gives this a quick read  -- check the previous entries if you're new to the site, and if you like what you read --  feel free to turn a buddy onto the blog or my website by forwarding the blog on

NEwbies - send me an email and I will put you on the subscriber list


Thanks


------ Doug

Dougmcbride@fitclaimspro.com