
I walked into the gym, straight to the weights section and the most lovely sight in the world greeted me. Gym goers, you'll know of this beautiful sight....a free power rack, with a full complement of weights, a free bench and a free workout mat. Bliss!
So, I warmed up a little - body weight squats, squats with the 20kg bar, +10kg, +20kg all felt deceptively easy.
I upped the weights to my current easy cruising weight of +30kg and suddenly the month off and the 5 warm up sets caught up with me. Ouch! Still, I pushed on a little, knowing at this point I'd regret it and added another +5kg. What I didn't realise was how quickly I'd come to regret this decision....
Finishing up the squats, tidying away my legs started that jelly feeling. Humm.
Lunges and Tri-dips went smoothly, until we hit the hamstring curls. The final set of hamstring curls and I made the mistake of laying (front down) on the bench after finishing the set.
I knew I had to get back up but it seemed like such a big, unimportant thing, so I laid there for a little while until I plucked up the energy to roll off of the bench sideways, drag my other leg off and roll my hips so I was sat on my butt on the floor and then roll up to standing using the bench and the strength I had in my arms to help....
Can't say it was my most dignified moment in the gym. Still, I'm sure I've had worse.....flashing people has to come above rolling around on the floor trying to get up....right? ;)
The final sets of barbell hip thrusts, deadlifts and leg raises took a little longer than one might expect but I left the gym striding on cloud 9. It felt amazing. I was drenched in sweat, smiling like a madwoman and feeling like superwoman.
Then I sat down. Ah. Driving home was made much more interesting by the requirement of using the clutch. I got stopped at a red light and had to fight an inner battle not to just let the clutch go and hell be with whatever happened next.
Still, I made it home. Now, I'm sure that living on the first floor seemed like a GREAT idea when we moved in, but today it seemed like a personal challenge. I have to confess that more than once whilst climbing the stairs to our apartment I was very tempted to sit on the stairs outside my flat and call Simon using my mobile to come and get me....still, I have some pride, so I crawled those last steps and made it to the flat alone ;)
Anyway, a hot bath, lots of water, a protein shake and some gentle yoga later I am now sat down with zero chance of wanting to get back up. What I'm most impressed by though is the amazing sense of release I've had by getting back to the gym, almost like when you've been clutching something for ages without realising it. I find nothing more cathartic than focusing only on making my body push through lifting more than it ever could and paying that debt in sweat. What is your most cathartic moment in your routine?
Well. All I'm left with is - What a workout - I always think you can measure a good workout by how much driving home challenges you....that and how sweaty you are. Anything below positively amphibious needs reviewing ;) What marks a good workout for you?