Boo

Congratulations WeegieWoman. You took the test and passed with flying colors. A lifetime of freedom is a fine reward for your efforts. Enjoy the Lido Deck.

Well...I inadvertently opened up a Pandora's Box of sorts here yesterday, so I'll just say a bit more and we can all get back to our regularly scheduled programming in this thread. Stress...we've all got it. Working out is a form of stress on the body. Done right, it is the kind of stress that leads to adaptation and becoming stronger. Over do it and you are just beating the hell out of yourself to a point that not only will you no longer adapt, you will actually start to become weaker. That's not good. Working out is not only a source of stress, but it accumulates with all the other stresses in your life (work, family, relationships, etc.). It would be nice if we could compartmentalize our stresses and keep them separate from one another, but that's not how stress works. Stress from one area of your life bleeds over into other areas of your life. I'm not complaining, I'm just saying: Over the last eight months I bought a new house, changed jobs, helped with my parents as they both dealt with health issues among other things. On top of that, I added more volume and intensity to my workouts while simultaneously getting less sleep or anything resembling rest and recovery. That was stupid on my part. Don't do what I did. Good sleep and adequate recovery time is vital to any health and fitness regimen. You can program the perfect workout routine, but if you do not allow for recovery eventually you will plateau and then regress. Know who talks at length about the importance of adequate sleep and rest but never follows his own advice? This guy...yours truly. So, in closing: I'm not giving up on the workouts. I'm not looking to to resign myself to a life on the couch with a family size bag of Doritos and a big ol' jug of Mountain Dew. What I am going to do is rest this week. Have a deload week next week and follow that up with a reload week. From there, train in a more sensible and sustainable manner with more focus on adequate recovery time. It may not gratify the ego, but it's what I need to do right now.

Yeah, I know you and Doreen were just joking around. I certainly wasn't feeling like a "young stud" when I wrote that previous post. Tired, left shoulder hurting, and a flared up sciatic nerve. Sometimes you have to reevaluate what you're doing. I'll stop whinging and moaning now, but I am going to take a few days off from the workout routine. Probably just spend more time playing with my puppy Cash. He's turning into a real bundle of energy, so just keeping up with him should provide plenty of exercise.

I understand that you're just joking, but this brings up a serious point for me. I've debated my continued participation in this thread. I love working out. I love the gym. I love the challenge. I love the way I feel after a good workout. And, as I'm prone to do, when I like something I take it to an extreme. There are many benefits to my workout regimen, but it is a balancing act. There are also issues I'm dealing with like joint pain and inflammation. I'm doing a lot with supplementation and CBD oils to combat some of the negative effects of pushing my body the way I do. My point: Don't feel any need to match or exceed my workouts. Don't pay attention to the "fitness celebrities" on Instagram. A majority of the fitness advice on the internet is garbage. Figure out where you are in your fitness journey and design a program that meets your needs and matches your current abilities. You're not in a competition with anyone on the internet. If you are better right now than you were previously, you are winning.

With the climbing I did this weekend, I wanted to balance things out and hit the anterior chain this morning. Strength work consisted of: Front Squats, Bench Press, Dips, Roll-Outs, and Sled Pushing. Finished up my workout with five rounds on the heavy bag.

That was the last hurdle I cleared in my quit. It was about eight or nine months in before I really started feeling like a nonsmoker who was permanently done with the cigarettes. It wasn't a huge issue. I wasn't struggling with my quit. There was just a mental block there. Eventually I was able to flip that switch, but it took some time. Years of addiction and conditioning can take some time to undo.

Cash has figured out which cabinet we keep his treats in. He wags his tail and knocks on the door of that cabinet. Sometimes I give him a treat. Other times, when I know he's already had too much to eat, I can lure him away from the cabinet with his favorite chewy toy. He would eat all day if we let him. However, he's still a puppy and has a short attention span.

Did a bit of hiking and a lot of climbing yesterday and today. Deep Creek on Saturday and Buzzard Point this morning. Total of approximately 12 miles of hiking and 8 hours of climbing. Has the same dual meaning here in the States as well. I don't know who named the Olympic lifts, but between the "Snatch" and the "Clean and Jerk" it's hard to be taken seriously when discussing the lifts.

Nice work Ang. You've started a journey that will be one of the most rewarding of your life. Onward to freedom.

Great job Martian. Keep on keeping on.

Great job Ela. Enjoy the Lido Deck, you've earned it.

I became obsessive about health and fitness after I quit. It helped on several fronts. Between working out and reading books and articles about exercise and nutrition, it didn't leave much time to think about wanting a cigarette. My tendency towards becoming a hyper-focused geek when I take up something new actually played in my favor on this one.

Welcome aboard Foe. Good call on starting again. Not One Puff Ever...Not even one. Observe that simple rule and you're good to go. Enjoy the ride.

Doesn't sound stupid at all. Most of us like a sense of normalcy and familiarity. That's just human nature. However, if we're going to reach our potential, there have to be moments of discomfort. Times when we break from the routine. It's the only way change can occur. Everyone who quit smoking felt those moments. The early days of a quit can be a confusing time both physically and mentally. With that being said, ask any former smoker if it was worth it in the long-run. My answer is a definitive, without-a-doubt YES!

Craves are temporary thoughts. Fleeting. Don't make a long-term commitment that is not in your best interests based solely on a temporary thought. The regret of throwing away your quit will far outlast the nicotine fix you get from smoking a cigarette.

Is lighting up a cigarette going to answer all the questions and put things in a better light? Nope. All that will happen is you will get a temporary nicotine fix and be right back to square one in regards to your quit. Anything else you are dealing with at the current moment will remain unchanged by smoking a cigarette. The power to stay quit is 100% in your control. No outside factor(s) can make you throw away your quit. Choose wisely.

Changed things up this morning and yesterday. Focused more on Olympic lifts and movement based strength training. That involves: Clean and Jerks, Snatches, Farmer's Walks, Overhead Carries, Kettlebell Swings, Walking Lunges, Turkish Get-Ups, Roll-Outs, Sled Pushes, and Sled Pulls. Doing some hiking and climbing tomorrow and perhaps again on Sunday. In most gyms those are called hand wraps. Everybody has their own personal preference, but I like the Mexican style wraps with a thumb loop. Glad to hear you are enjoying the boxing.

Good luck to all the folks down under. As a show of respect, I'm not even going to make a dirty joke about the term "bushfire."

Good job Catlover.

Good work Linda. You are building a rock solid quit for yourself. Congratulations.

Strength work this morning: Front Squat, Bench Press, Dips, Roll-Outs, and Farmer's Walks. Did four rounds on the heavy bag and finished up with sled pull sprints. I won't go into my whole "why do people overlook the importance of the glutes when training" rant. I'll keep it short and say: the glutes are drivers for practically every movement of the human body, so you might want to take care of 'em. And if you develop a nice ass in the process, that's a win-win.

I live out in the sticks now. Up a mountain, in a house that you can't see from the road. I would be really surprised if we get any trick-or-treaters at our front door. Should probably buy some candy...just in case. If we do get any little ghouls showing up looking for treats and all I have to give them is green juice and omega rich fish oil supplements, those little buggers are going to throw eggs at everything I own.

Strength work this morning: Clean and Jerk, Deadlift, Overhead Press, Chin-Ups, Weighted Rope Climbs, and Sled Pulls. Finished up with intervals on the rower. Hit the posterior chain hard this morning.

Confession: That kid creeps me out. Looks like one of those horror movie babies.

I missed this thread over the weekend. So a belated welcome aboard Cader. Congratulations on the baby and making a great decision to take back your life from the cigarettes. Trust the process and enjoy the ride.