First week back in the gym after a 2 month hiatus. This was the longest period off of training in the past 15 years of my life. It felt wonderful getting back into the gym. I really struggled in my consideration of what program I wanted to do with the restart. Currently I’m doing the easy strength program where I pick 5 lifts and do 5 sets of 2. The goal is for the weight to feel easy and overall it has. I started with a squat (barbell back squat) and it was the first time in years 225 felt like it had some mass. I switched this to a safety squat bar to reduce the loads I can take and to build up my core.
The week prior to coming home I ended up doing a long run (11 miles) and ended up walking an additional 11 miles on a hike and just to get around. I inflamed my right Achilles insertion and haven’t been able to implement cardio since that time.
I built my training log using Google Sheets. Generally, I do a food log. I rate my day on a scale of -2 to 2. With 2 being an awesome day, -2 being a horrible day, 1 being overall good, -1 being bad not horrible. I got this off one of the knowledge project podcasts and I think it’s a reasonable rating scale. I’m considering building in some of the other check lists from Dan John University – Connect with someone, flossing daily, going to bed on time.
The other data comes from my Oura ring. I found it interesting my heart rate variability dropped dramatically during my time without training. As soon as I started lifting again it shot way back up. My sleep quality has improved.
Seeking Progress 