WTF!?!?!?!?!?!?! You switched to bbing? Shaking my head.....
Alright nerds... Here's my reasoning:
Last August I had painful elbow issues. What followed the elbow was the scapula. This Winter I had lower back issues for the zillionth time due to mobility problems and now my AC joint is under attack, having consistently hurt for months.
In addition to the pain, I also have a few responsibilities, in no particular order of importance:
1. A new puppy I'm trying to properly train and exercise
2. Kids that have two-a-day swim practices Monday-Thursday, with meets Thursday and Saturday evenings, all the way into August
3. A wife that deserves attention
4. A shitty, inherited yard we are trying to improve
5. A Summer drawing regimen that I've neglected ever since the puppy showed up
6. Housewife duties (cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.)
7. Hitting the gym
8. Summer socializing
9. Extra-curricular art programs for the kids
10. Weeklong beach vacation in late-August
11. 10 year anniversary this weekend
12. 17 DIY woodworking projects that will complete furnishing all the rooms in the house (art desk for playroom, bench for entryway, shelving, etc.)
13. Freelance illustration projects that keep popping up, bringing in unexpected income weekly
I'm still a powerlifter, I still want to compete and I still plan on stealing some state records. Truth is, I just need a break physically and mentally. I'll continue pushing myself in the gym, just not for two hours a session, 4 sessions a week. I'm overweight, out of shape and beat up. My oldest doesn't enjoy the gym child watch as much as when she was little. My lifts have been stagnant for months and my back muscle symmetry is so bad I lay crooked on the bench, changing my bar path badly - my left side is substantially smaller than my right.
I've realized that I have a lot of responsibilities to my family and my future career, my household and community and powerlifting was stressing me out. I'd come home hurt or disappointed, frustrated and short-tempered, and my friends and family noticed it. Fuxk all that noise. I used to have tons of fun with it.
I've tried completing Bully Yoga THREE FUCKING TIMES and have failed thus far. Whether it was due to injury or time-constraints, I wasn't able to stay consistent with the programming. One time it took three weeks to finish up 5 days of training because of finals.
My bench technique has been causing shoulder problems for who knows how long and my hips crunch and crack for the first time ever. My shoulder crunching is back as well, having been eliminated in lock-up due to lack of heavy pressing coupled with a good shoulder rehab routine. It's almost as if the heavy pressing and bad technique was out-working the rehab.
It's been a hell of a year so far. Dean's List, new puppy, new house... I'm not complaining one bit, I'm just explaining why powerlifting is taking a momentary backseat in my life. I need to stop hurting all the time so my anxiety lessens and I need to focus on what's most important: family, home and school. I don't wanna exhaust one of the most exhilarating activities I've ever come across, and I've been getting damn close. I realized I was feeling super-guilty because I wasn't consistently filming my lifts or completing a workout, all my training partners bailed on me, Wifey doesn't hit the gym anymore... I would rather, for now, jump in the gym for about an hour, get a good pump and gain some muscle while dialing in my diet and fixing mobility issues... All without adding PR chasing into the mix.
Plus, I highly doubt I'll lose all my strength in a couple of months by focusing on hypertrophy. I have a feeling the mind-muscle connection will only increase allowing for a better powerlifter to emerge in the future.
There you have it, folks.
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