We do plan on keeping one another motivated and would enjoy to continue interacting with all of you.

Kris Freedain @mindonly
Blake Wilson @blakethegeek
Emily Breder @ohiobuddhist
Emily (Liz) Helt @mindfulness108
Andy Lambert @uuzennie

And who knows, maybe Iron Lotus will eventually have a rebirth when the time is right.
Thank you

Today I did 50 squats and 50 reverse-grip curls with a 35-pound barbell (no weights). My focus is on re-creating the habit and learning to love the lifting again. And I have to say, by the end of the workout I felt better, which is exactly what I was going for.

Next workout, probably tomorrow or the day after, will be attempting back extensions and crunches again. I’ll start adding weights next week.

So on to the next thing – getting back into my workout. I’ve got to start basically from square one, but that actually makes it easier than trying to pick up where I left off. I’m not going to go as gradually as I did last time, just start at about half of what I was lifting before and do a lot of reps, focusing on re-igniting the habit and the love of the exercise.

So I’ll be posting more soon. Working out today, Wednesday and Friday is all goes well. I might have to push it back a day in the middle of the week, depending on how work goes.

Shoulder stretch, roller, leg stretch with bands

Warm up sets

Working sets:

350 x 3

400 x 3

450 x 3

Assistance work:

Good mornings:

135 x 10 x 3

Ab (ball):

BW x 15 x 3

Glad to get in time for deads. Consistency is a huge issue for me lately with everything else going on. Not an excuse, it just is what it is right now.  450 was heavier than it should have been, which is kind of dumb, but again, this is a result of no consistency in my training schedule. Hoping to resolve this soon.

Warm up sets

Working sets:

155 x 3

180 x 3

200 x 3

Assistance work:

Pull ups (wide, underhand grip):

BW x 8 x 3

Curls

Had to get in and out very fast as I had a 5:30 call for work, but it felt great to bust through this quickly. Looking forward to deadlifts this week.

Then I watched my now-dead car being towed away.

I am going nowhere.

I blame laundry.

I can finally get out of bed without looking/sounding like an old lady. Monday I start working out again. I’ve gained a bit of my weight back, not too much, but not unexpected either. Overall, though, I feel like this was a good thing. I had hit a plateau and a long rest was exactly what I needed to break through it.

More on Monday.

Warm up sets

Working sets (Squat):

290 x 5

330 x 5

375 x 5

Warm up sets

Working sets (Bench Press):

165 x 5

190 x 5

215 x 5

That’s it. Seems with the amount of things I have going right now I seem to just be in maintenance mode with my training. OK for a while, but really need to find the time to become consistent again.

I’m not a fan of industrial yogurts. They tend to be packed with sugar and dyes and all sorts of nasties. (Tip: if it’s still good two weeks after the expiration date, it’s got more preservatives in it than your body will know what to do with.) But I was recently introduced to Chobani, an all natural greek yogurt. Eight ounces (big serving size) of the vanilla yogurt has 22g of protein, 18g carbs, 17g sugar, 100mg sodium. Calories? 170. None from fat.

To make it even better, it’s freaking delicious. Put some honey or fruit on it and it’s like dessert. If you can find it at your grocery store, try it.

Warm up sets

Working sets:

145 x 5

165 x 5

190 x 5 (just reps, didn’t push past)

Assistance work:

Pull-ups:

BW x 8 x 3

Curls

Busted through this really quickly as I had to dial back in for a meeting. Felt great though.