I am really loving the gym. It’s a great stress reliever and I love challenging myself to see just how much my body can handle. Sometimes, however, I push myself too far… like I did last Friday. I took my car to get an oil change at Wally’s Auto, and figured I should spend some extra time at the gym while I wait. Instead of doing two sets, why not do three? Right? Ugh...
After the first set of workouts I felt really good. After the second set I still felt good. On my last set, I usually increase the weights and push myself as hard as possible. My body was getting tired, but I felt it was a “good tired”. Then I started to notice some problems. I was sweating profusely, even though I wasn’t hot. I was feeling dizzy. And even with all that, I still completed the 3rd set and went to the locker room to change. I sat down on the bench with my head down, and I couldn’t really move. A guy who owns one of the offices at the bank job asked me if I was okay and I told him yeah, saying that I’m just catching my breath. The next thing I know, there are 6 to 7 employees around me asking me questions. That guy from the bank job informed one of the gym employees that I didn’t look too good. Evidently, they came down and kept asking me if I was okay, but I would just stare at nothing without responding. When I came to, I told them I was okay and got the hell out of there.
While I was proud of myself for completing 3 sets of a very intense workout, I’d rather not go through that again. I don’t like feeling sick, but I absolutely hate being the center of attention with strangers having societal justification to speak to me. So next time, I’ll have to make sure I follow certain rules on days when I’m going to the gym:
Nino sent me this LINK to a website that gives tips on workouts. I copied and pasted the link from the email but I’m too lazy to read the whole thing right now. Posting the link on this blog is a guarantee that I’ll read it eventually. I just finished a great workout, and I feel good thanks to following my rules. I’m all for meeting my end, but to die in a gym with a bunch of idiots standing around me would be truly pathetic.
P.S.: Being a man can sometimes make it difficult to stop a workout. I've always seen dudes push through the pain like Rocky to finish what they started. It's an honorable idea, but it really has no place in working out. Pushing myself is good as long as my body is prepared to handle it. I think, after myself, I should blame those inspirational Rocky movies. He should have been brain dead after Ivan Drago...
After the first set of workouts I felt really good. After the second set I still felt good. On my last set, I usually increase the weights and push myself as hard as possible. My body was getting tired, but I felt it was a “good tired”. Then I started to notice some problems. I was sweating profusely, even though I wasn’t hot. I was feeling dizzy. And even with all that, I still completed the 3rd set and went to the locker room to change. I sat down on the bench with my head down, and I couldn’t really move. A guy who owns one of the offices at the bank job asked me if I was okay and I told him yeah, saying that I’m just catching my breath. The next thing I know, there are 6 to 7 employees around me asking me questions. That guy from the bank job informed one of the gym employees that I didn’t look too good. Evidently, they came down and kept asking me if I was okay, but I would just stare at nothing without responding. When I came to, I told them I was okay and got the hell out of there.
While I was proud of myself for completing 3 sets of a very intense workout, I’d rather not go through that again. I don’t like feeling sick, but I absolutely hate being the center of attention with strangers having societal justification to speak to me. So next time, I’ll have to make sure I follow certain rules on days when I’m going to the gym:
- Eat breakfast. I skipped breakfast that day and it definitely played a role in the incident.
- Put peanuts in the gym bag before the workout. I need quick access to my post-workout snack. After an intense workout, having to wait online at Rite Aid to buy peanuts really sucks.
- No more 3rd sets. Because I do rounds at the bank job’s parking garage, I don’t feel the need to do cardio. Until I start doing cardio, I can’t do three sets of intense weight lifting. My body isn’t conditioned to handle that much just yet. Two sets will do just fine for now.
- Get sleep. There's really no sense in starting a workout dead tired. If I don't get at least four hours of sleep or if I feel tired in any way, no gym for that day.
- Feel the heart. If my heart is beating too fast during a workout, stop and wait for it to calm down.
Nino sent me this LINK to a website that gives tips on workouts. I copied and pasted the link from the email but I’m too lazy to read the whole thing right now. Posting the link on this blog is a guarantee that I’ll read it eventually. I just finished a great workout, and I feel good thanks to following my rules. I’m all for meeting my end, but to die in a gym with a bunch of idiots standing around me would be truly pathetic.
P.S.: Being a man can sometimes make it difficult to stop a workout. I've always seen dudes push through the pain like Rocky to finish what they started. It's an honorable idea, but it really has no place in working out. Pushing myself is good as long as my body is prepared to handle it. I think, after myself, I should blame those inspirational Rocky movies. He should have been brain dead after Ivan Drago...
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I read it a few weeks ago and have been thinking about it since. Sometimes I am slow to login to comment.
I recently decided that I want to build more musculaar legs. The way to do this is to lift max weight for less reps. My leg press is at the highest it has ever been, 360 pounds, yet I feel little tinges of pain in my right quad when I lift that much. While I know better, I still always start with this amount, apply pressure to the part of my leg hoping it will stabilize it (isn't that ridiculous?), do as many as I can before dropping down to 270 for my next set. Each time I do this, I remember your post and "Pushing myself is good as long as my body is prepared to handle it." My body is not prepared.
"Being a man can sometimes make it difficult to stop a workout." -- I don't think it is gender-related. I think caring about your body and wanting to make gains is what makes it difficult to stop a workout.