Two Plate Guy

There was a time when a huge part of my life revolved around physical activities, namely sports. Ten years of soccer combined with years of martial arts, hockey, and baseball. Top that off with random insertions of tennis, track, biking, skating, volleyball, cross-country, and a little football. Now combine that with a metabolism the speed of a bullet train and you had a pretty healthy individual.

Unfortunately, when my studies got more serious I started making sacrifices. My second semester of university I tried to get re-started in martial arts, but made it about three weeks before I had to buy almost 500 dollars worth of books and just couldn't go anymore.

Now I'm gearing up to get a much more efficient gym membership so I can get back in shape with a roommate who's actually motivated to do the same.

Back when I lifted almost daily I could bench over 150% of my body weight, which is pretty damn good for anybody. Now I'll probably be lucky to get the bar on the rack, let alone lift it. It'll suck because I've been the well-toned guy inwardly lolling as the other guy struggles with his two tiny plates. Now I'll have to be the two plate guy again and start from scratch.

*CLANK, CLANK* LOOK AT ME I'M THE TWO PLATE GUY *CLANK*

Since I've got a few weeks before I'll start up the harder routine I thought I'd at least get my heart prepared with some aerobic workout. It's a bad sign when it takes you longer to recover from the workout than it did to actually do it.

I thought I was doing all right the past couple years since I haven't gained any weight and am relatively the same size, but the little workouts I've been trying to do are a great reminder that I'm far from the shape I used to be in. I might still weigh the same amount, but I don't weigh the same amount with such strong arms or such a flat stomach.

I'm not looking to be herculean, but I'd like to be able to sprint up a couple flights of stairs and not feel like I'm about to pass out and fall back down them.

I'd track my progress here, but I can't see "Week four: I am finally able to curl five pounds" being too motivational. We'll see if the roomie and I actually get around to doing anything, first. If we're both able to find halfway decent work relatively soon, I might even try to talk him into substituting a day of work-outs for martial arts. I don't want to be too overly ambitious just yet, though. I've got a couple weeks before we'll even be in town.