Underestimate Yourself When You Get Back to the Gym.
Gyms in many areas are reopening or will reopen soon, and many of us can’t wait to get back to our normal workouts. (I own a well-equipped home gym myself, but dream of the day when I can get back to the right squat rack.) But let’s talk about the right mindset to have when you first get back so you don’t set yourself up. to disappointment.
In truth, you are almost certainly out of power. Even if you continued to exercise during quarantine, your strength will not necessarily show up on your first day at the gym. We get a little rusty when we don’t perform certain movements for a while. Just because you can do a lot of push-ups doesn’t mean you can be successful in the bench press the first day after your workout.
Remember what we told you at the beginning of the quarantine ? Strength coach Greg Knuckols reminded us that even the best home workout will take its toll, but in the long run it will be okay:
As Knuckles put it, when people get back to the gym, “they’ll go back under the bar and see, damn it, my highs dropped 20%, maybe 30%, and they freak out and think they’ve lost all their gain. But as long as you’re trying to do some productive training in quarantine, you’ll get most of it back in a month, maybe two months. “
So, set your expectations low. Don’t try to test your one-rep highs on the first day after your workout. Yes, yes, easier said than done. (Personally, I’ll reward myself for restraint if I don’t try to make the most of the back squat on literally the first day of the back.) Instead, tackle a position that you probably suck, you’re in luck if you lift it. an empty bar, and anything better than zero will be an overwhelming success.
Therefore, when you get to the gym, start your warm-up with light weights as usual, and do it by touch. Physical therapist Jason Er recommends doing 5 to 8 reps on work sets and avoiding multiple reps to failure. (I’ve seen several other trainers recommend the same thing.) This allows you to still exercise well while still gaining an idea of where you are right now.
If you have a training program based on a percentage of your best exercises, don’t expect to come back. Try to get a feel, give it at least a few weeks, and only then should you start thinking about how your current performance compares to your old ones.
You can extend this attitude to other areas of fitness besides lifting. Do you have specific numbers that you expect to see on a treadmill or stationary bike? Settings on your favorite cars? How many reps have you always done? Don’t expect anything and let yourself be pleasantly surprised.