If you've taken a eight-month hiatus from lifting weights, do yourself a favor and DO NOT attempt to lift the same amount that you had been lifting eight months ago, when you were lifting on a regular basis.

Ouch.

Also, please do not try to keep pace with the obviously juiced-up musclehead who's benching 400 pounds across from you.

Double ouch.

Unfortunately, I did both last night and I deeply regret it this morning. Especially since I've been out of practice for the better part of a year.

When I began lifting seriously last spring, I could barely lift the 45 lb. unweighted bar. After ten weeks of dedicated training, I was benching 120 lbs. I was doing bicep curls with 20 lb. dumbbells...no little rubber neon dumbbells for me! I was doing the leg press at 220 lbs. And no, never at any point during this time did I resemble Arnold or those scary broads in the professional bodybuilding competitions. So ladies, please don't be afraid to lift HEAVY weights...it's good fer ya and you won't get bulky, I promise!

Anyway, last night I got back on the bench for the first time since July 2005. I did the first set of ten reps at 95 lbs. and nearly died. Then I attempted the second set and could only pump out five reps, at which point I had to holler for Brian to spot me. Meanwhile, G.I. frickin' Joe is on the bench across from me, grunting and gasping like he's giving birth. He was lifting a bar with four 50-lb weights on each side. Yikes!

So today, I'm walking around like a mummy. I can hardly move. Real cute. And it's not just my chest...it's pretty much my entire upper body. Arrrgh!

Quit laughing! It's not funny.

Labels: FYI, health