Time off

A lot is written about training, but little if anything is ever written about taking time off from the gym. "Time off? Are you insane?" seems to be the common response. Yes, I think like that most of the time, but then sometimes life forces you to tone down your training or take a break altogether.

My job is very specific in that I live at it when Im sailing. No leaving the ship while we're at sea. There's nowhere to run or hide, no magical gym on ship. Just some light weights and that's about it. So, working out on ship is pretty limited. Throw in duty watches, midnight shifts and a lack of sleep and you already have the odds pretty high against working out.

Sometimes I make it work, but for the past 2 weeks I've been feeling like taking a break. I'm sure my joints needed it, my wrists certainly feel better. All I really do is use my hand grips on ship now, and I still work my ass off on ship, just no weights for now.

Taking a break allows you to figure out what you want from lifting weights. A lot of the time I get lost in the whole process of working out and I never really get to figure out why I do it. I guess that's fodder for a later post, but taking a few days off never hurts. It gives you the opportunity to figure out what your goals are, gives you some time to enjoy life and not worry about making it to the gym, and it makes you more hungry to get back (hopefully).

Out from Esquimalt.