Persevering and adapting

Hey everyone,

On Wednesday, Tannys and I were both suffering from a cold, but wanted to do a workout.  We always feel guilty when we don't workout, although we try to give ourselves more rest days when sick (e.g. avoiding back-to-back workout days).  We also pay close attention to our bodies when we design the workout and also during it to calibrate our intensity and pace.

For our workout, we combined a mix of strength-focused training with circuits.  We did a back and chest workout:

Strength (warming up using lighter weight on initial sets before the five working sets)

• Pullups - 5 sets, weighted for Alex (increasing weight through each set from 45 to 90lbs)
• Bench Press - 5 sets, increasing weight through each set (Tannys going from 85 to 135lbs.  Alex going from 245 to 345lbs)

Circuit (repeated twice)

• Reverse pushups
• Decline pushups
• Alternating kettlebell rows

The workout felt good.  Despite being sick, we each managed to keep up to our current levels (i.e. weights) on the strength moves.  It was nice to do a 'hybrid' workout with some strength and some circuits.  A full strength workout would have taken too long, while a shorter, yet full and intense circuit workout would have pushed us too hard (and compromised our immune systems). 

By persevering and adapting our workout, listening to our bodies when designing the workout and during it, we achieved our goal.  Finishing the workout gave us a sense of accomplishment and energized us for the rest of the evening.

- Alex & Tannys