hit a deadlift pr last weekend
I write this, sorely, from my bed--not from injury or defeat, but from actual sore muscles.
I’ve been going to the gym for about four months. Strength training. I’m not unfamiliar to exercise. In my twenties, I used to run on days off, and bike when I wanted to go farther and faster. Sometimes, I’d hike spontaneously in the woods outside of my city. I’d be on my feet a lot for fun when I wasn’t on my feet a lot on the clock.
I was more or less hindered from exercising consistently throughout the years: busy work and class schedules, mostly, and, pertinently, health complications. I got COVID in 2021, and cheated death. I have been dealing with long COVID since then.
Recently, though, I'm not so immunocompromised, nor am I managing as much chronic pain. My breathing doesn't feel so labored, either. My memory is solid, just in time for the fall semester. Maybe the complications are done for. I'm hopeful.
Since I started training, I felt like a horse learning to walk. The first month was getting my joints used to moving. The second was opening my hips more for the bar. The third was more technique-driven, getting me ready for gradually heavier lifts. As of this fourth month, I've hit several PRs, going over 100lbs for the first time. This past weekend, I did my first deadlift with two full plates (about 155lbs).
What am I training for? I have the unserious goal of being built like somewhere in between Chun-Li and Culling Game-era Maki Zenin, with the ability to throw a man across the room. The serious goal is being able to lift my body weight--in squats, deadlifts, and benching.
This is the strongest I've ever felt, even when I thought I was on a sharp decline for good.