I’m in a huge hole, but I’m taking all this as a great teaching tool of what NOT to do to your body. My Oura ring’s a fantastic tool to let me know when I can hammer myself or dial it back. I have literally ignored all the information. I’ve known what I was doing from the start, but man it’s tough right now.

Today is chest day, and I didn’t want to skip any more workout. I dropped the weights down a little bit, and I did less exercises to help my body slowly recover without completely losing any muscle that I may have built over the last 3 months.

Drop Set Barbell press: 4 Sets, 6*6: 50/35, 50/35, 50/35, 50/35. This was surprisingly easy. I have definitely gained some long term strength.

Push Ups to failure: 3 sets. I forgot to write them down, and I really can’t remember what I did. It was not jaw dropping…

There was a guy in the gym utilizing the cable machine so I did another chest exercise that I haven’t done yet, but I knew it would get me a good pump quickly…

Plate Press: 35lb. plate. I’ve never done this before, but I know how good it is at really squeezing the pecs. I think you’re supposed to put 2 plates together, but my chest still got a good workout with just the one. So I did 3 sets; 3 reps/4 reps/5 reps. I did lifts in the middle of the chest, and then moved the plate to the outside of each pec and hit that angle. So: 3*3*3, 4*4*4, 5*5*5… I’m about an hour removed from the workout, and I can still feel the pump. This is a good one that I’ll be throwing this one in more often.

So, if you haven’t heard of Hear Rate Variability (HRV), here is a good link about what it is, and why you should track it. HRV w/ Ben Greenfield & Dr. James Heathers

I love Ben Greenfield. His podcasts, articles, and research have been extremely informational, entertaining, and a little life changing. I highly suggest you check him out. He has tons of content, and he is a very highly recognized and respected influence in the health and fitness world.

My HRV was slowly dipping during the second month, and then it just dropped sub40’s and has been there for weeks now. Yesterday when I woke up, it was 17! I took it easy, and I got nearly 12 hours of sleep yesterday, and this morning is was 37. So, it’s going to be an uphill battle to get this thing back in the 80-100 range. I’ve got a plan though!!!!

Thanks for reading. Get Strong. Stay Strong.