How to Make Your Comeback ✔️ by Coach Chris

With the pandemic going on, everyone’s daily life has been altered. For many of us, those changes include our training routines. Whether it be fewer training days a week, changes to how we train (i.e. less weights and more bodyweight work), or just bringing less intensity to our WODs, we must all accept ourselves for where we are at in our fitness. Just like all of you, I eagerly await the day we can all be back at Stealth, training side-by-side and pushing each other to be our best. But just like we don’t want to start a long workout with an all-out sprint, we must be careful not to jump back into our regular training routine with too much intensity. So how do we handle the return to normal training?

When the gym reopens take the time to evaluate how much training you’ve actually been doing at home. Start back by a week or two at the gym training the same number of days that you have been at home, the increased intensity and re-introduction of movements you haven’t done in a while will be more than enough change to start. After the first two weeks, if you are feeling good then start by adding back in one training day every one to two weeks until you’re back to your previous training frequency.

Along with training frequency, your strength training has probably taken a hit. DO NOT come back week one and start trying to back squat the same weights for 5 reps that you were doing before quarantine. Even if your muscles are “strong” enough to lift those weights still, your nervous system has not been asked to work against such heavy loads in months and need time to remember how to do so. Start at 80-90% of your old numbers and build yourself back up.

Now I’m sure for a lot of you, are reading this and aren’t happy with the idea of getting back to the gym and having to hold back for a bit. Just remember, going too hard right away is the best way to injure yourself and have to back off training even more than that. This time also presents a great opportunity to dial in your movement patterns. The better you move with lighter loads, the easier it will be to move once you get back to heavier ones.

I can’t wait to see you all again and remember: when you take a step (or two) backwards, don’t try to jump three steps forward!​​​​​​​

Coach Chris