No Dolphin or Plank, but I Shovel with the Best of Them

Cycling is great for keeping weight off, and carving lean muscular legs, but for an epic upper body? Not so much. When you see some of your favorite pro cyclists celebrate their wins at the end of the stage (think climbing stages) you wonder where they vanished to as they raise their non existent arms to the air. But seriously, who has time to strike a yoga pose let alone lift weights? I know it's a matter of priorities but there's only so many priorities I'm willing to put up with.


That's why I enjoy the days, like this past weekend where we had the gift of time. That's right. No soccer tournaments, no basketball tourney, and ....wait for it..no birthday parties. Shocker, I know. So almost three years later we decided it was time to install those timber steps down to the chicken coop. This was my chance to be el hombre mas macho. Cut some wood, drill some holes, excavate the earth, carry and empty several 50+ pounds of gravel yeah you know it baby. These guns were loaded. Questions like "hey, you workout?" are sure to follow. Nah, I ride a few miles and move earth no big.

So when 11:30 rolled around today, I was done. Toast. It's the feeling when you haven't worked out for years. And then New Year's rolls around and you decide, ok you're going to start lifting weights again. Sort of like when you quit drinking, over and over again...only the opposite. And then you go to the bench press and think oh I'll just reduce my max press by 20%, and do a simple three reps and I'll be fine.  The next day you're in so much pain that you don't workout again for a week or two. It happens. Well that's how I felt, only it was just 11:30. I still had another four hours of work left! Thankfully, my wife was around to help el mas macho del mundo keep going. From bringing me McDonalds and ice cold water (not in that order), to rotating turns with the sledge hammer against the rebar. Nothing like a 700 calorie milkshake and your wife to save the day.

I sat on the deck later that afternoon chatting with my neighbor Greg. I had my favorite beer in hand, a nice cold  Racer 5. The perfect way to end a workout. That's right. I may not hold a dolphin pose, or plank for endless minutes, let alone bench my own body weight, but instead I did something much tougher. I moved earth. My excavation workout should last me at least 6 months. Just in time to pick up my other project...building a pump track. But really, who has time for that?