​This was my first full week back in the gym since my county got back into the red zone allowing gyms to reopen.  I still cannot get over the idea the red zone is an improvement.  Government at work I suppose.

While I have made an effort to stay in shape during the lockdown and partial reopening, I had no illusions I would pick up where I left off.  It has been nearly seven months since I was in the gym (barring a very brief reopening followed by an extended closure).  My 25-year-old self probably couldn’t do it.  I know my 55-year-old self certainly can’t.

With that in mind, I went back to the beginning of the AthleanX program I nearly completed.  Even though it is easier than where I left off, I was still cautious about what weights I would use.  For upper body, I didn’t lose as much as I had anticipated.  I am not happy about the setback but I’m glad to have overestimated my losses.

Legs are another story.  It felt good and terrifying to squat again.  I lost a lot of gains.  Mind you this is all a relative measure.  I have always had skinny legs but just before the shutdown there was some (barely) noticeable improvement in size, definition, and strength.  I squatted using a weight I can currently handle.  After a couple more leg exercises my routine called for deadlifts.  I passed.

​It is a damn good thing I passed.  The following day I was sore but mobile.  The day after is when it hit.  JHTFC I was sore, had a very restricted range of motion, and wondered what I did to myself.  I give it another day or two before I wonder how much more I can do on my next leg day.  Onward and upward as they say.

​The real question in my area is whether gyms will be able to stay open. Apparently, our Covid numbers are rising so we may be headed back to the purple zone. I simply hate my governor.

The only heartening part of this is my county is somewhat less authoritarian than the coastal urban areas of the state.  From the same article:

The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday will revisit a proposed accelerated public health de-regulation plan to allow all Riverside County economic sectors to reopen by as soon as November, bypassing the state’s tiered system to mitigate coronavirus impacts, which Executive Office staff said could come at a cost of $100 million in money otherwise due to the county.

Under a tentative plan introduced by Supervisor Jeff Hewitt on Sept. 22, the county would take a self-directed approach to removing restrictions on the private sector and fully opening by the start of November.

“We’re going to be operating in an economy that’s going to be crushed. We need to move forward on this and stop putting it off,” Hewitt said, venting frustration at the governor’s and California Department of Public Health’s changes to reopening formulas since March.

​Jeff Hewitt is a Libertarian.  You read that right.  A capital L libertarian who not only got elected; he is actually pushing a pro-freedom agenda at the local level.  

What is proposed is a big deal.  It will cost our county a ton of state money.  It will also set us free from all the garbage mandates coming out of Sacramento. For those of you so inclined, join me in a prayer for this guy and his continued intestinal fortitude.

Side note: Last week I meant to post a link to California’s COVID numbers but dropped the ball. Here they are broken down by age group.  If you are under 60 then your age group’s percentage of deaths is below your percentage of the population.

This week’s music choice is dedicated to Kamala Harris and her debate performance.