Slowing Down — My Fitness Journey Post-Sternotomy- Week 8

I can still remember when my surgeon told me that I should not have any strenuous activities for 2 months. And I took that seriously (almost). I started going to the gym around Week 7 and Week 8.

I started using my 5-split program under Jeremy Ethier, one of my favorite science-based coaches. I also integrated Yoga on Rest Days.

I started from zero. It was quite frustrating to be honest to be starting from scratch at the gym. But it is also humbling to be starting from scratch.

Here are some of the lessons I learned from first week at the gym:

1. Starting from the lowest weight allowed me to work on my form. Before, I only cared about the weight of my dumbells and not with form. Form is important. And funny thing was, I still had DOMS afterwards.
2. Since I am protecting the delicate parts of my body due to surgery, I am very careful with my movements. And that’s an advantage. Slow reps especially during eccentric movements are highly recommended by coaches.
3. Muscle memory is real. Prior the surgery, I feared that I’d lose my physique and lose all those gained muscles. Well I did lost something but I am starting to like how I look now even after the surgery, and just even after a week of gym. (PS. My target physique is not toned. I am targetting a chunky physique haha)
4. I love the gym energy. I never liked home workouts. It bores the hell out of me. I like the feeling of walking to the gym and choosing the clothes to wear. I also like the variety of machines and dumbells there. And although I am the introvert person in the pack who rarely do those fist bumps and high fives, it is nice to have the contagious energy of gymgoers.

The challenge for me is to look and research for alternatives. Once I feel pain, I stop and move on with the next exercise. But for some reason, the line between safety and risk is very addictive. You want to defy odds but you also want to be safe, cause half a million pesos is no joke for another round of sternotomy.

That’s it for my 8th week post Sternotomy, and I am feeling great!!!

First yoga sesh.