Deltoid Corner

The last time I lifted weights was back in the mid-70s. I was in my early 20's, and had never done anything remotely athletic in my life except for a bit of wrestling as a 10-year-old at Camp Piasa(got an award and everything!)and one wrestling win as a 7th grader. As part of this new education,  I read some of the prevailing muscle magazines, many of which were from Joe Weider. He was a big name then in fitness, with a number of products and dietary supplements(I used to choke down his Protein Powder, in an effort to 'bulk up'), and had a number of bodybuilders under his auspices. 

I got a kick out of how it was so much its own world, this bodybuilding thing, with its cast of characters and the various "intrigues" between them as they competed for the various titles(Mr Universe, etc). Very specialized. And funny in its own way.  I remember making the quip that there should be a column in there called Deltoid Corner. 

So all these years later, with this renewed interest in physical fitness, I was toying with the idea of starting yet another blogsite. And I was going to call it- yep,  Deltoid Corner. 

But I've been down that road before. "Gee, that sounds like a great idea: a blogsite all about snails"! And then I somehow lose interest in snails, or just never get any hits, so for whatever reason I stop posting and there sits another albatross. 

With  three such sites now sitting there untended to due to my waning interest, maybe better to hold back on yet another potential albatross. Best anyway not to divide oneself into too many pieces. So the posts about fitness will stay here, unless they become so numerous and regular as to take on a life of their own. Then we'll see about opening up the Deltoid Corner for business. 

Anyway! Pictured above is my burgeoning home-gym. I've had the 15-lb dumbbells for awhile now, and have added the other weights(from 5 to 20)over the past couple months. From the exercises my trainer showed me, I can get in a complete workout with the apparatus you see here. Actually I try and get in to the gym to work as well, and try to balance the gym sessions with the home ones. Both have their advantages. 

One thing I'm still missing with this home setup is a bench. This is necessary for chest exercises like the Bench Press and Flyes. For the time being, this is what I'm using. Sort of an Ottoman/weight bench combo:

It seems to provide the neck and back support I need until I can make that trip to Scheel's or Dick's Sporting Goods and pick myself up a bona fide weight bench. 

Like I said, I did this stuff back in my early 20's. First at the Baltimore Y, then the local one, and then at home. And I accumulated a pretty good array of tools. Had a nice bench with an adjustable incline for working those upper pecs(which I didn't have, but at least had the means), a special barbell for doing biceps curls, various plates. The works, at least for my needs at the time.

All that stuff is lost, either buried in the basement or attic of the family home or traded off to someone long forgotten. So I'm starting over with the acquisition of weightstuff, just like I'm starting over with the whole exercise thing. Both a gradual process. 

Doing this stuff at this 'advanced' age has its disadvantages. Your body doesn't have as much testosterone as it did in your 20's, so your muscle-building and strength potentials are not gonna be what they were. But you do have the advantage of age-provided it's brought you at least a modicum of wisdom. You know how to work smarter.  So what you lose in one way, you gain(or at least equalize)in another. 

Unlike the stint in my 20's, where I worked the upper body almost exclusively, this time I do the whole enchilada- and starting with those hitherto neglected legs. And I'm happy to say that they're no longer spindly. Still skinny but more wire and sinew in there. 

And not unlike but above and beyond my earlier effort, where I had a mentor of sorts in the Baltimore Y who had given me a workout routine, I now have a trainer. Well, there was one with whom I've worked for a couple 3 months, ending in October; and will probably work with again in the Spring. He has given me the equivalent of several workout routines, and lots of tips which I try to remember as I now exercise on my own. 

So I'm off and running with this exercise thing. I've started back up God knows how many times over the last 2 decades or so, only to get a week in and get sidetracked. Actually the last attempt was last year, with my 15-lb dumbbells, and I pulled something. So that put me off for a legitimate while and then sidetracked again.

 I think what made the difference this time was working with a trainer, where you're obliged to make your weekly appointments, thus getting you through those grotty early weeks where you'd ordinarily throw in the towel. And it was rough at first! I had muscles that hadn't been exercised in 20 years, so they'd poop out in the course of the workout in those early sessions. 

But you build stamina after awhile, and it becomes more enjoyable. Much like learning a musical instrument, which becomes exponentially more fun as you acquire the skills to express yourself. Of course you develop stamina as a musician as well: lung power(and embouchure) if you're a wind player, callouses if you're a string player. 

I don't know if this will help my guitar playing or musicianship in general, if there's any tangible benefit to be gotten, but exercising seems to help me. I feel good after a strenuous workout, vitalized, and for the first time in a long time am to feeling  better about the way my body looks. It's all stuff that's good for Roger the person(as well as his component Roger-the-musician), however it distributes itself in his life. 

So we'll see where it goes. After 5 months, I'm in for the duration.