Late night are alright

Just after 1pm.

For a little while earlier Tuesday night, I wasn't going to work out. It has been a challenging day - work was all over the place, and took me completely out of my routine. Fewer mini cardio sessions, my morning cardio got interrupted by phone calls that I had to take, my meals were a bit haphazard - just one thing after the other. But I still got up and moved, still got some mobility training in. Still hit my calorie and macro goals.

But by the time night fell, I was washed.

I laid down on the couch and watched a bit of TV with my wife. I started getting drowsy, so I set an alarm to wake me up at just past 9pm, with the intention of starting my workout at that time. The alarm woke me from a short nap a while later, and I just wasn't feeling it. I laid there, awake, unmotivated. One of my shoulders felt really tight and a bit stiff, so I started doing some static stretches that I'd seen one of the mobility trainers on YouTube using on clients who complained of stiff/popping shoulders.

Within a few minutes, I felt a sense of relief beyond anything I've felt lately. I've been focusing harder on getting my upper thoracic, hip tendons, and groin looser. My upper back carries a bit of inflammation anyway, and sometimes it extends into my shoulders. But I had no idea my actual shoulder capsule needed that much attention. Stretching it out felt crazy good; downright blissful. I guess the resultant endorphins triggered something within me, and shortly after that I was headed to the back room and had begun what turned into a 45 minute deep stretching routine, followed by just over 30 minutes of moderately high intensity cardio, which was then followed by an awesome 40 minute lifting session (back and chest).

Sitting here, freshly showered, in a quiet house, I'm marveling at how something so unassuming could completely shift my perception, and turn the negativity I was feeling earlier into positivity and constructive action.

That's magic, my friends. At least, that's what I'm going to view it as.

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What I ate:

Tuesday:

Breakfast: 600 calories | 37.3g fat | 53g protein | 17g carbs

Pulled Pork (3oz): 150 calories | 6.8g fat | 21g protein | 0g carbs

Quest Chips (1.1oz): 140 calories | 4.5g fat | 20g protein | 4g carbs

Red Pepper Hummus (4 tbs): 140 calories | 10g fat | 6g protein | 8g carbs

Roasted Cashews (1oz): 170 calories | 16g fat | 6g protein | 5g carbs

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Lunch: 350 calories | 19g fat | 28.8g protein | 16g carbs

Beijing Beef: 100 calories | 5.5g fat | 2.8g protein | 10g carbs

Quest Chips (1.1oz): 140 calories | 4.5g fat | 19g protein | 5g carbs

Cheddar Cheese (1oz): 110 calories | 9g fat | 7g protein | 1g carbs

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Dinner: 676 calories | 53.5g fat | 35g protein | 14.7g carbs

Balsamic & Lime Salmon (4oz): 344 calories | 25g fat | 24g protein | 2g carbs

Lemon Parmesan Broccoli (2/3 cup): 71 calories | 6g fat | 3g protein | 3.5g carbs

Red Pepper Hummus (4 tbs): 140 calories | 10g fat | 6g protein | 8g carbs

Sautéed Mushrooms (1/3 cup): 104 calories | 11g fat | 1.5g protein | .5g carbs

Sesame Seeds (1 tsp): 17 calories | 1.5g fat | .5g protein | .7g carbs

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Daily Totals: 1,626 calories | 110 calories | 117g protein | 48g carbs