Workout: pushups and beer curls

When I arrived at work at 7 a.m. Thursday, rain drizzled all across Lynchburg. By the time I left at 4 p.m., that drizzle had turned to heavy, gray, unrelenting sheets of rain and it showed in the number of people at the gym. 

Inside the tiny building which always smells of sawdust, there were five of us.  The trim, stubbly man in his thirties who bikes for hours while scouring through multiple newspapers was there.  The two bros, one bald the other resembling Johnny Knoxville, were there. The goateed, Goldberg-lookalike who always leaves with his grey t-shirt drenched in sweat was there.

And me.

Of course, the aforementioned four are always there, everyday, without fail. 

As they hit the weights, I dropped to punch out 170 pushups.  Goruck is military training in essence, so I’ve incorporated more military basics in my workout: pushups, sit-ups, and pull-ups.

After about an hour and a half, the others had retreated home for the evening and left me the gym. 

In the end, I totaled 170 pushups, 170 sit-ups and 60 lat pull-downs (watered down pull-ups).

If this sounds impressive, believe me, it’s not.

Some of the badasses who show up for Special Forces training, Ranger School, etc. can punch out about 100 pushups in just two minutes.

Muscles aching, I returned home to shower, then hit Rivermont Pizza for drinks and pizza, celebrating the birthday of my girlfriend’s roommate. 

Rivermont Pizza is a dark, side-street bar paneled in wood and stone.  To my knowledge, it boasts the only wood-burning in pizza oven in Lynchburg. Its taps also feature more than just Pabst Blue Ribbon and Miller Light.

I won’t pretend there are any nutritional benefits to beer. It’s empty, gut-building, delicious calories.

But amid my strict schedule of Greek yogurt, blueberries, chicken, etc, it’s a much welcomed break from the norm.

Like everyone, I need to kick off my boots and relax once in a while.

In a completely unrelated note, my rucksack arrived in the mail yesterday. 

This is the ruck I’ll use to carry six bricks, three liters of water, extra socks and any other necessities for Goruck.

It’s also the most deceptively spacious backpack I’ve ever seen. I see why the Army loves these. You can pack up your life and head down the road with this.

Maybe I’ll break it in with a hike through the mountains this weekend.