Habits

Spent last week nursing a strained right oblique, incurred from Monday's squat workout. Forgot to mention it, here's an intro.

We are all creatures of habit. We do something that has worked in the past, and we do it over and over again, enough to not have to think about it. I am always safety conscious, especially since I lift alone. I always make sure that the collars are on, safety's are set, etc.

Well, I loaded up the bar with 345 lbs for a squat overload, from my least favorite rack: position is too low, j-hooks deep, squats only rack (you've probably seen them). I took the weight, and all the sudden I feel the right side getting lighter fast. I had the presence of mind to drop down so that the bar wouldn't go very far, and I tightened up my back muscles so I wouldn't pull anything. You guessed it, I forgot to check for the collars and I dumped the bar SIDEWAYS!!! Luckily, no one was next to me in either direction, because I didn't put the collars on both sides. The gym attendant asked if I was OK, then gave me the appropriate talking to - - - which I deserved. Next day, my right oblique was really sore, enough to make every movement smart. So, I took some time off except to stretch it out and take a massager to it. Today, it's good enough to lift: I'm beginning this cycle with the bench, though, just in case.

I basically took my habit for granted, and got caught sleeping (so to speak), with near disasterous results. Next time, I will make it a habit of not always trusting that which I have always done.