01/04/2026
You’re nothing more than a bag of wires and some water. If you don’t think a fight with your girlfriend or a stressful work meeting can affect your back pain and the quality of your workouts, you don’t really see the full picture.
One of my 2026 goals is to convince more people of the direct, uninterrupted connection between muscular pain and one’s neurological state.
Muscle pain, especially back pain, is just an electrical signal from the body to the brain sent to alert the user of potential danger. Your goal in life shouldn’t be to completely ignore pain, nor heed to its every call. It’s to make the highest quality decision that you can possibly make given the circumstances.
So what do you do? The all or nothing attitude that is incredibly pervasive in gym culture and American culture is totally counterintuitive. Long-term gym rats know that the only real way to see consistent progress, especially in the face of unpredictable schedules and periods of stress, is moderation and maturity.
Not every session can be all-out assault, you need periods of undulating intensity.
Tough night of sleep? Drop your weights by 15% and focus on getting a good squeeze.
Few too many drinks last night? Maybe spend a few minutes stretching before you start lifting.
