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Lean Gains
The Next Chapter
I actually had no intention of starting another log.
After everything that had happened, I stepped away from logging and started backing off my training. There was just a lot going on outside of the gym that was taking up more and more of my headspace.
Since my accident, there had been the ongoing process of dealing with solicitors, medical appointments, IMEs, assessments, treatment and all the uncertainty around the claim, work and what the future was going to look like.
Eventually, I needed some space from all of it.
So I backed my training off. I stopped meal prepping. I stopped counting and tracking my meals. I wasn't trying to give everything up — in my head, I was just cruising for a while. Taking the pressure off and letting myself live a little without having to worry about numbers, training and everything else.
But looking back now, maybe I wasn't just cruising.
Maybe I was slowly drowning.
I didn't really recognise how much I'd changed while I was in it. It was gradual. I just knew I wasn't doing the things that had previously been such a big part of my life.
After discussing it with my psychologist, we talked about getting back into training and having something positive to focus on. They had noticed a change in me since I'd backed away from training, and we came to the conclusion that getting some structure and routine back into my life could be a genuinely positive step.
And I think that's when I realised just how important training actually is to me.
For me, training has never been just about building muscle or lifting heavier weights.
It gives me a few hours where I can switch off from everything else.
For those few hours, I don't have to think about what's going on in the background. I can put all of that aside and focus purely on me.
The weight I'm lifting.
The movement I'm performing.
My technique.
My breathing.
The next rep.
The next set.
For a few hours, everything else disappears.
And I think I'd underestimated just how much I needed that until I stepped away from it.
I'd genuinely had no intention of starting another log. I thought that part of my life was finished for now.
Then a few good lads actually approached me and asked if I'd be interested in logging for Onyx, as they had an opening for another logger, so the timing was pretty spot on.
I hadn't gone looking for it. It just happened.
I had a look at Onyx, spoke to the guys, and liked what I saw. They're a smaller lab, they're focused on quality and regularly test their products, and they're working on building themselves within the Australian community.
I've also seen the vibe from some of the other guys on the team, and that matters to me. I want to be part of something I enjoy being around.
This time, though, I want to keep things a little simpler. I want less focus on documenting absolutely everything and more focus on actually training, progressing and enjoying the process.
And I don't see this as a one-way thing.
Hopefully, while I help Onyx grow their presence in Australia and represent them properly, they can also help me with my own personal and physical growth.
That's a partnership.
I've always believed that things happen for a reason — good or bad.
I wasn't looking for this opportunity. It just happened to come along at a time when I needed something positive to focus on.
Onyx needed someone.
I needed something to focus on and put my energy into — something positive for me.
And somehow, those two things lined up at exactly the right time.
Maybe that's just coincidence. Maybe it's something more.
Either way, I'm going to make the most of it.
The Next Chapter
This isn't a comeback.
I'm not trying to go back to where I was or pretend the last chapter didn't happen. That period of my life happened for a reason, and stepping away was something I needed at the time.
This is simply the next chapter.
The goal is to get back into training, rebuild some structure, enjoy the process and see what I can achieve when I put my focus back into something that genuinely makes me feel good.
There will be good sessions and bad sessions. Strong days and average days. Days where everything clicks and days where simply turning up is the win.
The logs will record what actually happened. The weekly reviews will look at the trends, and the monthly reviews will give us the bigger picture.
Hopefully, when I look back on this one day, it won't just show how much bigger or stronger I became.
It'll show that after a pretty fucking difficult chapter, I found something positive to focus on again.
I didn't go looking for this opportunity.
It found me at a time when I needed it.
It's just the next chapter.
@Onyx Labs, @Oracle911, @Jimmy0187
The Next Chapter
I actually had no intention of starting another log.
After everything that had happened, I stepped away from logging and started backing off my training. There was just a lot going on outside of the gym that was taking up more and more of my headspace.
Since my accident, there had been the ongoing process of dealing with solicitors, medical appointments, IMEs, assessments, treatment and all the uncertainty around the claim, work and what the future was going to look like.
Eventually, I needed some space from all of it.
So I backed my training off. I stopped meal prepping. I stopped counting and tracking my meals. I wasn't trying to give everything up — in my head, I was just cruising for a while. Taking the pressure off and letting myself live a little without having to worry about numbers, training and everything else.
But looking back now, maybe I wasn't just cruising.
Maybe I was slowly drowning.
I didn't really recognise how much I'd changed while I was in it. It was gradual. I just knew I wasn't doing the things that had previously been such a big part of my life.
After discussing it with my psychologist, we talked about getting back into training and having something positive to focus on. They had noticed a change in me since I'd backed away from training, and we came to the conclusion that getting some structure and routine back into my life could be a genuinely positive step.
And I think that's when I realised just how important training actually is to me.
For me, training has never been just about building muscle or lifting heavier weights.
It gives me a few hours where I can switch off from everything else.
For those few hours, I don't have to think about what's going on in the background. I can put all of that aside and focus purely on me.
The weight I'm lifting.
The movement I'm performing.
My technique.
My breathing.
The next rep.
The next set.
For a few hours, everything else disappears.
And I think I'd underestimated just how much I needed that until I stepped away from it.
I'd genuinely had no intention of starting another log. I thought that part of my life was finished for now.
Then a few good lads actually approached me and asked if I'd be interested in logging for Onyx, as they had an opening for another logger, so the timing was pretty spot on.
I hadn't gone looking for it. It just happened.
I had a look at Onyx, spoke to the guys, and liked what I saw. They're a smaller lab, they're focused on quality and regularly test their products, and they're working on building themselves within the Australian community.
I've also seen the vibe from some of the other guys on the team, and that matters to me. I want to be part of something I enjoy being around.
This time, though, I want to keep things a little simpler. I want less focus on documenting absolutely everything and more focus on actually training, progressing and enjoying the process.
And I don't see this as a one-way thing.
Hopefully, while I help Onyx grow their presence in Australia and represent them properly, they can also help me with my own personal and physical growth.
That's a partnership.
I've always believed that things happen for a reason — good or bad.
I wasn't looking for this opportunity. It just happened to come along at a time when I needed something positive to focus on.
Onyx needed someone.
I needed something to focus on and put my energy into — something positive for me.
And somehow, those two things lined up at exactly the right time.
Maybe that's just coincidence. Maybe it's something more.
Either way, I'm going to make the most of it.
The Next Chapter
This isn't a comeback.
I'm not trying to go back to where I was or pretend the last chapter didn't happen. That period of my life happened for a reason, and stepping away was something I needed at the time.
This is simply the next chapter.
The goal is to get back into training, rebuild some structure, enjoy the process and see what I can achieve when I put my focus back into something that genuinely makes me feel good.
There will be good sessions and bad sessions. Strong days and average days. Days where everything clicks and days where simply turning up is the win.
The logs will record what actually happened. The weekly reviews will look at the trends, and the monthly reviews will give us the bigger picture.
Hopefully, when I look back on this one day, it won't just show how much bigger or stronger I became.
It'll show that after a pretty fucking difficult chapter, I found something positive to focus on again.
I didn't go looking for this opportunity.
It found me at a time when I needed it.
It's just the next chapter.
@Onyx Labs, @Oracle911, @Jimmy0187
Dad bod to end of first cut, then up to peak of first bulk of 112kg and back down to current weight of 97.9kg which was basically the same weight I was at the end of the initial cut.
appreciate the support.
