Q: I started the DB Combos (www.dbcombos.com) program last week. I haven’t lifted anything in ages and it has been a big shock. I thought I’d started with a fairly manageable weight, but the the next morning I woke up really hammered. You have to expect this kind of thing to hurt, I guess I just haven’t been using these muscles much (may also be why I’m not generating enormous horse power…).

The second time I did the workout it was the same thing, really hurting afterwards and I just didn’t seem to bounce back over the following days. I’m doing it twice a week as I ride my bikes a lot. This week I dropped the weights, but I think they are now too light and too far below my 5rm.

I can do 5 much heavier reps than this, but I’m going to have trouble walking the next day, and besides that I’ve found that mentally it also strips the life out of me. Should I think about doing 3 weeks of lighter weights to make the transition a bit easier on me? Or should I just harden up?

A: My suggestions for finding a starting weight were just that…a suggestion. Training is not a math equation, it is a process. You used my advice to find a starting weight but your feedback from your body says that it is too much so that suggestion was not the right one for you. By making adjustments based on how you respond you are embracing the training process which is the only real way to get the best results possible.

Lighten the load and do not worry about it. Your ability to execute the exercises properly and not feel destroyed the next day is far more important that an arbitrary weight. Now, after you have a few months of training under your belt I might tell you to harden up but right now you are simply listening to your body to figure out what is best for you.

-James Wilson-