Post Competition Hangover: Getting Back to Training is Hard !

Our team recently competed at the AO2 in Valley Forge. About half of our active weightlifters participated and the rest trained their butts of leading up to the meet. This was one of our longest and hardest training cycles any of us had been through. The meet came and went , overall it was pretty awesome from start to finish. However , when we got back I noticed a big change in energy around the club. I can attribute it to a few things , but I want to talk about the one that I believe is the biggest culprit . The dreaded "Post Competition Hangover"... 

What the heck is a Post Competition Hangover? This is something I 100% completely made up, but I think I may be onto something . I have been experiencing similar symptoms myself since nationals and just now , 3 months later , am coming out on the other side. After a big PR  or meet we can start to feel a level of demotivation and lethargy that we aren't used to and it can be a bear to kick. The thing we have worked so hard for is over and its time to get back to work. We have just spent the last few months peaking for a big event and now we are starting to come down the other side.  As I am starting to feel better again here are a few do's and don't on how to recover from a weightlifting hangover. 

Do: Keep showing up to workouts. As tempting as is it to skip workouts because you feel demotivated and crappy , this is the opposite of what you should be doing. The more workouts you miss , the more frustrated you will be when you decide to come back and your strength and technique are no where to be found. 

Don't: Chase PR's . If you have done what you were supposed to (and your program was designed to peak you for the event) , then you are coming back down and doing foundational work . This is not the time to spend the next month doing 1RM yanking on bars hoping that something good will happen. 

Do: Spend some time reflecting and figuring out your "why" . Most of your training will be focused on movement improvements and volume, its going to be hard . Take some time and reflect on why you fell in love with weightlifting in the first place. This will help you get to training more often and get  more out of it. 

Don't: Be too hard on yourself. This is a tough sport, now is not the time to be critical and expect to feel like a world beater every day. Understand you are a work in progress and these periods of demotivation are part of the process. Be patient and present and have fun . 

This post meet hangover is a tough time for every lifter, I hope this will be helpful for you to get back after your workouts. 

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