About two weeks ago two of my good friends made the long overdue decision to quit smoking. I know they’ve struggled with it a bit, but so far they’ve stayed away from them. Needless to say I was quite happy that they quit (no more second hand smoke, no more waiting for them to take a smoke break every half hour, the fact that they won’t die a horrible death from lung disease, etc). One of them, Ben, mentioned to me that he’d need something to help replace it – we settled on working out regularly at the rec center in his apartment complex.
This week is the first week of our regular workouts, tonight being the second night (we’re doing three nights a week to give us some recovery time in between). For the first time in my life I enjoyed cardio (that wasn’t biking – I like biking) and plowed through that with hardly any discomfort. I felt energized and great afterwards.
The weight lifting though hurts. It’s the good kind of hurt that I’ve come to associate with the first few times lifting. I know it will go away in a day or so. But unlike most pain, I don’t mind this. It motivates me. It lets me know that I’m improving myself.
I feel great 
… I don’t smell great, though, so I’m gonna go shower…
Mr. MMtMM!
I am very glad your friends quit the death sticks and replaced it with xrsize! I followed the same exact path over two years ago, and it is amazing! Very proud of you for hitting the bricks – that great pain gets lesser and lesser as the muscles get more toned and your body more used to the work. I too follow the thrice weekly plan; I wish you and your friend the best, and hope to talk to you soon!
MPZ