Sometimes when I go to the gym I just push myself that extra little bit that turns out to be too much. Today was one of those days. I was doing military press with dumbells at what I thought was the maximum I could lift. So, I added another 10 pounds. Halfway through the set I felt my back muscles go “twang!” It’s my favorite exercise, and I didn’t want to stop, even though I knew I was gonna pay for it later. Anyway, I am paying for it now. I can hardly turn my neck because my back muscles are twisted up like a pretzel on the left side. To make matters worse, it feels like someone has stuck a knife through the my ribs on my right side. It’s a sensation I’ve never had before, and it’s not so fun.

All of this made me realize how physical my improv work is. Trying to do the things I normally do on stage just didn’t work well in tonight’s show. My characters felt flat and unenergetic. For instance, there was a scene where I was a gladiator, and I found myself making passive and uninteresting choices instead of getting into the real gladiator role I should have been playing. I really should have sat this show out, and given someone else the opportunity to play, but I thought I could do it.

The good news is, I don’t have anything exceptionally demanding to do in the next couple of days. I know I’ll be better by Saturday. I just need to rest it a bit.