It’s been half an hour since the WOD ended and my right hand is almost steady. My left hand – the thumb in particular – is still shaking. Violently. Maybe it’s because the skin at the base of the thumb has peeled off.

Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. My last box WOD was two weeks ago.

The plane from Bangkok touched down in Manila last Friday at 10:30 PM, which means that I arrived home shortly before midnight with just enough time to shower, get changed, unpack, repack then make my way back to the airport in time for my flight to Cebu and, eventually, on to Siargao.

I got back to Manila late Monday night and had an early morning visa appoinment with the French embassy yesterday.

So, yes, yesterday was supposed to be my first day back in the box. But having gone off the Paleo diet, and having done zero to nil exercise while I was away, and having been sick for more than a week now (- the cough and cold are still there but the hot, runny eyes are gone), you can understand why I’ve been putting it off.

It’s a good thing the WOD today wasn’t too difficult. 25 minutes of:

21-18-15-12-9-6-3

• Russian twists – One pair (left, right) was one count.
• Plate cross chops – Count one side first, then the other.

After every round: 80 m. (4 laps) suitcase walk – Across the room and back was one lap. For some reason, I could grip the plate better with my left hand. I’m not sure when the skin came off but it still had more grip than the right up to the end.

Rx for men was the 35-lb. plate while, for women, it was the 25-lb. plate. I did Rx except for the plate cross chops. After the first round of 21 reps, I had to pyramid down to 15 lbs. but continued to use the 25-lb. plate for the Russian twists and the suitcase walk.

I started off strong and fast but the cold made it difficult to breathe and I had to go to the bathroom three times to take care of it. I must have been the last to finish. But I finished. I think my time was 24:21 minutes.

Damn, it’s good to be back.