An Old Friend I'd Said Goodbye To

This path is genuinely rewarding. It can also be hard enough to make you question the whole journey, and today belonged to the second category.

Nothing in particular happened. But the moment my feet hit the ground, something felt slightly wrong, and the worst part was recognising it. Like an old friend I thought I'd already said goodbye to, showing up uninvited.

Sunday is supposed to be easy. The instant I felt that familiar tightness settle into my hips, I knew the day wasn't going to cooperate. These past months, the body has felt strong, more than that, relaxed — and today that same feeling curdled into tension and pain. I don't know why this particular problem keeps finding its way home. I only know I don't love having it back, and I'm not going to pretend otherwise.

It makes all the work feel, for a moment, like it's left me standing roughly where I started. Not a comfortable thought, as you can imagine.

I wish I had a clean answer for this one. It feels like the kind of issue that refuses to actually leave, a distant relative who overstays every visit, quietly draining energy, standing between me and whatever physical transformation I've been chasing for longer than I can properly measure.

I don't know what the coming week holds. I know it will test whatever I've actually learned to hold onto. The best I can do is the best I can do, and I need to make peace with that rather than resent it.

Today was disappointing. I'm hoping tomorrow shows me how disappointment, given the chance, can turn into a decent teacher.