House of Steel and Stars

Here we are, the last of the hard hitting workouts for the Maasverse Quest.

I've loved every single workout I've done on this Quest. The first half of it because I was revisiting workouts I was pushing myself through at the start of my Valkyrie Journey. It has been such a boost for me to go through those workouts again after a year of training, and finding myself immensely stronger than I was when I started. It stoked the fire in my belly again for my workouts, and made me remember why I started this in the first place.

The Crescent City workouts have been new to me each time I've begun them, and each time I was blown away by how great they were. The workouts were fun and engaged multiple muscle groups, pushed me hard, and had me sweating and swearing on the mat.... but with a Smile on my face. A fierce and vicious smile on my face because I completed every move.

I've been pretty impressed with myself, I'm not going to lie. I didn't think I was still so strong after all my many months of waffling over my workouts and fighting my mental health battles.

This workout was so intense for my upper body, My triceps are dead. I had to holler to my husbeard for assistance in rinsing my hair in the shower afterwards, because my arms were so sore and so done that I couldn't hold them above my head for a single second longer.

All the Crescent City workouts were core intensive too, and I've noticed a huge increase in strength and even visibility of definition in my core! What?! Say that again?! Ab definition? On me? Yes, ab definition, on me, my body. This body that has forever been soft and squishy is beginning to show a bit of what's underneath.

I can see muscle definition in my biceps, delts. triceps, shoulder caps, my obliques and upper abs, my quads and glutes. My booty has had such a glow-up this year. All of me has, really. I'm loving seeing my muscles peeking through!

Yesterday I was stretching and I ran my hands down my ribs to my waist, and had a whole moment of revelation as I discovered that I felt firm there. That I could feel the muscle, and upon further inspection in the mirror, I could see it there too.

At the risk of being vain as fuck, the joy that ran through me was like a jolt of electricity, a sudden awareness at how my body has changed clanged through my like a bell ringing in my head. All the body dysmorphia melted away, like an illusion being wiped from my eyes, I could suddenly see all my hard work this year in the mirror. I didn't even have tears, I was too in awe of myself.

When I finally stopped sweating and melting after House of Steel and Stars, I moved on to the Maasverse Stretch, which felt divine after all the hard workouts this week.

All the aches and soreness were definitely still there but being pulled out of me too, and it felt so damn good.