Sciatic Persistence

The winds have been brutal for the past few days. Torrential rains yesterday. Today was bright and sunny and temps are dropping into the 20s tonight. The gym isn't very crowded and only a few people are wearing some semblance of green outerwear. My sciatica is a bit more troublesome today, mostly a clenched calf and some numb toes. It does not keep me from cardio, or from pull-ups. Actually, pull-ups felt fairly decent and I was happy with the rep count. 

Only one of the older Stair Masters is working. At speed 5, I'm working on my endurance. Today was 10 minutes with a 2 minute cool down, and it wasn't too bad. I'll add a minute each session until I'm comfortable with 15. The Aerobics Room was refreshingly cold and after a few minutes I needed to put my hoodie back on. Dead Bugs were easy but the Bird Dog planks still made my right foot go numb. Push-ups were okay but I noticed that my form really sucks: my head and neck are not aligned with my back and instead lean forward, making my face feel very close to the floor. I'll have to pay better attention next time. 

My kid is home this week for Spring Break. The dogs are very happy but lonely at the park as most of their friends have gone home to the city. It seems that a lot of dog park people bring their "grand pups" to play when they're dog sitting. This week there's no one to play with and the pups are bummed. Meanwhile, my kid made donuts for St Pat's with green buttercream frosting. 

I'm quite excited to discover we have a subscription to HBO cuz that means I can watch some movies on my list, like Death of a Unicorn and One Battle After Another. I'll still have to pay extra to watch Good Fortune cuz that's streaming on a different platform. And unfortunately, I don't have Apple TV, so that means I'm going to have to wait to see the next Keanu Reeves and Seth Rogan flick, Outcome. It looks promising though. Luckily, most trailers stream for free on YouTube. 

 

17 March 2026 1:35-3:13 

Late Windy Tuesday St Pats

Basics w calf sciatica

 

Precor elliptical #1 (2:13)

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5326)

Distance: 2.76

Cal: 302

Precor HR: 151, 188

Fitbit: 42-144

HGPU 19

Matrix StairMaster (L) (2:25-2:37)

Manual timer 10 + 2

Speed 5 (45) / 2 (36) / 1 (29)

Steps 512

Floors 32

Cal 73

Hr 128

20 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring stretches

DeadBugs 20 x 5 (sciatica!!!)

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 30 (legs shoulder width)

Walking Lunges 20 / 21

Neck Stretch / eye yoga

Winter's Not Done Yet

snowdrop flowers

So, it's snowing as I'm typing this. It was 80F two days ago and now it's 35 and the snow is sticking to the grass and shrubs, but not the roadway. Temps forecast to drop into the mid-20s so there's the danger of icy pavements. Dogs went to the park this morning and played with a canine pal in the pouring rain. We humans chatted in the shelter of the storage shed at the top of the hill. Yesterday, I found a clump of snowdrops (Galanthus) next to my basement doors. Hadn't seen those before! 

One of my pups came in occasionally to get dried off with an abandoned sweatshirt. People are always losing items at the park and they wind up forever unclaimed: jackets, eyeglasses, travel mugs. Some items are donated, like the portable heater and my electric water bowl, two benches, several metal water bowls, bug spray, first aid kits, pet wipes, assorted toys... 

I did make it to the gym. It was cold inside and not too crowded. Cardio was better than the previous day, but it's always like that. If I can maintain some consistency, I tend to see incremental improvements. Pull-ups were much better today, in spite of the horribly broken amount of sleep I got. I'd wake up every two hours then doze, then wake for a few minutes. It was quite disconcerting and the only thing I can blame it on was the cup of instant coffee I had yesterday. 

I don't normally drink Death Wish coffee but it was in the cupboard and I wasn't in the mood for tea, which has a lot less caffeine. It certainly tasted good.  Instant coffee isn't supposed to have a lot of caffeine either, but I should've paid more attention to the tiny print on the back of the sleeve: 300 mg caffeine. Yikes! No wonder I didn't get much sleep last night. 

And then because it wasn't crowded, I grabbed a bench and some DBs and proceeded to do my DB Shoulder routine. It's been a while, and the right anterior delt has been troublesome. It ached while I was laying in bed last night, and it's not happy when I'm constantly looping the leash over my head to keep my dogs from tangling me as they cross each other while in pursuit of interesting scents on our neighborhood walks. 

While I was quite flushed and sweaty in the free weight area, I soon cooled down and by the time I entered the Aerobics Room, I needed to put my hoodie back on for push-ups and air squats. Bird Dog planks and Dead Bugs are again the only movements that make my right foot numb and tingly, but that doesn't last so it's manageable. Tomorrow I see my glaucoma doc and I guess we'll discuss next steps... I get to see whether the doc thinks the "new" med (Alphagan P) is working. Cuz I really do not want an Ahmed shunt. I really think there's gonna be complications. And pain. 

Saturday is my birthday and I have nothing planned except to drive to the train station with my hubs later that night to pick my kid up (and maybe his roommate) since their ride decided to stay on campus for Spring Break. (That round trip Amtrak ticket is over $250!) Maybe I'll order a birthday pizza like last year: white clam pizza with bacon, spinach, & garlic.  

12 March 2026 1:03-3:06

Rainy Cold Front Thursday

Precor elliptical #1 (1:40)

Program 1

Time: 30 + 5 (5394)

Distance: 2.77

Cal: 304

Precor HR: 153, 182 max lol

Fitbit: 40-135

HGPU 18

Incl DB Press s/s Lateral Raises s/s Rev Incline Flys (slow & EZ)

10 lbs x 25/15/25 (1:57)

15 lbs x 25/15/30 (2:05)

20/15/20 x 25/15/25 reps

Set 1 (2:13); Set 2 (2:23); Set 3 (2:33)

12 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring & foot flexing

DeadBugs 20 x 5 

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 30 (so hard after DB presses)

Air Squats 25

Neck Stretch / eye yoga

Early Mud Season?

One does not expect temps to rise into the 80s in mid-March in the Hudson Valley. It's not going to last though and by tomorrow, temps will be more normal and closer to 40F. We're still susceptible to an errant snowstorm though, and historically, we've had snow well into the month of April. I know cuz I remember having to shovel every weekend April 1996. A lot of the snow is gone but big hills of packed snow remain, melting into the roadways and flooding a lot of the parking lots and streets. Mud season is upon us. 

I got to the gym later than I'd like, but still with plenty of time to get my routine done before the place got too crowded. A nice day like today and most people have better things to do, preferably outdoors in the sunshine. I honestly think that the two big snowstorms we just had helped me recover from this last bout of sciatica. Perhaps a combination of forced rest (no gym for almost a week at a time for at least two weeks) and the physiological stress of shoveling and traversing deep snow (you can't actually walk normally) seems to have reset whatever had been ailing me since last September. Go figure. 

I'm not totally cured and there's still tingling and numb toes, but I can walk my dogs and not need to rush them back to the house because my leg and glute ache horribly. Anyway, the gym unfortunately, like a lot of places in March, aren't about to turn their a/c on in the main rooms. So doing cardio was kind of miserable because the ceiling fans aren't enough. It means I get warmed up quite quickly and my face goes beet red. I wasn't focused during the first set of pull-ups and felt quite disappointed in myself. 

Being really spacey today also meant I forgot my water bottle in my car and rather than trek back outside with keys to retrieve it, I bought a bottle from the coolers by the front desk. But I've discovered that I really dislike those sport top squeeze bottles. The cap is conveniently attached to the bottle so you can't lose it, but when flipped open, it stabs you in the face as you drink. And it's hard to know whether you should suck the water out, squeeze the water into your mouth, or just try to pour it. I prefer my old water bottle, a regular bottle with a screw off lid, the plastic stiff enough to hold without collapsing in your grip. 

I got brave enough to set the Stair Master to speed 5 today, but only for 8 minutes plus 2 for cool down. It wasn't too bad, although again, my face turned beet red and sweat literally dripped off my nose. I went back to the Stretch Cage for a second set of pull-ups, determined to do a little better. I didn't get any more reps, but at least I felt my form was better, and that's what counts, right? 

The Aerobics Room was wonderfully cold. No Senior Class on Tuesdays or Thursdays, so the a/c stays on all day! I'm able to do all of my routine and exchange Walking Lunges for Air Squats today. My sciatica does numb my toes during Bird Dogs planks and Dead Bugs, but it's not persistent. 

I definitely feel like I'm finally recovering. Now I wonder if that errant vertebra has slipped back into position, but I guess I'll never know since there's no reason to get another X-ray. I'm tempted to hit the gym tomorrow and Thursday since I have a glaucoma follow-up appointment on Friday. I just wish the gym didn't take up so much time. Cuz exercising also means showering and a lot of skin care cuz I have high maintenance skin, especially in the winter. 

Right now I'm nursing a fissure on my thumb (from the cold dry of this season) that has split twice and makes holding things kind of dicey. It doesn't matter how often I slather it with cream, oils, lotion, petrolatum. It's not in a place where band-aids stay put either. It's no wonder that even on a hot day like today, I wore thin leather gloves to the grocery to handle everyday items. When I get old, people are gonna call me eccentric. I can see it already. 

10 March 2026 1:26-3:16

Late Tuesday Heatwave

Bare Basics 2/3

Precor elliptical #1 (2:03)

Program 3

Time: 30 + 5 (5328)

Distance: 2.76

Cal: 302

Precor HR: 140, 184-74

Fitbit: 44-136

HGPU 16 disappointing

Matrix StairMaster (R) (2:25-2:35)

Manual timer 8 + 2

Speed 5 (52-45) / 2 (38) / 1 (29)

Steps 4246

Floors 2

Cal 64

Hr 132

HGPU 16 try again

20 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring stretches

DeadBugs 20 x 5 

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 30 (legs shoulder width)

Walking Lunges 21/21

Neck Stretch / eye yoga

Finally Friday

It's been raining for the past two days, and we still have a lot of snow. I took a selfie of me standing at the edge of the dog park where the packed snow is high enough for me to clear a 6' fence by 18". Yeah, we got a lot of snow. Dogs hit their 7 year mark last weekend and are a lot less playful these days, although going to the park to run about is a necessity. They also love getting attention from other dog owners, acting as if no one has ever petted them before. Fakers. 

What critter is this?

One of their dog friends discovered "treasure" and ran around with it dangling from his mouth. It's some sort of partial skeleton but we're at a loss as to exactly what sort of creature. Is it a bird? The pelvis seems wrong. Maybe a rabbit or a squirrel? What's surprising is how most of the leg bones are still attached via desiccated ligaments. We (humans) managed to grab the bony prize and put it in a trashcan. Dogs were quite bummed but soon distracted by other things. 

I got to the gym very late today but it wasn't too crowded yet. Eventually the HS kids will show up and overrun the place. Today, I got on elliptical #1. It was set with the pedals at a high incline, so I suspect that Thanos had been using it earlier since he's so much taller than the rest of us mortals. Wind Breaker was pedaling on #3 as always. 

Pull-ups were good until my fingers got tired. My sciatica is still present but a lot less annoying these days. Doing less is definitely working for me. Any excuse not to exercise, right? I feel guilty but not that guilty since my sciatica feels better! The step machines are vacant but I've already done 35 minutes on the elliptical, so I only do 12 minutes there. 

Actually, I wasn't sure how much cool down time the machine applies when I punched in 10 minutes. With 17 minutes, the machine gives me a bit over 3 minutes (3:24) -- I'm not sure how it's calculated. Next time I'll set the timer for 15 and see what shows up during cool down. No second round of pull-ups -- the gym was full of kids and I wanted to hit the Aerobics Room before that got crowded. 

The only movements that were sciatica-aggravating were Dead Bugs and Bird Dog planks. But the foot numbness and tingling didn't last too long. Next time I'll do Walking Lunges instead of Air Squats. I'm sure if I do them more frequently, I'll be less sore the next day. 

6 March 2026 1:42-3:19

Late Rainy Friday

Bare Basics w sciatica

Precor elliptical #1 (2:20)

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5

Distance: 2.74

Cal: 298

Precor HR: 151, 188-79

Fitbit: 42-142

HGPU 18 (tired fingers)

Easing back Matrix StairMaster (L) (2:35-2:47)

Manual timer 10 + 2

Speed 4 (40-45) / 2 (33-29) / 1 (24)

Steps 489

Floors ?

Cal 75

Hr 172?!

20 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring stretches

DeadBugs 20 x 5 (sciatica!!!)

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 30 (legs shoulder width)

Air Squats 25 (next time Lunged)

Skip Neck Stretch / eye yoga

Change is Good

I got to the gym late and of course elliptical #1 was occupied by someone new. Wind Breaker on #3 so I trudge over to the Stair Master and do 20 minutes there. Just like last time. I'll probably increase the speed next time, but for now I'm comfortable with speed 4. After 20 minutes, I'm warmed up but not sweaty and there's someone in the Stretch Cage. Which means I needed to find more cardio to do. 

Luckily, elliptical #1 has been vacated and I decide to do 20 minutes of program 1. Someone got fed up with the loose plate and just pulled it off. It's laying on the floor between the elliptical and the erg rowing machine. I wonder if the staff will notice. Finally, I get warmed up enough and the Stretch Cage is free so it's time for pull-ups. 

This time I try to flush all expectations from my mind and just do as many reps as I can get. Although the sciatica still nags at me, it's not as intense. It's more of an annoyance and I get more reps before my arms give out as my lower body involuntarily curls to assist. When I drop from the bars, my right foot is numb but not horribly. It's just an annoyance. 

The Aerobics Room is empty and quite chilly, which is fine until I cool down too much and I have to put my hoodie back on during push-ups. Walking Lunges are fine although I expect to be sore tomorrow. The only movement that causes a lot of foot numbness is the Bird Dog planks. Well, that and foot flexes after basic hamstring stretches. 

While temps are dropping into the teens tonight, the forecast for next week is crazy, potentially hitting 70F. In March. In New York State. Maybe we'll finally be rid of all this snow that's melted and frozen into hard slippery drifts. It's definitely Year of the Horse, a very tumultuous and not necessarily auspicious sign. I think summer is not going to be much fun, and will probably make us long for the cold snowy days... 

2 March 2026 1:50-3:26

Frigid Monday (dragging my butt)

Matrix StairMaster (R)

Manual timer 17 + 3:24 cool down

Speed 4 (40-49) / 2 (29) / 1 (21-24)

Steps 840

Floors 52

Cal 128

Hr n/a

Precor elliptical #1 (2:43)

Program: 1

Time: 20 + 5 (3834)

Distance: 1.97

Cal: 216

Precor HR: 154, 198-77

Fitbit: 46-147

(Plate removed)

HGPU 18!

20 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring stretches

DeadBugs 20 x 5

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 30 (legs shoulder width)

Walking Lunges  22 / 21

Neck Stretch / eye yoga

Doing Less Is Working Better

My glutes weren't sore yesterday, but after a badly needed, late afternoon nap, I woke up with definite gluteal tenderness. Yep, it was those lunges -- the walking lunges would've been worse. Not sure why but standing lunges are somehow less intense. I wasn't all that active yesterday yet both my shoulders were also sore today, and my right elbow. Weird, right? Is it all really DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness)? I don't know. 

I got to the gym a tad late cuz I wanted to get there after the Senior class was gone. They take up a lot of parking spots, AND there's not enough hangers in the locker room for winter coats in the coat rack. I guess I should be thankful that there is a coat rack since Planet Fitness doesn't actually supply that (yes, yet another reason I don't like PF). 

The tall, middle-aged guy (who looks like Thanos) is on elliptical #1 and Wind Breaker is on #3, as usual. Luckily, both of the older Stair Machines are working so I decided to do 20 minutes there. I'm still not brave enough to tempt my sciatica with the Life Fitness cross-trainer. Remember, this is the machine that gives me shin splints if I'm on it for more than 20 minutes. Because I'm having some joint soreness, I'm not expecting much from pull-ups. I do manage not to embarrass myself and score 15 reps. Not pretty but I can count them. 

Then, instead of hitting the elliptical #1 which is finally vacant, I decide to just do the rest of my core movements in the Aerobics Room. (I wanted time to take a long hot shower because this cold dry weather has been wreaking havoc with my super dry & sensitive skin.) My sciatica isn't bothering me as much lately. I'm thinking that doing less has been working better than the multiple times a week of physical therapy that just seemed to aggravate the inflamed nerve bundle. 

Maybe after a few more weeks of this half-ass workout routine, I'll be back to "normal" whatever that is. Of course, I'll also be older, and celebrating my 66th birthday. I'm definitely not seeing myself as old, but I did have to buy myself a new pair of readers since an arm broke off and I had to tape it together. But I need a second one for when I'm looking at my phone in bed. A 1.00  is the lowest power you can buy at a bricks & mortar store. Online, you can get 0.5 but those aren't strong enough. Most places carry 1.25-2.50 but those are for blind folks. Seriously. 

I renewed my driver's license online, and that was surprisingly quick and easy, but now the state requires an eye test. Too many blind people renewing their licenses?! Since I see my glaucoma doc quarterly and my vision gets tested each visit, I didn't have any issues. I'm not sure when the state started requiring vision tests for renewals, but they're not wrong. 

We have a lot of elderly people on the roads who shouldn't be operating heavy equipment. One of them T-boned my car several years ago: he literally didn't see me right in front of him. Eight-nine years old with thick glasses and a walker, destroyed the front end of his car (headlamp, fender, bumper) and didn't even realize he'd hit anything at all. 

27 February 2026 1:14-2:15

Late Mild Friday with Sore Shoulders & Glutes

Matrix StairMaster (R)

(1:15-1:35)

Manual timer 17 + 3:24 cool down

Speed 4 (40-49) / 2 (33-29) / 1 (21-24)

Steps 833

Floors 52

Cal 128

Hr 155

HGPU 15 (ugly / sore shoulders)

20 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring stretches

DeadBugs 20 x 5 

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (legs shoulder width)

Air Squats 25

Neck Stretch / eye yoga

Been A Snowy Week

My car

I haven't been to the gym since last week. But that doesn't mean I haven't been active. What with the blizzard and having to shovel all that snow. It's definitely not the worst snowstorm we've ever had, but since we still had snow from the last storm, this was definitely unwelcome. The snow is definitely deep and I'm more inclined than ever to research a battery-powered snow thrower for next winter. It wasn't just my car, walkway and driveway that needed clearing. 

Dog park gate

Although the parking lot was plowed, all the gates to the dog park and inside the park also needed to be shoveled just to be usable. It was a lot of shoveling. While my back got tired, there was no residual aching. It was my forearms and the weight of the snow-laden shovel that made me sore for more than a day. It made me worry that it'd make pull-ups impossible. But that's me getting in my own way.

Cardio was decent considering it's been a week. I think not coming to the gym was actually beneficial for my sciatica. While I did a lot of shoveling and wading/trudging in knee deep snow, I didn't do much else. Pull-ups felt very decent and I was so surprised that I stopped at 15 reps because that's what I had expected, not that 15 was all I could do. Just got in my own damn way. While the sciatica did get aggravated during the last few reps, it wasn't nearly as painful as previous attempts. Meaning I didn't limp off the Stretch Cage when I was done. But I did do 10 minutes on the Step Machine, still at the lesser level 4 speed. 

Then off to the Aerobics Room for most of my standard routine. Since there were several individuals doing their own thing all over the room, I opted to do standard Lunges instead of Walking Lunges. I'll probably regret it tomorrow but it's good to switch things up every now and then, and I'm getting bored with basic Air Squats. Lunges didn't hurt so I'm hopeful. 

Actually, taking a week off has made my sciatica feel better. My foot still goes numb and tingly when I get out of the car and walk across the parking lot, but my glute aches a lot less lately when I'm standing in line. Maybe wbat my sciatic nerve needs is just enough down time to recuperate without anything aggravating it. Of course, being a total slug isn't in the cards since dogs need walking at least twice a day. 

Started watching an old favorite TV show, Supernatural, from the beginning: Season 1 episode 1. It runs for 15 seasons and I intend to rewatch it in its entirety because its still extremely enjoyable. Meanwhile, I'm a bit shocked to see Ryan Eggold, the hero doc Max Goodwin from New Amsterdam, transformed into a scary psychotic serial killer in Cross, a version of the Alex Cross series by James Patterson. The character Alex Cross is played by another familiar face Aldis Hodge, from the 2008-2012 TV series Leverage, and its subsequent sequel almost 10 years later, Leverage Redemption (2021). 

Meanwhile, I'm still watching episodes of NCIS (season 18). I appreciate shows that are still written to convey messages of morality and patriotism instead of just trying to mind fuck the audience. Watching actors like Mark Harmon and Joe Spano (Hill Street Blues, what a great show!) as they age on screen is reassuring, making it easier to accept that none of us are getting younger. It's a lot of effort just to stay in place! Yes, I still get a kick out of seeing Robert Wagner show up as Tony DiNozzo's dad cuz I remember watching him as Alexander Mundy in a show called It Takes A Thief. It's funny what you remember from your childhood. 

25 February 2026 1:23-3:04

Late Wednesday Post Blizzard

Sore forearms from shoveling

Precor elliptical #1 (2:02)

Program 1

Time: 30+5 (5344)

Distance: 2.76

Cal: 302

Precor HR: 144, 205-76

Fitbit: 45-139

HGPU 15 (could’ve done another rep or 2)

Matrix StairMaster (R fixed)

Manual timer 8 + 2 cool down

Speed 4 (40-49) / 2 (33-29) / 1 (21-24)

Steps 402

Floors 25

Cal 61

Hr 110

20 Piriformis/Hip flex

10 Hamstring stretches

DeadBugs 20 x 5 

10 Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2 (numb foot)

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 30 (legs shoulder width)

Lunges 12 each side

   alt with Air Squats 25

Neck Stretch / eye yoga