Cardio is My Drug

M screamed as she got on the scale.

"Is the scale lying to you?" I called from the other end of the locker room.
"Gawd I hope so! It says I put on 3 lbs over this long holiday weekend! I'm all bloated and fat!"

M teaches zumba classes at the gym 3 times a week. There's no way she's gotten fat over a long weekend.

"It's just water weight. 'Specially if you ate salty food all weekend long. It'll be gone in 2 days," I tried to reassure her.
She pinched her skinny jeans shut to zipper them, "Gawd, I hope so!"

I'm pretty sure of it. The scale dropped a pound for me today (106.4) and although that's heavier than last Wednesday, it's lighter than yesterday. Gotta take good news where you can find it!

Today's a Leg Day and I did 65 minutes of cardio (7.36 miles) and went heavier on Squats and Deadlifts. I use the Smith machine (my crutch) because I lift solo, and it helps to keep my back straight. No point in risking injury! 5 sets of squats with 105 lbs (bar plus 30 lbs on each side = 45 + 60 = 105 lbs) at 15 reps makes the lower quads (muscles immediately over my knees) feel a bit warm and tingly. Not sure if this is good or bad, but it's not pain per se. Then I do 5 sets of deadlifts which I really hate and I still don't know if they're doing anything for my glutes and hamstrings or not. I go slightly lighter with these (bar plus 25 lbs each side = 95 lbs). Seated leg curls (6 sets), abs, and stretching end my workout. I'm soaked, and my clothes are starting to reek. Time to shower!

I'm pleasantly surprised to feel a touch of soreness in my back. I haven't upped any of my back exercise weights so this is also puzzling. Maybe I'm finally doing the exercises right? Or it was those half dozen or so chin-ups and pull-ups from two days ago. Yeah, the timing is right on that: 2 days before you actually experience soreness from a new exercise.

I am eating more, thinking (hoping) that it's actually translating into muscle, but I don't really think you can feel your muscles growing any more than you can feel your fat melting away — or at least I was pretty oblivious to that for the last year or so! I feel so good I literally float out of the gym — and back to the car to suck down my protein drink because suddenly I'm starving! But as long as I do my heavy-breathing, drenched-hoodie cardio, I'm good for the rest of the day. It's that endorphin thing y'know. Cardio is my drug!