The Tuesday Before Summer Begins

I'm hearing that the rest of this week will be Heat Wave Hell with temps in the 90s, and cooler in Florida than up here in the NE. I hope the gym's got decent a/c then 'cuz I'm still going. Never mind that my son has 3 consecutive half days starting tomorrow until the school year ends. Which means I have to be at the school bus stop by 12:15 and he wouldn't've had lunch yet! I'm already trying to plan how to abbreviate my workout so that I can still do cardio, lift weights, stretch and shower and change my clothes. I can't get to the gym earlier as I'm the one putting him on the school bus at 8:30!

Woke up this morning feeling uncharacteristically achy. "What's with that?!" I ask myself and choose any one of a myriad of answers. Egads! I think with horror. Could I be getting my period? I'm at that age where I never quite know where I am in the fertility cycle. I've had great workouts for the last several months, but I haven't had my period since February either. I don't seem to get hot flashes, more like a slight warmth, as if I've started to blush. But that's about it. What I remember most about my cycles is that there was always one day right before where I felt superhuman great, and then the next day I'd feel as if someone had unplugged me from the Matrix (like a dead rag doll). I don't think I'm a high estrogen woman, so I'm kinda hoping that this "change" which can apparently go on for years (!!!), doesn't wreak the metabolic havoc that HRT was designed to alleviate. I'm an au natural kinda gal.

On the other hand, I started working out like a demon because hell, I don't want to be 20 lbs over weight at a point in my life where I physically can't get my metabolism to fire properly. There's a little voice in the back of my head that drones on about hitting the "change" and slowly morphing into a matronly doughgirl. Yes, work out like a demon and have high school boys panting and staring while they flex their biceps at you! (Kidding!)

45 min of cardio gives me 5.02 miles. B says, "I thought you were cutting back on your cardio?" and I tell her I feel like a spud today and I need to feel like a human being, and 5 miles gives me that. It's a Back and Bicep day except neither of us is doing much biceps due to the elbow problem. B seems to have the Tennis Elbow version (upper) of my Golfer Elbow (lower), so I tell her to put her wrist brace on her forearm instead.

Rows feel okay and I do my standard 3 sets of 12 at 90 lbs, 3 sets of 8 reps at 105 lbs. I do lower back extensions, torso twists, stretch out in the cage and remember to do sit ups and kick outs along with the weighted inclined sit up. Pull downs don't feel too bad but I'm taking a long time to do 6 sets of 12 reps at 90 lbs. 4 sets of seat alternating bicep curls cause a nerve twinge in my right forearm that travels to my thumb so I loosen the brace slightly. The Reverse Grip Barbell Rows  (50 lb barbell) always start out strong but it's such a whole body exercise that I'm tired by the 4th set. I do 6 sets and the last 3 reps are slow and arduous.

By the end of my workout, it's all I can do to keep myself from being carried away by the bouncy dance tunes in my iPod so that's my cue to do my stretch out/cool down routine. I keep adding moves from yoga and pilates so it actually looks a bit choreographed. If only I could get my horizontal split better. Well, that's something to work on. I head to the shower. The scale reads 106.6 which makes me feel good. Next week I'll have to drive my son to day camp before coming to the gym, so I'll be here even later (sigh). Well, I just have to make some adjustments. Nothing that can't be handled! Back tomorrow — it's a Leg Day!