Happiness is Nasal Decongestion

I spent most of last night propped up, making my lips chapped through incessant mouth-breathing due to an intractable case of nasal congestion. Because I respond so poorly to OTC (over-the-counter) antihistamines such as Benadryl® I rarely take anything to alleviate these symptoms. I know that if I baby myself, this cold will linger for weeks if not months, so the best thing for me to do is just ignore it and work out until it fells me. Then at its peak, it will only be a week before I'm recovered. But first I have to get the cold to peak. Bleah. The last time I took a week off due to illness was at the end of April just when I'd started this blog. Bleah.

At least doing cardio raises my body temperature which I believe is good for what ails you. I'm not drenched when I've done my 45 min, but my nose is runny and I'm feeling clear and renewed. 5.19 miles is not bad either. With an eye toward lifting heavy at the beginning of the week, and doing reps later in the week, I decide to up the poundage on the seated cable row. First a quick warm up set at 75 lbs, then a set at 105. I've been doing 3 sets of 8-12 at 105 lately, so I figure, go for broke, and I up the weight first to 112.5 (with a 7.5 lb half plate), and then to 120 lbs. I can get 6 reps. I go for 3 sets. I wonder if I'll be sore tomorrow. (I'm actually pleasantly sore today from benching heavy reps yesterday.)

I've decided to up all my weights, except on the Torso Twist where I've dropped the weight back to 50. Cage stretch and kicks feel good, and I end it with a dozen close grip chin ups with knees curled to my chest. The Lower Back Extension machine is difficult to do at a weight higher than 97.5 lbs. I almost feel propelled out of the seat at the 105 setting. Lat pull downs feel okay at 90 lbs, and still feel okay at 105. But at 105, I can barely hook my legs under the rollers to keep myself in position. When I release, the bar pulls me completely up to a standing-on-my-tiptoe position.

The rest of my workout proceeds as usual. I've upped the weight only slightly on the Reverse Grip Bent Over Barbell Rows to 55 lbs with the help of a pair of magnetic 2.5 lb discs. Next time I'll be brave enough to use the 60 lb bar. I don't spend a lot of time on biceps, doing only a quick set of curls with 17.5 lb dumbbells, and then 3 sets at 20 lbs. I do like the way my arms look in the mirror as I curl: I can get the triceps to flex as I straighten my arm. Maybe it's the lighting.

Today's Total Workout:
45 min cardio = 5.19 miles
Seated Cable Row: 12 @ 75 / 12 @ 105 / 3 x 6 @ 120 lbs / 12 @ 90 lbs
Lower Back Extension: 2 x 25 @ 97.5
Cage stretch & kicks & 12 close grip neutral hand chin ups w knees to chest
Torso Twists: 2 x 25 @ 50
Lat Pull Downs: 12 @ 90 / 4 x 10-12 @ 105 / 12 @ 90
Lower Back Extension (again): 2 x 25 @105
Reverse Grip Bent Over Rows: 6 x 12-15 @ 55 lbs
Dumbbell Curls: 12 @ 17.5 / 3 x 10-12 @ 20 lbs
Ab Crunch Machine: 2 x 50 upper (feet on stays) / 2 x 50 lower (feet on floor)
Reverse Grip Barbell Curls: 3 x 20 @ 30 lbs
Mat stretch

The scale reads 107.6 lbs. (My home scale reads 105.8 but as I've said previously, I don't trust it. Especially since it's telling me my body fat level is at a whopping 36%.) B and I chat about the gym and she wonders if we could work out together. She says to me, "You don't like to work out with people." I tell her that you have to workout with someone you're in sync with, otherwise you're just getting in each other's way.

B comes to the gym early. I'm constrained by where I have to be to get my son to school or camp safely. She only works one body part a week, whereas I work every thing twice weekly except legs, and I do lots of cardio for them to keep them looking long. (I'm already short with a long body: I don't need chunky legs too.) She comes to the gym on Saturdays but not Wednesday because of her husband's work schedule. I'm never at the gym on the weekends. I also can't stand around chatting all day. It makes me antsy and I'm already bopping around to the tunes in my iPod between sets. I'm sure I make everyone else around me a bit crazy.

I did start using the tan in a bottle to minimize all the tan lines on my chest and shoulders. I'm curious to see how natural it'll look. But again, I'm all congested and miserable as I type this entry. It's too warm out to make hot tea or chicken soup to sip. My only solace is that tomorrow is Leg Day and I'll probably do my standard two sets of cardio. And be able to breathe for a few hours.