Oh, How I've Missed Cardio!

Tiny celadon pearls float in the pristine white tissue as I clear my throat with a deep wet cough. I don't feel sick, and yet... Nevertheless, we're off to the gym. It's Leg Day! It's also a bit chilly so I zip up my royal blue hoodie, but I'm still wearing running shorts and a tank underneath.

The first 35 minutes feels good and I'm very pleased to see 4.0 miles. The second set is Intervals and I finally figure out how to change my stride by putting pressure on my heels on the Low Sections so that I can keep my pacing up. I'm gratified to get 4.48 miles. Wahoo! 8.48 miles! I'm sweating so hard that it's raining inside my hoodie, but I'm grinning from ear to ear like an idiot.

Just a cursory cage stretch for hamstrings and calves, and no kicks today. Squats. Deadlifts. Seated Leg Curls. Seated Leg Extensions. Mat stretch and very minor abs today. B waves at me to tell me she's on her way out and probably won't be back until next week.

"You were doing cardio forever," she complains.
"Just the standard. 35 min hill. 35 min intervals. It felt great though!" and I grin, but she eyes me suspiciously as if no one in their right mind could possibly think such a thing.
"I just do the cardio for my cholesterol," she says. B has naturally high cholesterol and wants to avoid medication. I'm getting my annual bloodwork done in a few weeks.

I do cardio because after the first 30 minutes I start to feel really good. There's no lactic acid burn or fatigue, but she doesn't believe me. Plus, cardio keeps my weight down, flushes the puffiness under my skin (and eyes), and gets my metabolic fires stoked. When school starts again, I'm going back to my daily 45 minutes.

Today's Total Workout:
35 min hill #6 = 4.0 miles + 35 min interval #7 = 4.48 Total = 8.48 miles
Cage stretch
Smith Squats: 12 @ bar / 12 @ 95 lbs / 5 x 12 @ 115 lbs
Smith Deadlifts: 5 x 12 @ 95 lbs
Seated Leg Curls: 12 @ 75 / 3 x 12 @ 90 lbs
Seated Leg Extensions (I suck at these): 3 x 12 @ 45 lbs
Mat stretch w 12 slow reps of alternating knee to chin "crunches"

My hair is still slicked back with sweat and my clothes are soggy. The scale reads 106.8 lbs and I check it twice. There's still a few ounces left in my water bottle. I'm too hungry to figure out how that impacts the scale as I shower and change. Tomorrow we're taking a rare "day holiday" and going to visit Mystic Aquarium. My son is excited to check out the 6 different species of jellyfish, and so am I. I'm definitely bringing my camera! We'll probably be back at the gym on Friday. And Labor Day Monday as well. Because I'm a gym rat.