Reap What You Sow

I knew today was going to be difficult just because we'd had such a hectic weekend. Having barely recovered from the onerous belt testing graduation ceremony at my son's tae kwon do school Friday evening, we plunged right into Chinese school the next morning, to be followed by kung fu, and then a mad dash home to load the car with Cub Scout camp-over gear. We made it to the Boys Scouts camping grounds in time to participate in archery, but thankfully, missed the requisite hike. The boys engaged in tag and other tom-foolery while adults supervised dinner preparations. After burger, dogs and assorted chips, there was bonfire marshmallow roasting and flashlight tag.

After my husband and son had ensconced themselves in their tent (my husband had had enough of the bunk cabin arrangements at last spring's sleepover), I made the mistake of mentioning that the Leonides Meteor shower was this weekend and what a perfect night to see stars! We, and a few other cold-hardy adults sat around the bonfire staring into the frigid night skies for several hours until my husband retreated back to his tent (with an air mattress and sleeping bag), and eventually my son convinced me that it was well past his bed time. The next day, after doing several loads of laundry, we headed off to Connecticut for a play date with one of my son's friends. We brought potato bread rolls, burgers, dogs and a 2010 bottle of Cupcake malbec. It was quite nice but we got home late.

from aidmymuscle.com/quadricep-strains

Sooo, this morning I was hoping to get at least 4 miles on the elliptical. My start was good, but just as I changed my stride (minute 3-4), I felt a familiar but inexplicable dull pain that radiated from inside my hip cradle down along the inside thigh and into my right knee. I had to assume a shorter stride and position myself more upright to lessen the pain. It felt as if it might spasm and knot at any moment. This went on for several minutes and it slowed my pace from the normal 169  down to 105-110. After a minute or two, I managed to increase my speed and gradually lengthen my stride but the spasm threat occurred at least once more before completely dissipating at minute 25. So much for 5 miles today. By minute 35 I was feeling more my old self, but there was not a lot of time to catch up on distance. 4.84 was what I got today. It's better than 4.5.

Today's Total Workout:
45 min = 4.84 miles
Smith Bench: 12 @ bar / 12 @ 95 / 3 x 10 @ 145 / 12 @ 125 / 12 @ 105 / 15 @ 95 lbs
Cage stretch & kicks
Front & Lateral Dumbbell Raises: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Lateral Raises & Inclined Dumbbell Presses: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs (I added this light pressing movement more for stretch & variation)
Seated Rear Inclined Dumbbell Raises: 5 x 15 @ 20 lbs
One-Arm Tricep Extension: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Seated Twisting Sit Ups: 125
Tricep Press Downs: 12/12/10 @ 50 lbs / 12 @ 30 lbs
Mat stretch

I see B today. She tells me that I look good and comments on my flat stomach. I laugh because she doesn't have any belly either. She also comments on my haircut. She's probably the only one who's actually noticed! And apparently, she's had Pink Eye (conjunctivitis). Now she's just getting back to the gym after being on vacation, and being sick. She complains about losing strength and feeling fat. I tease her, of course, because she looks scrawny to me. But I'm glad she stayed home when she got Pink Eye! I see R too, but neither of us appears very chatty today so all I do is ask him if he's done with the inclined bench, which he is because he's wiped it down with a deluge of bleach water.

By the time I get to the Mat stretch, my legs are cold and stiff so I go slow and easy on the stretches. I know I've over-indulged over the weekend and that I'm not going to be happy with the scale. Salty fatty meats and lots of wine do not make a good diet. I'm not quite prepared for the 112 lbs though that greets me. My round face is puffy and pink in the mirror, so how much of this is water? I am lifting heavier though, so I should also be putting on some muscle weight, even if I can't really see it. My home scale reads 109.6 lbs. What surprises me is not that my body fat reading is higher (19.7), but that my TBW reading is the lowest I've seen it (51.4). Muscle percentage is higher (39.7) but so is bone weight (4.8 lbs). None of this really makes any sense to me. All I know is that I'm heavier, and probably a tad bigger. I'll just have to see this week whether this is a fluke or a trend. After all, I'm eating more, and lifting heavier. Yeah, I'm probably bigger!