The Anti-Social Hoodie

Yesterday's workout felt so phenomenally good that I tried to reproduce it today even though it's a Push Day. But, I figure I'd do reps and that might give me that same cardio-induced endorphin rush. I actually feel pretty energetic on the elliptical until I find myself at minute 18 wondering when I can slow down a bit. Ah, I must be thinking of the intervals I did yesterday. Still, 45 min gives me 5.13 sweaty miles and it feels good.

The Smith is free so I put a 25 lb plate on each side of the bar and proceed to do 25 reps, 4 sets. I have to strip off my hoodie to put my elbow braces on and I leave the hoodie off until I go to the Cage stretch because that's by the front door, and even though there are double doors, it's still a bit chilly in that area. I feel very loose and limber although I don't quite have the stamina to do more than 10 minutes. Back to the dumbbells for deltoids.

Damn, 20 lbs still feels heavy but my body must be adjusting because I can finish each 12-rep set without much pause. Yes, I'm grimacing at rep 10-12 but I finish. I see two other women in the dumbbell area but the most I'm able to focus on is where everyone is, and who they are. Not what they're doing. I just like to be aware of potential crashes so as to avoid accidents.

Even though I'm wearing my yoga pants, I do twisting sit ups and lower ab kick outs before eying the decline bench. I haven't done THOSE in a while so I psyche myself to do reps there. I see R glide in with his hoodie up. He doesn't normally wear it over his baseball cap. I figure he must be feeling as anti-social as I am so I don't bother him. By the time I go to leave he's taken it off, but he looks like he's into his workout and I'm in a place in my head where I'm not feeling very sociable or talkative. I know it's probably rude, but I don't even say Hi. B's teased me about being in my own little world when I'm at the gym, and I don't contradict her. I don't come here to chat. I've avoided saying anything at all to V who I've seen twice at the gym this week. But I'm so put off by the thought that he'll engage in completely inappropriate behavior or conversation that I just slink by silently.

By the 4th set of Declines, I get to rep 22 and stall so I put the bar back on the stays, take a second and then pump out the last 3 reps to finish. Then I drop the weight and knock out another 25 reps. Again, I need to stop at rep 22 and rest a second before finishing the set. By the 7th set, I've knocked the weight back down to 65 lbs and I can get a full 25 reps without pausing. So I go for the burn and push out 50 reps with just the bar. I'm a bit dizzy as I get up from the bench, but I feel really good. I've also sucked down my entire water bottle and switched from my cardio workout mix to Billy Idol so I'm nearly dancing with the beat. This is a good time to end the workout with the Mat stretch. That also feels pretty good because I have all my stretches back. I briefly think about adding planks or some variation to the stretch. Maybe next time.

Today's Total Workout:
45 min cardio = 5.13 miles
Smith Bench: 12 @ bar / 4 x 25 @ 95 lbs
Cage stretch & kicks
Front & Lateral Dumbbell Raises: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Lateral Dumbbell Raises: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Seated Inclined Dumbbell Raises: 5 x 15 @ 20 lbs
One-Arm Tricep Extensions: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Seated Twisting Sit Ups: about 100
Flat Bench Kick Outs: about 100
Decline Bench Press: 25 @ bar / 25 @ 65 / 25 @ 75 / 25 @ 85 / 25 @ 75 / 25 @ 65 / 50 @ bar
Mat Stretch

The scale reads 108 lbs. I'm not thrilled but I'm not upset. I'm not sure how I feel about the new haircut. It is cute. It does keep the hair out of my eyes. And neither my husband or son have said anything about it so I'm assuming they haven't noticed because it wasn't a drastic cut. Really just trimming and shaping. The home scale reads 105.2 lbs with readings similar to previous days with the exception of TBW which is 53.1. Again, I'm puzzled but not greatly.

I'm still looking at ellipticals for home use, but the recommended machines are all front-wheel drive (rear-wheel drives are suppose to have less maintenance issues) and brands I've never heard of. I know rowing machine fans claim that rowers are better, and I do love the fact that they don't require electricity, but again, my issue is with my grip and all the related joints. Even doing a session on the elliptical can elicit numb fingers with wrist and thumb pain if I'm not constantly repositioning and flexing my hands. My elliptical workouts don't involve upper body: I just use the grips to keep myself steady because I'm moving so fast. I suspect that my body has some sort of collagen issue, because I've inherited "poor circulation", i.e., movable veins (a real nightmare if you've ever tried to give blood), skin that retains the faintest impressions, blood vessels that compress easily, and extremely dry sensitive skin.

I call B when I get to the parking lot to find out what's become of her. Apparently she's been sick since she got back from vacation. But she'll be back. I tell myself that tomorrow, if I see R, I'll make a point of saying Hi, so that I'm not a complete anti-social freak. I have to tell myself these things because it's so easy for me to just withdraw into my workout, oblivious to the world. I've been trying hard not to be a complete jerk. BR at the front desk tells me that I should look up Rene Marven on FB  (under ifbb Pro Rene Marven) to see her photos from the NY Grand Prix. (Actually, Rene has her own website! Click here to view.) BR also tells me that she's so impressed with how much I've transformed myself, and we both agree that damn, I work hard for it. That makes me happy. Even if I am an anti-social hoodie jerk.