Heat May Be Habit-Forming

Leery of taking too much decongestant (the extended release contains 120 mg), I decide to take a single red decongestant pill (adult dosage is 60 mg or 2 pills). It should last for 4-6 hours, and then I'll decide whether I need to take more. I'm a little sore but I never really notice unless it impedes my ability to do something. My glutes are probably always sore but I feel my triceps a bit today but only when I fully extend my arms and rotate my elbows up, a sort of flex and stretch.

35 minutes isn't awful so I've decided to make that my standard warm up time, satisfying my ego with 4.01 miles today. Cage (hamstring) stretch, then kicks, followed by the vertigo-inducing head to shin stretch. I feel brave today and sit at the Cable Rows. The heavier weight doesn't make my head feel like it's going to explode but I'm weak. I get 3 sets of 8 reps at 120 lbs. The Smith machine is extremely busy so I move on to other exercises. I know that at some point I'll get on there to try and pull myself up a few times. I can't dawdle too much. I have an eye doctor appointment at 1 pm. It's my annual glaucoma checkup. (Yep, another hereditary disease. Thanks mom!)

Today's Total Workout:
35 min cardio = 4.01 miles
Cage Stretch & Kicks
Seated Cable Rows: 12 @ 90 / 12 @ 105 / 3 x 8 @ 120 lbs
Lower Back Extensions: 2 x 25 @ 90 lbs (no vertigo today! Yay!)
Reverse Grip Barbell Rows: 15 @ 65 / 6 x 15 @ 70 lbs (I've really got to figure out how to up the weight on this... perhaps there are more magnetic discs?)
Pull Ups: 3 x 8 (I'm feeling very weak today but I hold my legs out straight to work abs simultaneously)
DB Curls: 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Concentration Curls: 2 x 12 @ 20 lbs (I figure I'll attempt a few sets of chin ups instead of this)
Close Grip Chin Ups: 3 x 6-8 (boy do I suck at this, but I'm not a total failure)
Torso Twist: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs (I need to rest my forearms before doing the next exercise)
Reverse Grip BB Curls: 3 x 20 @ 40 lbs
Mat Stretch

In the locker room I run into some gals who are just done with yoga class. D tells me that it must be working because her back hurts less. Then she tells me about the class she takes on Friday nights at 5:30 pm. It's a weight training class that she thinks is great because she just does whatever the instructor tells her and she doesn't have to think about what to do next. I tell her that I don't really think much when I work out either. But of course what I don't say is I already have a program in my head of what I'm doing next, or what I can substitute because I've been doing this for such a long time -- studying muscles and exercises since I was in college. I do enjoy a few minutes in the sauna. The heat might be habit-forming, although I develop temporary red blotches all over my legs in response.

The scale reads 107.4 lbs at the gym. Once I get home from the eye doctor, the scale reads 105.8 lbs. Then I realize that I have to pee. Just for fun, I get back on the scale afterwards to see what it reads. I'm really surprised because it now reads 105.0. Wow, water is heavy! Or should I say Pee is heavy! The most interesting aspect is that the figures for body fat, total body water and muscle all changed as well: body fat went down, total body water went up, muscle percentage went up. At least bone stayed the same! And all I did was pee. 

My eye doctor wants to send me to a glaucoma specialist because my pressures are up to 16 when they were down to 12-13 a few months ago. I'm allergic to most of the eye drops he's prescribed except for the Xalatan, but the fact that my pressure is up right now is worrisome. He can't explain it with the fact that I'm taking a decongestant known to raise blood pressure, and have a horrible sinus infection, but he agrees to recheck my pressure next month, when theoretically, I should be over this ailment.