Ending the Week Well

One of these days I'll figure
out how to take photos without
me staring into the phone

It's Friday, the sun is blazing bright and I'm done for the week! I'm pretty happy with myself for actually upping the weight in a few movements. I'm not the impulsive type, so it always takes me a while to get used to an idea before I actually do it. Now's probably a good time to think about the abbreviated workout I'll have to do a few days next week when I have my son at the gym with me. Especially since I have the water softener guy coming between noon and 4 on Tuesday. Our well water is so hard that it's literally eating away the copper hot water pipes. I only realized how serious this was when my white face cloth turned green as I rinsed it in the running hot water!

Not VIA but pretty good

I've eaten all my frozen blueberries so now my oatmeal's kind of bland, and I've resorted to a spoon of maple syrup to liven it up. My grandmother used to add a beaten egg to the oatmeal to give it more fill power, but the last time I did that, I wound up being hungrier faster. I've switched from my beloved Starbucks VIA instant coffee to supermarket instant espresso. (Thankfully I have access to several food markets in my area because 3 out of 4 stores don't carry jarred instant espresso like Café Bustelo or Medaglia D'Oro. That leaves ground coffee, K-cups, and national brands like Taster's Choice, Sanka or Nescafe.)

Still, I had an excellent workout today. I managed to squeeze in several sets of Pull Ups throughout my routine, upped the weight on the Reverse Grip Barbell Row so I don't need to borrow the magnetic discs anymore, and knocked out a few sets of dumbbell curls at a higher weight as well. Even my stretches seemed smooth today.

Today's Total Workout:
35 min cardio #6 hill = 4.13 miles (again, a minute and a half to go during cool down and I sense the beginning of a stitch inside my right rib cage; it's very disconcerting considering I made sure to give myself at minimum, an hour between breakfast and working out)
Seated Cable Rows: 12 @ 90 / 12 @ 105 / 3 x 10 @ 120 lbs
Oddly, I don't feel warmed up until the 3rd set!
Smith Rack Pull Ups: 12+2 / 10+2 / 8+2

Not tall enough to unrack
the 70 lb bar but I can just
manage the 80 lb bar!

 

Lower Back Extensions: 2 x 25 @ 97.5 lbs
Cage Stretch, Kicks & 10 Neutral Grip Pull Ups
Ab Curl Machine: 100 (ok, boredom isn't quite the right word here)
Reverse Grip BB Rows (I'm barely tall enough to get this bar on and off the rack without help, but I can do it!): 6 x 12 @ 80 lbs
DB Curls: 12 @ 20 lbs / 3 x 12 @ 25 lbs
Smith Rack Pull Ups: 10+2
Flat Bench Twisting Sit Ups: 125
Lower Ab Kick Outs: 100
Smith Rack Pull Ups: 8+2 (uh oh, diminishing returns here!)
Reverse Grip BB Curls: 5 x 20 @ 40 lbs (my left forearm twinges with pins & needles during the last few reps of the last 2 sets so I cut it short and only do 5 sets)
Torso Twist: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs
Mat Stretch

I see B and she excitedly tells me about the new Asian-food market she & her husband discovered in White Plains. After hearing her description, and because she can't ever remember the names of anything including what brand cell phone she now owns, I say to her, "It's H-Mart, isn't it." She's flabbergasted, but I tell her that all my friends rave about it, but we've yet to make the journey.

Other than B, M, Skinny J, PonyTail, MacGyver, Baggy Knees, PJ Pants, Short Pace, Skinny Mustache and a bunch of HS boys, I don't see many regulars. I catch a glimpse of The Mayor as he's leaving, noting that he must've resorted to wearing even bigger polo shirts because they positively hang on him, and not in a good way. I also note a few woman who seem to steal glances at me as I work out. That's okay with me. I hope they feel encouraged instead of intimidated.

The scale hasn't budged in several days, and as much as I sweat, I haven't actually drained my water bottle all week. Something's changing in my physiology. I weigh in at 107.8 lbs, and probably a few pounds lighter on my home scale (after I've peed 6 times!). But I'm stronger, and a tad bigger in the right places, so things are good. The week's ending well!