Inspiration is Where You Get It

Pair of 5s, pair of 10s and a 25 lb plate each side
plus bar minus the counterweight equals... Hmm

This past weekend was busy as always, but at least it wasn't all work and no play. Except for the car battery that died and necessitated a trip to Sears. And grass tall enough to hide velociraptors that needed to be mowed.

But it was lovely BBQ weather, and we had a meat-fest with a dry-rubbed London broil and Asian-spiced pork chops on the grill, a big bowl of strawberries and cubed canteloupe, smashed potato salad, and glasses of  Cupcake malbec.

I felt pretty wrecked when I got to the gym this morning, and not at all inclined to give it 110%. Still, once I plugged in and climbed up onto the elliptical, I was moving, flexing my frigid fingers and wiping the spit off my half-open mouth.

As I've mentioned before, I never slow down during the 5 minute "cool-down". Instead, I see that as opportunity to play catch-up and go as fast as I can to make up for lost mileage. Today I did manage to squeak through my (self-imposed) quota and I was pretty damn happy with myself.

When I got to the weights though, Hannibal Baggy Knees was setting up on the Smith and I slunk off to a free Olympic bench to warm up. I'm not even sure he got a set in because after a few minutes I realized that the bar was still racked, but he had abandoned the station. And I think, Hmmm, I probably am benching more than he is because he's just got a 25 and a 10 lb plate on each side. But the bench is mine and that's all that matters. I stripped the bar, lowered it to where I like it, adjusted the bench and got my sets in. I was pretty damn happy until my last set which is always 25 reps. Granted I probably didn't rest enough, but at the 23rd rep I had to put the bar back on the stays and take two breaths. Then I knocked out another 7 reps because I was pissed at myself. But it felt good when I was done!

Today's 1st Push Day Workout:
35 min cardio = 4.02 miles Yippeee!
Olympic Bench Press: 25 reps bar (45 lbs) / 12 @ 65 lbs / 10 @ 85 lbs
Smith Bench Press: 12 @ 95 lbs / 10 @ 115 / 8 @ 135 / 3 x 6 @ 155 / 12 @ 135 / 23+7 @ 115 lbs
Cage Stretch & Kicks
Bent Over Rear DB Raises (chest in my lap): 6 x 15 @ 25 lbs
I lose count as to whether on I'm the 3rd or 4th set and do another 3 sets just in case.
Lateral DB Raises: 3 x 15 @ 20 lbs
Lateral DB Raises SuperSet with One-Arm DB Tricep Extensions: 3 x 15 @ 20 lbs
Flat Bench Twisting Sit Ups: 125
Lower Ab Kick Outs: 125
Tricep Press Downs: 12, 11, 10 @ 50 lbs
I am so burnt by the end of this that I know it's time to think about stretching.
Torso Twist Station: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs
Mat Stretch

There's an improbable amount of chatting at the Mats but I manage to squeeze myself into a reasonable space where I can run through my routine. Sometimes I think I could probably doze off in one of those flopped-over-with-your-nose-on-your-shin positions, but I'd be worried about who I'd be waking up next to. I see B, M, The Mayor, MacGyver and a few other regulars. I'm tired and my clothes reek (all the synthetics seem to promote stinky bacterial growth) so I head off to the showers. The scale reads 111.4 lbs. It's definitely not the heaviest I've ever weighed on a Monday so I'm not too concerned. At least my clothes still fit! LOL!

When I get home, I read about Fallon Fox, the transgender MMA fighter (born Boyd Burton). I'm not sure how I feel about someone born biologically male competing against women because I do wonder if having spent formative years as a male engenders muscular strength. What is of real interest though, is Fox's idol, Megumi Fujii, a 5'3" 115 lb, 39 year old Japanese champion MMA fighter. "Mega Megu" wants to compete in the UFC but they don't have a Straw Weight Division for 115 lbs yet. Here's a link to a youtube tribute to her which I've tried to embed here but it didn't take. She's fast and powerful, and not very big but she comes at her opponents like an unstoppable freight train. (An aside, we just watched Denzel Washington's Unstoppable. That was great!) It's all very inspiring! 

I realize that I'm too old to do a lot of things but I can still train hard (and look good). With my glaucoma, there's no way I could ever take up anything that would increase my intra-occular pressure
(IOP) and exacerbate what, doctors tell me, is a rather difficult type of glaucoma to treat. I'm still freaking out over having to have eye surgery, but I've been familiarizing myself with all the details of this type of surgery (called a trabulectomy) so that I can determine what facility to contact. There is the Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, and there is the John Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute in Baltimore. Neither is really convenient, but at least I won't have to travel halfway across the country.

I think I can still go to kickboxing classes and whack the Nexersys station. At least until my eye docs tell me otherwise. In the meantime, I can still work out hard, and intimidate the crap out of much bigger people at my gym. Life is good. Happiness is where you find it.