Was Resting Detrimental?

Program 8 and today's tally

Today is Back and Biceps and although I've sworn not to do any pull ups, I wonder how the rest of my work out will be considering yesterday's disappointing routine. My butt (glutes) are sore and that's actually reassuring. Maybe cardio won't suck today. Feeling uncharacteristically adventurous, I punch in program #8, the long interval and start peddling away. My thighs burn for the first few minutes into the program but everything starts to feel pretty good as I warm up and sweat pools at the end of my nose. It's unseasonably hot and humid today but the gym is air conditioned and I have my hoodie zipped all the way up. For the last two minutes of the program, I'm able to rev my pace up to 285 SPM and that feels good. I slow down a bit for the cool down (185 SPM) but bring the pace back up to 200 for the last three minutes. The machine calculates an even better mileage than yesterday and I'm very happy.

I've also decided that I'm not really happy with the sloppy form I use in moving the 135 lb stack on the Seated Cable Rows so I drop back to 120 lbs for three sets of 8 reps. I don't know why I haven't done drop sets on this (like I do on Benching) so today I institute that change as well. The rows feel pretty good and my left elbow doesn't complain at all. I see Mo as I exit the Cage Stretch and we chat briefly. She's on the abductor machine and I tell her that I used to use that until I discovered they were ruining my stretch by making my muscles too tight. I'd rather toss kicks and I pull my left thigh up laterally with my knee bent as if I was going to side kick. Peripherally, I see three different heads turn in our direction from the various exercise stations. She jokes that I ought to work a few muscles for her. She tore some ligaments in her hips several weeks ago so she's being very cautious. I cringe to think that such a big woman (she's at least 5'11 and 165 lbs) can be so fragile. I've heard the claim that menopause makes women less flexible and more prone to injury. That just makes me more determined to work harder, and smarter.

I'm a little skeptical when I take the 100 lb barbell off the rack but I hate backtracking. I managed Reverse Grip BB Rows last week with 105 lbs so that's what I attempt today. Except that my right hand starts to fail during the last three reps of the first set. This is not good. The thumb and the portion of the wrist immediately below twinge as if they're inflamed. I stretch my forearms by holding my arms out, palms forward, fingers down and pressing them against a wall between each subsequent set of rows. The discomfort eventually subsides but I'm not happy with the fact I could only get 12 reps per set. I did feel it in my back, but also in my fingers and palms. I'm beginning to think that taking a week off only made things worse instead of better.

Today's Pull Day Work Out:
35 min cardio interval #8 = 4.69 miles Yippeee!
Seated Cable Rows: 20 @ 45 lbs / 12 @ 90 / 10 @ 105 / 3 x 8 @ 120 / 12 @ 105 / 20 @ 90 lbs
Cage Stretch & Kicks
Reverse Grip Bent Over BB Rows: 6 x 12 @ 105 lbs
I'm so bummed that my right hand/thumb starts to fail almost immediately but I push through and stretch out my forearms between sets.
Flat Bench Twisting Sit Ups: 100
Lower Ab Kick Outs: 100
Torso Twist Station: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs
Lower Back Extensions: 2 x 25 @ 97.5 lbs
Ab Crunch Station: 100
BB Curls: 15 @ 40 lbs / 5 x 15 @ 45 lbs
Lower Back Extensions: 2 x 25 @ 97.5 lbs
5 x 15 @ 45 lbs
Reverse Grip BB Curls: 3 x 20 @ 40 lbs
Mat Stretch
The splits are a little tight today and I'm disappointed but that seems to be the nature of the body, or at least my body. It's not a constant increase but two steps forward and then a step backward.

I see a lot of regulars today except for B whose car I spied in the parking lot, but who I haven't actually seen all week. M, the Mayor, ZZ, IrishAbs, IrishGal & girlfriend, Ollie (he looks like Oliver Hardy), PonyTail Tattoo, R, FishGuy... they're all here at varying times. I remember to wave a quick Hi to Fish Guy, and wish R a Good Weekend but I'm probably not smiling when I do it because that's just another thing that doesn't come naturally to me, especially when I'm trying to focus.

This probably isn't
the look the dress
designer had in mind

The scale is slightly kinder today with a reading of 109.6 lbs. As I'm getting dressed, a short round woman greets me and it takes me a moment to realize who she is because her normally red hair is died several different shades of blue. Not tints but actual shades of peacock and cerulean blue. "Is it permanent?" I ask her. "No, it's all natural vegetable dye so it'll eventually wash out. I have the kind of job that allows me to do this." "What do you do?" "I'm a drug counselor." Ah. I would've guessed advertising creative but that's the world I come from. Perhaps having colorful hair makes you more approachable, or less likely to seem judgmental. When I was younger I toyed with the idea of dyeing a blue streak in my black hair but that would involve actually bleaching it. Asian hair can turn orange and I don't want a tiger stripe in my hair.

My husband suggested I take some ibuprofen (ie, Motrin or Advil) for the elbow. I've been holding off on NSAID because they've been implicated in inhibiting muscle growth. But acetaminophen (Tylenol) is much worse. I've never trusted it, not only because it's much more likely to cause liver damage, but also because it doesn't really address inflammation. It relieves pain without diminishing the cause, whereas aspirin, ibuprofen and other NSAIDs reduce swelling as well as fever and pain.

I probably won't take anything and see how it all feels on Monday when I prepare for another Push Day. But I'm liking the cardio change so I think I'll keep mixing that up. Meanwhile, it's a scorching 92°F outside and I'm dressing as minimally as I can, which means a sundress from EMS that requires no bra. I just wish it had pockets.