Ever-Shifting Goals

Tuesday is Back Day and although I'm not consciously working them, the Biceps get a nice workout as well. The lower back and elbows seem okay today so I'm cautiously optimistic about upping the weights on some of the exercises. The gym is oddly empty again, except for the women rushing pell-mell into Zumba class before all the spots are taken. Again I have my favorite elliptical, and again its not enough for me to make my arbitrary quota. I'm so cold when I start that I have my hands tucked inside the sleeves of my hoodie. Ten minutes later I can feel a trickle of sweat on the nape of my neck. By the end of 35 minutes, I'm nicely warm and sweaty. I'm just shy of the quota again, but a hair better than yesterday. I think it's because I'm tired. Still tired from the weekend. And getting up extra early today to pack an actual lunch for my son because Tuesdays he has "Chess at Recess" and so doesn't get to purchase lunch in the cafeteria.

I see a small crowd of regulars, M, Tall Pace, HDA (he looks like Harry Dean Anderson) at one of the cable stations where the lat pull down machine is situated. There's another station, but someone has draped their hoodie over the knee bar, claiming it. The Mayor, Jude and a few others are at the free weights. Because I'd rather put my energy towards the barbell and dumbbell rows, I only use the Neutral Close Grip handles for pull downs today. My elbows screamed at me last week whenever I did wide grip pull downs or actual pull ups, so none of that today. R glides in and greets a few guys near the dumbbells. He's very chatty today. And I'm resolutely not. After a few sets on the Pull Down, I retreat to the Cage Stretch where it is quieter. I've got my iPod blasting. My stretches seem good, but the kicks are a little tired.

I grab 4 discs from the front desk (who knows, I might need them all) and head towards the barbell rack. I grab a 90 lb BB and do a set, then swap it for the 100 lbs. I don't want to waste energy on lesser weights, and even though I have the Versa Gripps tucked in my gear sack, I worry about losing my grip too early in my routine. So I only do 10 reps. I toss a pair of magnets on the ends and do another set. This time I allow myself 12 reps. Then another pair of magnets. Okay, that's 110 lbs.

Jude is on an incline bench a few feet away. I can see he's got a pair of 45s on each side of the bar, which he presses a few times. The Mayor is red-faced and disheveled after squatting. I've only ever seen him do overhead presses and assorted DB work before. I could've swapped this barbell for the last one on the rack, but I'm too lazy to carry it back to the rack while weaving in and out of the various benches and bars jutting haphazardly into the narrow walk aisles. Perhaps I'll just choose the 110 lbs next time because every time I set the barbell down, the magnets slide a bit. (It's not an issue until I do DB Rows where I set the DB down after every rep.) I'm pleased that I get 3 sets of 12 reps at 110 lbs without any grip issue whatsoever. Yay!

My elbows and forearms need a break so I wander over to the Lower Back Extension Machine. It's set to 135 lbs so that's where I start. After each set I move the pin down another plate. Last time I ended at 180 lbs. This time I decide to give the 195 lb a shot. The stack only goes to 300, but that's way more than I can move. I can move the 195 but it's not a full movement where I feel my back hit the bottom of the arc. Maybe next time I'll use the half brick (7.5 lbs) for 187.5 lbs and see if I can get full reps out of that.

Standing at the DB rack, I'm undecided where to start. 45s are right in front of me so it's where I start, and I brace myself on a bench. Then 50 lbs. Then I grab the discs and make the 50 a 55. The first set I only get 8 and not because my grip is failing, but because my elbow and forearm seem a little strained. I dig out the Versa Gripps. It takes me a while to position them properly. I can tell that Big White Mustache on the adjacent bench is trying not to stare. There are a lot of regulars floating about the gym including ZZ, RR, Hoodie Tattoo and Ollie. The Versa Gripps make this movement so much easier and I get 10 reps for the next two sets. I'm done. Well, almost. I still have to do abs. And Mat Stretch. And then I'm done! Yay!

When I get home I snap a few photos of my arms and back. I don't see much of a difference between now and the last good back shots I took back in mid-June. But the biceps are definitely uneven and I'm not quite sure how to fix that since it's the weaker left side that looks good. Go figure. It's probably working harder just to keep up with the right. That's actually funny. I'm definitely stronger and learning how to work around my weaknesses, i.e., joints. But perhaps I'd like to be a little more symmetrical? I look at my triceps and wish they had better definition. That most likely would need me to cut back on fats in my diet. Would I lose strength? Like beach sand, goals keep shifting.


Tuesday Workout:
35 min Hill #6 = 3.94 miles Bleah

Neutral Grip Pull Downs: 12 @ 75 lbs / 10 @ 90 lbs / 8 @ 105 lbs / 6 @ 120 lbs
I lean back slightly and then pull the handles down until they just touch my chest, keeping my elbows tucked close to my sides

Cage Stretch with BW heel dips & calf raises and Side Kicks

Reverse Grip BB Rows: 12 @ 90 lbs / 10 @ 100 lbs / 12 @ 105 lbs / 3 x 12 @ 110 lbs Yay!

Lower Back Extension Machine: 12 @ 135 lbs / @ 150 lbs / @ 165 lbs / @ 180 lbs / @ 195 lbs
last set wasn't a complete movement of the full arc, will drop down to 187.5 lbs next week

One-Arm DB Rows: 12 @ 40 lbs / 10 @ 50 lbs / 8, 10, 10 @ 55 lbs last two sets with Versa Gripps

Flat Bench Twisting Sit Ups: 150
Ab Crunch Station: 100
Torso Twist Machine: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs

Mat Stretch with 12 wide-legged DBPUs, 3 rolling, 12 regular-stance DBPUs, 20 sec plank (yep, these are getting shorter 'cuz they're so boring), splits, upper back, neck and shoulder stretches, hamstring and lower back stretches, etc.