Cardio Week Day Four

I'll admit to being tired when I got up this morning, but my glutes aren't sore the way they used to be. For a change of pace, I put a spoonful of molasses in my oatmeal this morning but it didn't really alter the taste of the eggy cereal much. I may just dig out those frozen summer blueberries and toss those in instead. The ellipticals were all free when I got to the gym and I punched in 30 minutes, Interval 8, because I figure this might be the last time I do this for a while. It takes me a few minutes to get my pacing as I start off at a lethargic 160 Strides Per Minute and only gradually work my way up to the 190-210 SPMs that I enjoy. Again, I only manage 240-255 SPMs during the 5 minute cool down, and my mileage is eerily exactly the same as Tuesday: 4.29 miles. Very odd.

I'm drenched in sweat so I don't bother to take my hoodie off. I hate sweating all over everywhere I go. After a stretch at the Cage, I eye the new bench for decline push ups. The bench comes so far up my thigh, it's just about crotch level. Yes, I have short legs. Still, I put my feet up on the bench and see how push ups feel as I knock out 25. I think I'm too high because I don't like the way my head feels the blood rushing toward it. (Nope, never catch me doing a handstand either.) Not only do I suffer from probably-sinus related vertigo, but I'm wary of increased fluid pressures due to my glaucoma. The push ups themselves are fine and 25 is relatively easy.

Instead, I head over to the Mats at the other end of the gym. First I play with the Ab Wheel, trying to imitate the form I viewed in the instructional video, keeping my back rounded. This feels weird and I'm thinking this is really bad for my lower back. I'm a very flexible person but since I can't see my profile as I do this movement, I have no idea whether my lower back is neutral or tucked. I do three sets of 12, alternating with decline push ups (feet up on the 2nd step), but since I'm concerned that this is stressing my lower back too much, I decide that there are better ab exercises to do. The push ups are fine though and after a total of 100 reps, I feel a bit of a chest pump. Then I flop down on the Mat and do some crunches. Then I do a variation of crunches, trying to prepare myself for next week's routine. I'm so not looking forward to it, but I'll do it because it's only 3 weeks long.

I'd like to leave but trudge back to the Precors becasue I still have to put in 20 minutes of LISS. I use the time to read emails, scan Feedly, and check out the online muscle forums. The pony-tailed dude next to me probably wonders why I even bothered to get on the elliptical as I'm only doing 45 SPMs. Sometimes I wonder that too. The gym scale says 112.6 lbs but I've only sucked down half my water, and I'm dripping wet before I even hit the shower.

I run into B who tells me that now not only is her lower back still injured with probably a pinched nerve, but now she can't turn her head and the pain is keeping her up at night. But she doesn't want to go to doctor. And she's not going for an MRI because she's too claustrophobic. Instead she's self-medicating her neck pain with NSAIDs and a muscle relaxer. "I don't want to take the pain killer the doc gave me. It's hydrocodone." "He gave you codeine and Tylenol for back pain?" I ask, but she's not internet-savvy so she can't really answer me. I tell her to find a good sports doctor but she won't. She'll just suffer and complain about it until her husband gets sick of it and makes an appointment for her. It's probably a generation thing since she's about 8 years older than me.

As I"m leaving the gym, I see P, the owner who promised to show me what the Intermediate Level entails at the Nexersys. "I'll show you tomorrow," he says. "But you're not usually here on Fridays." "Oh, we're getting some new equipment so I'll be here." I give him a quizzical look as he motions to the Cardio platform. "Swapping out those old Precors for new ones," he says. "Oh no! I hope I fit into the new ones!" "Well, they're still Precors," he says. Then I complain about the new benches being too high for me, and he says I should take the yoga blocks and put them under my feet. Again I give him a quizzical look. "They're stacked up in the class room. I'll show you tomorrow." Yeah, okay. I'm not happy with all these changes because new is not usually better. Perhaps it's best that I've changed my routine, but this is going to really suck if I can't use the ellipticals to do HIIT. I guess I'll find out tomorrow.

Day Four
35 min elliptical Interval 8 = 4.29 miles
Cage Stretch
25 decline push ups with feet up 23"
3 x 12 Ab Wheel super set with decline push ups
3 x 25 with feet up approx 14" (2 steps)
3 x 20 crunches
20 min elliptical LISS = 1.06 miles