Cardio and Legs Today

Top: Precor elliptical warm up
Bottom: Matrix Step Mill LISS

Yesterday's Storm Rex was kind of a bust, with slippery fine powdery snow that made the roads treacherous because of the underlying ice. My son and I cleared the driveway and walkway of what we could scrape up. I pointed out a spot near the top of the driveway where I'd slipped and landed hip-first into my snow shovel. My son promptly landed on his backside, completely laid out. Luckily, he was dressed in snow gear from head to toe and the padding kept him bouncy and uninjured. Then we attacked the icy stalactites hanging like ominous teeth over the windows and doorways. Finally, the snow stopped, the sun came out and we packed ourselves into the car to take advantage of $5 Tuesdays at the local cinema. The Lego Movie has been playing for a few weeks now, and the 3-D version is only $6 a ticket, and well worth it. I'd see that movie again, and my husband is happy to hear it since he was at work for all this.

Chest looks decent enough.

Today is Leg Day. I'm a bit sore from Monday but that's not a surprise. It shouldn't impede anything I do today. I get on the Precor elliptical and do 20 minutes of cardio, averaging between 180-200 Strides Per Minute. Just enough to get me warm and sweaty, but not enough to make me feel exhausted. Then I glom onto the Smith machine for Squats, and then SLDLs. The Squats feel okay as long as I go to parallel and use a wide leg stance, otherwise my right knee complains. Even the SLDLs feel okay. But both my right shoulder and right elbow are a twingey today. My grip starts to fail as I add weight to the bar. I feel a little guilty about being on the Smith so long so when I lose my grip at rep 7 at 140 lbs, I decide that's my last set. I could pull out the VGs but I already know there's at least two guys hovering, waiting patiently for this contraption.

Cage Stretch then Seated Leg Extensions. Since it's been a month, I start at 75 lbs. After each 12 rep set, I up the weight, stopping at 135 lbs. The Seated Leg Curl is harder. I thought perhaps taking a month off would alleviate the problem I've been having with my right foot and heavier weights, but the issue is still there. I start at 60 lbs which feels easy. As does 75 and 90 lbs. At 105, I feel the arch of my right foot curl slightly. I also feel weaker. So it's 3 sets at 105 lbs, and I can't even finish the last set. I look around and see that both Step Mills are free so I put my hoodie back on and clamber aboard one, set the pacing to 4 and start reading my phone. 20 sweaty minutes and 837 steps goes by fairly quickly.

My shoulder is sore and my upper back feels very tight so I drop onto the Mat for a stretch. I know I'm holding a lot of water weight just from looking at how puffy my face is. The gym scale reads 114.6 lbs. No surprise there. I snap a few selfies just for the record. What surprises me is how decent my arms look considering I didn't work them today. Maybe I'll box the Nexersys tomorrow and do another chest and back workout on Friday, but all the other excises I didn't have time for on Monday. At least it's a plan.

Getting Back to Leg Day
20 min Precor elliptical = 1.79 miles

Smith Machine Squats: 20 @ bar (30 lbs) / 12 @ 75 lbs / 12 @ 90 lbs / 12 @ 110 lbs / 12 @ 130 lbs / 12 @ 150 lbs
Smith Machine Stiff-Legged Dead Lifts: 12 @ bar (30 lbs) / 12 @ 65 lbs / 12 @ 80 lbs / 12 @ 100 lbs / 10 @ 120 lbs / 7 @ 140 lbs

Cage Stretch with BW heel dips & calf raises and side kicks

Seated Leg Extension: 12 @ 75 lbs / 12 @ 90 lbs / 12 @ 105 lbs / 12 @ 120 lbs / 12 @ 135 lbs
Seated Leg Curls: 12 @ 60 lbs / 12 @ 75 lbs / 12 @ 90 lbs / 10, 10, 8 @ 105 lbs

20 min Matrix Step Mill LISS (837 steps)
Mat Stretch with 12 wide stance DBPUs & 12 regular stance DBPSs, 60-second plank, upper and lower back stretches, splits, etc