Easing Into It

I'm impatient. The month ends next week but I'm itching to slide more cardio into my workout so I upped my warmup to 30 minutes today on the elliptical. And then I still did 20 minutes on the Step Mill after I was done. And I cut out an entire exercise. I'd been debating between BB Rows and One-Arm Rows. Seems silly to do them both in the same workout. I like RG BB Rows better so I did those and skipped the One-Arm Rows. My left lat has been odd lately, ever since it spasmed last week between sets of Bent-Over Reverse DB Flyes for rear delts. I had twisted slightly to grab my cell off the floor and my lat just seized up. It wasn't even Back Day (I do delts on Chest Day).

Today I keep my sets relatively light. Since I already know I can pull 185, I only do sets at 155, and then a "As Many As Possible" set at the end. For fun. Gripping the bar with just the VGs is causing monster callouses to form at the top of my palms opposite my knuckles. I swear I take an emery board to them at least once a week just so I can hold my son's hand without scratching him. My husband teases me that if a Cultural Revolution ever came, I'd be safely mistaken for farm labor with my non-desk jockey hands. He, on the other hand, has baby-soft skin even though he's onsite with conveyors and other equipment when he's not glued to his computer, reviewing shop drawings.

I'm a bit tired from the extra cardio and the BB Rows but I manage to do my three sets of Lower Back Extensions, and then Neutral Grip Lat Pull Downs. I can really feel my left lat today. My right elbow is a little tender as well, but not enough to keep me from getting my sets. I completely forget to do any abs as I clamber up the Step Mill for 20 minutes. A quick Cage Stretch afterwards and I'm done. The gym scale reads 114.2 lbs which is a tad better than yesterday.

I'm thinking of taking Friday off because my son doesn't have school but the rest of NY probably does. Which makes it a perfect day to take him someplace like a museum. I hate going into the City but we could take the commuter train and then either a cab or the subway to the Museum of Natural History because they're having an exhibit on Pterosaurs. I love dinosaurs. I took him to the Yale Peabody Museum when he was three and all he could do was scream "Oh My God!" at the top of his lungs when he saw the huge mounted skeletons. I'm not sure if he'll be so impressed now that he's nine. If my husband weren't working, we'd probably drive into the City, but I hate driving distance, especially in NYC where monster potholes and insane drivers are de riguer. Besides, he'll probably still be in Boston.

Tuesday Back Workout

30 min elliptical = 2.96 miles

RG BB Row
15x45 lbs (bar)
15x135 lbs
5x12x155 lbs
25x135 lbs (AMAP for fun)

Lower Back Extension Machine
3x20x180 lbs

Neutral Grip Lat Pull Down
12x75 lbs
12x90 lbs
10x105 lbs
8x120 lbs
3x8x135 lbs

20 min Matrix Step Mill = 1168 steps

Cage Stretch