Born Again Gym Rat: First Day Glitches

Thursday, September 4, 2014

First Day Glitches

My son and I waited for the school bus with another mom and her little girl. It was her first day of school ever and she was very nervous. Kindergarten is a big deal to a 5 year old. This is the first year we've managed to retain the same school bus driver as well so everything seemed auspicious. I get to the gym and cut pieces of sports tape to wrap around my knuckles and finger before heading out to the cardio platform.

I finish the 10 minute cardio warm up (with 4 min Tabata) and head to the Cage for a quick stretch. Then as I plant myself in front of the Nexersys, a text message pops up on my phone from the school district. They're on Lock Down due to police activity at the Middle School and High School. What?! My first thought is that this is a prank because no one wants to go back to school. I'm also glad that none of the elementary schools are near the Middle and High schools which sit at opposite ends of the grounds. But then my mind starts to wander to school tragedies in this country and elsewhere. It's hard to focus. I know there's not a lot I can do except be ready. Eventually school sends a message that all students are safely inside. Then another message that normal functions have resumed. Whew.

Still, my focus is off and I can see it in my accuracy and power scores. I'm trying to equalize my left and right but sometimes I wonder if it isn't the machine that's all glitchy when it tells me that my left Jab is a mere 80% but the right Cross is 170%. Because I don't have time constraints today, I punch in 12 rounds Beginner and 3 rounds Intermediate. Eventually I'll work up to 5 and then 7 rounds. The odd combinations for the Intermediate rounds still flummox me and I miss several blows. I figure I should concentrate on accuracy more than power for now.

When I'm done I head to the Mats to sit down and pull off my gloves. I see a few regulars like The Mayor, B, LoudMouth, Shaggy, Skinny Joe and R, but the only one I chat with briefly is "Texas" whose baby is due in a few months. I can't even think about how I feel or whether I want to do something or not. I just do because it's the only way to get things done. The 2nd cardio session is always harder than the first, and 5 minutes of Tabata is exponentially harder than 4. But I can't think about it or debate it in my head. Just do it. And then, because it's been a really long time, I clamber up the Step Mill for 15 minutes at level 6.

Even though I have time, I don't do a Mat Stretch. Instead, I put my hoodie back on so I won't make the Mat all gross and sweaty, and stretch out my lower back. The gym scale is missing in the locker room and I'm bummed. Apparently it broke last night, but will be replaced eventually. I have a load of groceries to buy and by the time I get home I'm starving. But I want to know how much I weigh. Because I'm compulsive. And I want to know that what I'm doing is working. It's actually a bit surreal because my home scale reads 107.6 lbs and 19.5% BF. This is completely unexpected. Especially since dessert yesterday was my son's Apple Dip that he learned to make at camp: 1/2 block of cream cheese (I used neufchatel because it's lower in fat), 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 tsp brown sugar. Mix thoroughly and coat apple slices. It was really good. I figure it couldn't be any worse than ice cream.

Thursday Workout