Earth Day, Back Day. Just Move A Lot of Weight!

I just looked at the JeFit app where I log all my exercises. It says I've moved 44,500 lbs today. No wonder I feel a little spacey. Of course, I'm inclined to blame it on the 10 min of HIIT cardio, followed by 20 min of LISS. If I didn't have my iPod, I don't think I could do LISS, but at the end of my workout, I'm fairly content to sing along with my tunes while doing a slow jog. Actually, I have to look up exactly what constitutes LISS. Am I suppose to be breaking a sweat which is just residual from the HIIT? Is a pace of 130 Strides Per Minute good? Should I be paying more attention to my heart rate instead of my speed?

HIIT is easier: going as fast as you can for 15 seconds, and then dropping your speed to catch your breath for 45 seconds is pretty straight forward. For me, that means 274-280 SPMs for 15 seconds, followed by 70-90 SPMs for 45 seconds. Doing LISS has me trotting along at 130 SPMs which isn't taxing at all since I'm used to 180 for steady-state cardio. But should I be going slower? By the end, my muscles have cooled down and stretching is harder than normal. Today I only stretch my lower back and shoulders.

Tattoo Tank is at the Smith machine so my first movement is RG BB Rows. I do my standard routine. It feels okay. Venus and B are chatting. Chatty Guy and Tattoo Tank are chatting as well. Sometimes they lift weights. B flits about like a butterfly. I see a few more regulars, but it's hard for me to emerge from my workout mode and be social. So I don't. Tattoo Tank has finished OHP at the Smith so I take this opportunity to do Smith RG BB Rows. I use less weight and I'm much more parallel to the floor. I can hit different muscles. Before Cable Seated Rows, I do a few sets of Inverted Rows (at the Smith because there is no other place to do them). It's been a long time and these are hard on my elbows. I can see Venus in the mirrored wall as she does One-Arm Cable Rows. She could be a fitness model with her long, lean, muscular yet extremely feminine look.

At the Cable Seated Rows I notice a man with a definite attitude problem. He's on the adjacent Seated Row station, and the weights drop onto the stack, as if he just let go at the last rep. I have tremendous disdain for people who can't control their equipment. My last rep is always super slow and virtually silent. This slob, half-shaven and unkempt, also leaves the BB rack in disarray. As if he's purposely dyslexic. My nickname for him is Scuzzabutt. That's right, just like in South Park. Because he's beastly, but not in a good way.

I see Hollywood too. She reminds me of those 1950s movie stars, with the cat-eye glasses and short brown wavy hair. Think Liz Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Sophia Loren. But she's got a weird, high-pitched screechy voice that sets my nerves on edge. Oh well. She's got nice arms too, but not as nice as Venus. I almost forget that I'm adding a few sets of bicep work to my Back Day. I start off with BB Curls and my elbows immediately complain. Next time I'll try DB Curls, maybe windmills or hammer curls. Afterwards, I do a few sets of RG BB Curls. And I'm actually really surprised that I can do them at all so soon after BB Curls. Ugh.

Drain Fly (magnified)

I'm really happy to have my choice of ellipticals. Because I can't start off going as fast as I can, I jog for a minute while setting the machine parameters. I'm tired and feel as if I won't be able to do 10 minutes of HIIT. But I'm good at ignoring myself. Just do it. And I do. I expected my speed to slow after the first 5 minutes, but I'm able to hit 270-276 repeatedly during the Intensity phase. It's during the recovery phase that I'm gasping. But I don't feel bad for long, and the 20 minutes of LISS that follow has me singing along (silently) to my tunes. My triceps and lower abs are sore but not really noticeable unless I contract them. I've gotten my first nasty bug bite of the season too. It's a long welt across my collar bone that itches like the dickens. Probably a gnat. Or a drain fly, those odd tiny moth-like creatures that look like soot flying up out of the sink or shower. No one will admit it, but they can actually bite! Yep, Happy Earth Day.


Wednesday Back and Bicep Workout
(44,500 lbs moved; 4.13 total miles cardio)

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   71 CAL
Distance: 1.74 mile
Speed :    6.96 mph
Duration : 00:15:03

Barbell Reverse Grip Bent Over Row

232.5

Set 1 : 45x15
Set 2 : 135x20
Set 3 : 155x15
Set 4 : 155x15
Set 5 : 155x15
Set 6 : 135x20

Smith Machine Reverse Grip Bent Over Row

150.33

Set 1 : 30x15
Set 2 : 80x15
Set 3 : 100x15
Set 4 : 110x11
Set 5 : 100x15
Set 6 : 100x15

Inverted Row

161

Set 1 : 115x12
Set 2 : 115x12
Set 3 : 115x12 Ugh!

Cable Seated Row

152

Set 1 : 90x12
Set 2 : 105x10
Set 3 : 120x8
Set 4 : 120x8
Set 5 : 120x8

Back Extension Machine

315

Set 1 : 195x15 too easy!
Set 2 : 210x15
Set 3 : 210x15

Barbell Curl

67.5

Set 1 : 40x15
Set 2 : 45x15
Set 3 : 50x10
Set 4 : 45x12
Set 5 : 40x15

Barbell Reverse Curl

75

Set 1 : 40x25
Set 2 : 45x20
Set 3 : 45x20

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   189 CAL
Distance: 2.39 mile
10 min HIIT
20 min LISS
Duration : 00:30:00