Abbreviated Core and Cardio Day

I rush my son out the door this morning to get to the gym at 9 am. That gives me two hours before time is up, and more importantly, the earliest movie showings start. He's hoping there will be more kids than the two little girls. Moms usually drop kids off right before class and there's a class at 9:30. I get on the LifeFitness for 30 minutes and pedal up a good sweat. Then I get one of the trainers to drag the Torso Twist machine a few inches back from the Cybex Back Machine. Apparently the larger folks like to slam the weight stack, causing the machines to inch forward until they're nearly touching each other.

I find a pile of personal foam mats by the side door and grab one from under a handwritten sign. Do Not Throw Out! These Are Not Garbage! Oh good. I was wondering why they were by the side door. The mat is cushioning enough to prevent me from bruising my tailbone when I do sit ups at the Nexersys machine. The gym owner had foot-bars installed last year for the cardio program, but I've never ever seen anyone use them. Except me. I like doing the flat-back sit ups with arms crossed against my chest so much better than crunches. The gym-teacher father of one of my son's cub scout friends showed us all how to do them. Crunches hurt my neck and that soreness will last for days. Not worth it. (I'm still reminded of how disappointed my father was when none of his kids could do a mere 10 sit ups and 10 push ups during warm ups before he tried to teach us basic martial arts. My son might struggle with pull ups, but he can definitely do push ups and sit ups.)

I put the foam mat back on the pile and do three sets of planks on the big mats. These seem harder than last time. But every time is different. Then back to the elliptical for Performance Program #3 for 30 minutes. I like exhilaration I get from pedaling hard and fast, backward and forward. I have just enough time for a quick lower back stretch and a shower. I see a few regulars like Shaggy who seems to have dropped weight, but not in a good way. He looks haggard. Like he's been sick. A few of the younger guys stare a lot when I leave the gym with my son. I guess it never occurred to them that I'm a mom.

We buy our tickets to see the dog hero movie Max at 11:15. My son is upset that his phone has lost most of its charge during play time in the Child Care room. At 11:08 I realize that the party we're going to tomorrow will be showing Jurassic World, not Inside Out. So we haul out of theater 5 and ask if we can switch tickets to see Inside Out, which is already 5 minutes started. No problem. We don't really miss much and theater 3 isn't really very crowded. It's kind of a weird tear-jerker, but not as bad as Bambi or Dumbo. Whew! And we don't mind seeing Jurassic World again, although my son is adamant about not seeing it in 3D, because no one needs to see people being eaten by dinosaurs that up-close and personal.

Tuesday Cardio and Core
(6.6 miles total)

Cross-Trainer

Steady State

Calorie :   140 CAL
Distance: 3.98 mile
Speed :    7.92 mph
Duration : 00:30:00

 

TorsoTwist Machine

Set 1 : 50x25
Set 2 : 50x25

Sit Up

Set 1 : 50 Lap/Rep
Set 2 : 50 Lap/Rep
Set 3 : 50 Lap/Rep

Plank

Set 1 : 00:01:30
Set 2 : 00:01:30
Set 3 : 00:01:30

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   299 CAL
Distance: 2.62 mile
Perf Prgm#3
Duration : 00:30:00

The Delayed Workout

Today was the first day of camp for my son and I was at a loss as how to dress him. An overcast 59°F does not hold the promise of pool time. So I dressed him in a hoodie, long sleeves and pants, and packed swim gear (trunks, rash guard, two towels) and warm weather clothes (T-shirt and shorts) with a change of underwear and socks (just in case) and stuffed it all into his new camp back pack. Thank goodness this year's model is the largest yet with several zipper compartments. Because every camper has the same exact backpack, I sharpie his name onto the front panel and tie a multi-color string to one of the zippers. No case of mistaken backpacks here.

I arrive at my eye doc appointment ridiculously early and resign myself to waiting. Picking through all the AARP magazines, I find a pristine copy of Real Simple. At least this has somewhat vaguely useful articles in it. My IOP is higher than it should be at 16. 16 is low for a normal person, but I have glaucoma and the docs all want to see the numbers down in the 12-13 range. Like it was last August. I'm afraid that I have the type of body that can't maintain any steady measurements. My BP and heart rate dance all over the place so I'm not surprised that my IOP fluctuates as well. My regular eye doc mentions the SLT procedure and tells me to discuss it with my glaucoma specialist. Of course, I won't see her until August.

The gym isn't terribly crowded at 11 am so I'm happy. But I feel lethargic, which is actually kind of normal for a Monday. I'm always worried that two days of inactivity have caused my body to revert to its natural slug-like nature. 30 minutes on the LifeFitness cross-trainer isn't great and I barely bust a sweat. But I'm warm. I don't even stretch because I'm eager to get to the Smith machine. Tattoo Tank is finishing his last set of Flat Bench presses. Normally he's on an Inclined Bench, so I'm a tad confused. I warm up on the Breaker Bench behind the Smith with just the bar and 25 reps.

I don't really feel strong today, but I get my minimum lifts in: 8 reps at 130 lbs. I still worry about overly straining my right shoulder so I drop the weight down to 90 lbs and do another 25 reps. Then I swap the benches out but I'm having some trouble catching my breath with 90 lbs. I drop the reps, and finish with high reps and a light bar. Stamina is more important to me than strength right now.

Shoulders are next. I can hear The Mayor chatting with a tall, thin young woman in the DB area. He really talks too much, and too loud. I grab a pair of 20s and do my delt routine, but I can't find the 25s. Morons have put them in the rack where the 5s belong but I don't see them. Instead I get 4 magnetic discs (2.5 lbs apiece) from the front desk to affix to the 20s. Then I grab an 8 lb Beauty Bell and do sets of One-Arm Lying DB Raises on a Bench. I have better control with the 8 lb DB, but it's still a really hard movement, especially after the Lateral Raises and Reverse Flyes.

After my standard Close Grip Bench Presses and Rip Skulls, it's time for more cardio. I don't really want to do HIIT cardio today, but that's irrelevant. My concession is to do 5 minutes of HIIT (15 sec On / 45 sec Off) then 5 min of LISS, and then 5 more minutes of HIIT, followed by the remaining 15 minutes of LISS. I barely have time for a quick lower back and shoulder stretch. I don't want to be sore for tomorrow's Cardio and Core Day when I'll have my son in tow. But I have to rush home, get laundry started and then rush off to get my son from camp. Of course, he'll want to hang out, jumping on the Bounce Pillow for a good 30 minutes, but I'm all for physical activity. Tomorrow we'll see the movie Max after the gym, and then there's a MindCraft Mod-making class at the library. Oh boy!

Monday Workout
(4.0 miles total cardio; 20,603 lbs moved)

Cross-Trainer

Warm Up

Calorie :   68 CAL
Distance: 1.87 mile
Speed :    7.48 mph
Duration : 00:15:02

Barbell Bench Press

Warm Up

Set 1 : 45x25

Smith Machine Bench Press

Set 1 : 30x15
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x10
Set 4 : 130x8
Set 5 : 90x25

Smith Machine Incline Bench Press

Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 70x12
Set 3 : 90x8
Set 4 : 90x8
Set 5 : 90x6
Set 6 : 50x25

Dumbbell Lateral Raise

Set 1 : 20x12
Set 2 : 20x12
Set 3 : 25x8
Set 4 : 25x8
Set 5 : 25x12
Set 6 : 25x12 SuperSet with

Dumbbell Reverse Flyes

Set 1 : 20x15
Set 2 : 20x15
Set 3 : 25x12
Set 4 : 25x12
Set 5 : 25x15
Set 6 : 25x15

Dumbbell Lying One Arm Lateral Raise

Set 1 : 8x12
Set 2 : 8x12
Set 3 : 8x12

Barbell Close Grip Bench Press

Set 1 : 45x25
Set 2 : 65x25
Set 3 : 75x12

Barbell Reverse Grip Skullcrusher

Set 1 : 15x12
Set 2 : 37.5x12
Set 3 : 37.5x12
Set 4 : 37.5x12

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   204 CAL
Distance: 2.13 mile
5 min HIIT, 5 min LISS
5 min HIIT, 15 min LISS
Duration : 00:30:02

Abbreviated Leg Day

My priorities today are to get a good cardio workout, and work those hamstrings a bit because they lag behind my quads. Just as my biceps lag behind my triceps, I suspect there is a genetic component to how we are shaped in spite of our best efforts to mold ourselves. I have my son with me and he's hopeful that there will be boys his age in the gym's Child Care room. There are only two girls in the room when we get there.

The parking lot is promisingly crowded. A lot of women take morning classes there: BodyPump and Yoga, Zumba and Spin. It's not for me. I get on the LifeFitness cross-trainer for 30 minutes and do a quick hamstring stretch afterwards. The Smith machine is vacant but I'm short on time. I only do Smith Split-Leg Squats, but I've upped the weight so I feel pretty good. Assuming the bar alone is 30 lbs, I'm moving more weight with a Split Leg exercise than with a regular two-legged Smith Squat. But even without Smith Squats and Smith SLDLs, my lower back is tired enough to give me pause during the GHRs at the Lat Pull Down machine. Then more cardio. I tap in Performance Program #1 on the Precor elliptical for 30 minutes.

There is a man who does several hours of cardio every time he is at the gym. First an hour on the cross-trainer. The floor is slippery with the sweat pouring off him. Then the recumbent bike. Later the treadmill. Sometimes, but rarely, he does a few pathetic sets at the Lat Pull Down machine or another station. He's middle-aged and overweight, and never seems to get any thinner.

I have just enough time to do a decent leg and back stretch, dropping into my splits and knocking out a few Pistol Squats as well. I'm actually really surprised at how easy the Pistol Squats have felt lately. I see R out of the corner of my eye, but I don't have time to chat. After a quick shower, I rush to the Child Care room 10 minutes late. He's the only kid there. And he's not at all thrilled that he has to accompany me grocery shopping. Oh well...

Abbreviated Leg and Cardio Workout
(6.26 miles cardio; 5,570 lbs moved)

Cross Trainer

Steady State

Calorie :   147 CAL
Distance: 3.71 mile
Speed :    7.4 mph
Duration : 00:30:06

Smith Machine Single Leg Split Squat

126

Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 70x12
Set 3 : 90x12
Set 4 : 90x12
Set 5 : 90x12 Yaaay!

GHRs

Set 1 : 12 Lap/Rep
Set 2 : 12 Lap/Rep
Set 3 : 12 Lap/Rep

Elliptical Training

Steady State

Calorie :   288 CAL
Distance: 2.55 mile
Performance Program #1
Duration : 00:30:00

One Leg Bodyweight Squat

131.83

Set 1 : 113x5
Set 2 : 113x5

Priorities

I was almost late to the school bus stop yesterday so I gave myself more travel time today. Today traffic is exceptionally crazy. Thursday seems to be the day all the big trucks come through town, and everyone else is out celebrating the end of the school year. The town is also fixing potholes and painting new road lines all over the place. Yep, I feel like I'm stuck behind a parade going to the gym this morning.

The gym itself is relatively quiet even though there's a few classes on the schedule. Today is the day I get to totally ignore everyone because after a 10 minutes warm up, I'm fixated on the Nexersys kickboxing machine for an hour. That leaves me more than enough time to shower and change and get back to the house in time for Early Dismissal.

My right shoulder felt a bit achy when I got up so I put a dab of Penetrex cream on it, and hoped that would be enough. It was. The only discomfort I felt today was in my left pointer finger, and I worried that the proximal phalanges might've suffered a stress fracture. Yeah, maybe I do punch too hard? Later, when I unwrapped my hand, everything felt okay though. Maybe I'm taping my fingers too tight? Hmmm. The only other bodily discomfort I suffer are my feet. By the end of 14 rounds, they are battered even though I take pains to wear leather cross-trainers for protection. The mesh shoes are too lightweight. Today I wore the larger Asics. Last week I wore the true-to-size Rykas and the bunion on my right foot chafed. Today, my left foots seems a bit bruised. But my knuckles are fine.

Warming up with 6 rounds feels right. I stop the machine a few times but don't actually blank it out. However, there's several blows that don't register which drops my Accuracy rating, especially in the Intermediate Program. Oh well, there's not much I can do about that. Eight rounds is probably my limit for this level right now. I'd have to improve my cardio stamina to go further. And maybe try and find better footwear. It's so frustrating though, since you can't really tell if a shoe is going to work for you until you actually wear it during a workout. Well, I haven't broken any toenails lately, so that's good. It took months for that one on my left foot to grow out all the way from the nail base to get to the point where I could actually trim it off.

I don't have enough time to do anything except unwrap my hands and do a quick lower back stretch. My shoulders and upper back will probably stiffen up later today. Tomorrow is Leg Day but I will have my son with me, so it'll have to be a super-abbreviated workout. Perhaps an hour of cardio and just some Smith Split Squats and GHRs at the Lat Pull Down station.

I make it to the school bus stop with time to spare, and watch the town's line-painting truck go by. There's a cluster of pretty brown fritillary butterflies and lots of bumblebees on the milkweeds near the intersection. Tiny green clusters of wild grapes hang under hand-sized leaves. Too bad there's so much poison ivy that every foraging foray is fraught with danger. Well, it's summer. I keep finding dead dragonflies too so I take their photos. If I was organized, I'd collect them and make 3-D collage boxes with them and other found items. I knew someone who made beautiful image boxes out of butterflies and flowers, shells and tree bark. But I'm not that organized.

Thursday Kickboxing Workout

Elliptical Training

Warm Up

Calorie :   96 CAL
Distance: 0.85 mile
Duration : 00:10:00

KickBoxing

Lap/Rep :  14 Lap/Rep
Duration : 00:56:00

Photos posted for actual stats:

6 Rounds Beginner Follow Me

8 Rounds Intermediate Follow Me

Slightly Abbreviated Workout

Drove my son to the school bus stop just so I wouldn't waste time putzing about the house. I wanted to have as much time as possible for my workout because Back and Bicep Day tends to run long, especially since I add cardio to the mix. 'Cuz I'm not coming back to the gym once I leave for the day. I still cut back on my warm up cardio, and only do 10 minutes instead of 15. It won't kill me.

Max Rack RG BB Rows are first. Maybe I feel a tad more energetic, having been spared 5 min of cardio. I check the app on my phone to see what I did last week. Nope, don't wanna do 3-4 sets at 125 today. Don't have the patience today. I work up to 145 lbs and then finish with 25 reps at 105 lbs. It feels pretty good. I wish my shoulders would stop peeling though. Even with vigorous loofah scrubbing and a generous application of skin cream, there are little white flakes peeling off my upper arms and shoulders. I'm glad the lighting is bad in here.

I'm feeling too tired to do 3 sets at 120 at the Seated Cable Row so I decide to pyramid up and down. Then I switch the handles for One-Arm Seated Cable Rows. Unfortunately, a short beefy kid decides he needs to slam the weights every time he finishes a set of rope-pulls at the cable station directly perpendicular to mine. I hate the jarring slam of the weights. It's distracting and disruptive. I'm the type of lifter who moves very deliberately, and usually brings the weight stack down silently if possible. So I don't appreciate this idiot and cut my workout here short. I do 3 sets on the Lower Back Extension machine and then grab a 40 lb BB.

There's so much equipment and so little space that I'm just a foot away from the mirrored wall at the end of the DB rack. The weight-slamming idiot is apparently doing Arms today so now he's behind me at the Preacher Bench with plates on the EZ bar. The Mayor is chatting with some kids with DBs at a flat bench, but then loads plates on the Shrug Machine just to the right of me. He has to move the machine first because we are waaaay to close to be safe. He puts two big plates on each side and then shrugs 3-4 times. I'm sooo not impressed, but that's my nature.

I'm resigned to doing partial movements on the Drag Curl because it doesn't hurt my elbows and it seems to isolate my biceps in a good way. After 3 sets of 15 reps, I decide that I should up the weights next week. I know people are always saying if you can't do the form correctly, then drop the weight until you can. Except when the 2nd part of the form is causing serious tendon damage. I say, know your limitations and work around them. If I drop the weight to 20 lbs I'm pretty sure I can do a full range of motion, but my biceps won't feel a thing and I'll still develop tendonitis. No point to that. I do 3 sets of RG BB Curls with the same 40 lb BB, only I do sets of 25 reps even though my forearms are burning. Yeah, I should definitely up the weight here.

I don't even think about whether I have enough energy to do cardio, only if I have enough time to do 30 minutes and still be able to shower, change and make it home in time for the school bus. Cutting LISS from 20 to 10 minutes also crosses my mind. But I stick to 10 min HIIT and 20 min LISS and knockout a quick lower back and shoulder stretch. My core is just a tad sore from the 3 sets of 90 second planks I did yesterday, and the stiff-backed sit-ups that make my tailbone a bit achy. I guess they did something if I'm sort of feeling it today. Tomorrow is the last day of school so I'll be rushing through my workout. And Friday there's no school so I'll have my son in the Child Care room even though he desperately wants to workout instead. So that'll be a super rushed workout. Oh boy.

Wednesday Back and Biceps Workout
(3.36 miles total cardio; 29,970 lbs moved)

Cross Trainer

Warm Up

Calorie :   45 CAL
Distance: 1.24 mile
Speed :    7.46 mph
Duration : 00:10:03

MaxTrack BB RG
Bent Over Row

Set 1 : 55x15
Set 2 : 105x15
Set 3 : 125x15
Set 4 : 135x15
Set 5 : 145x15
Set 6 : 105x25

Cable Seated Row

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

Cable One Arm Seated Row

Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 45x10
Set 3 : 60x8

Back Extension Machine

Set 1 : 210x12
Set 2 : 210x12
Set 3 : 210x12

Barbell Drag Curl

(partial)

Set 1 : 40x15
Set 2 : 40x15
Set 3 : 40x15

Barbell Reverse Curl

Set 1 : 40x25
Set 2 : 40x25
Set 3 : 40x25

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   2006 CAL
Distance: 2.12 mile
10 min HIIT
20 min LISS
Duration : 00:30:00

Learning to Become Efficient

At the school bus stop today.

Today is Cardio Tuesday. Well, I do some abs as well. And it's also Early Dismissal for the rest of the school year, which entails today and the next two days. No school Friday. Which means I need to shorten my workouts. A lot.

I do 30 minutes on the LifeFitness Cross-trainer but I feel kind of sluggish. Like I haven't had enough sleep. Binge-watching Nurse Jackie has kept me up when I should be sleeping. I have my dayglo UnderArmor running shorts on because I like not having my shorts ride up my thighs when I'm hot and sweaty. So I have to be careful when I stretch because although I'm wearing underwear, running shorts are pretty dang short.

I knock out some twists on the Torso Twist machine, then do another 30 minutes on the Precor elliptical, running Performance Program #3. The Mats are full of guys chatting while stretching or doing abs. The classroom is dark with yoga mats and twisted bodies. I go back to the CF area where the Nexersys machines are and use the footbar to anchor myself for sit ups. If I'm strict with the movement, my neck doesn't hurt. But there's no foam mats lying around to cushion my butt, and after two sets of 50, my tail bone is a bit sore. So I grab the beat-up, 4-panel blue gym mat, unfold it in the CF area and stretch a little before doing planks. After 3 sets, I put the mat away and do another set of sit ups. Done!

Coming home, a pick up truck is stopped in the road in front of me. I'm not quite sure what he's waiting for. Until I see a small bird run out past his truck and then run back out of my field of vision. There's baby birds trying to cross the road. They don't look like goslings though. Eventually another bird runs out. Followed by a tall, stately wild turkey. And then finally, the last baby bird. Once they are safely across, we proceed slowly. It's spring. Have to be mindful.

Tuesday Cardio and Ab Workout
(6.72 miles total)

Cross-Trainer

Steady State

Calorie :   147 CAL
Distance: 3.77 mile
Speed :    7.52 mph
Duration : 00:30:05

TorsoTwistMachine

Set 1 : 50x25
Set 2 : 50x25

Elliptical Training

Steady State

Calorie :   264 CAL
Distance: 2.95 mile
Perf Prgm #3
Duration : 00:30:00

Sit Up

Set 1 : 50 Lap/Rep
Set 2 : 50 Lap/Rep
Set 3 : 50 Lap/Rep

Plank

Set 1 : 00:01:30
Set 2 : 00:01:30
Set 3 : 00:01:30

Working Through Disinterest

I'm tired before I even get out of bed. I can laugh about Saturday. Now. It wasn't funny then. I had a flatbed scheduled to pick up my old Subie Saturday morning between 8 and 10 am. I got up to walk the dog and then stayed up even though I desperately wanted to sleep in. He never showed up. I had planned to take my son to his summer camp's Meet & Greet at 10, then dash off to his pediatric dentist appt at 11. At 10, I was on the phone with the tow truck company who nonchalantly informed me that they hadn't sent a driver out yet. One might arrive between 11 and 1. Which would've been fine if my hubs were going to be home. But he had a dentist appt too, at 11:45 am with a different dentist. "Do you want to reschedule?" the dispatcher aske me. "Is he really going to show up this time?" I ask in return.

At 10:10 I tried to move my husband's car out of the driveway because it was blocking mine. What I didn't realize is that the seat is now permanently stuck in its current position. He's 5'11. I'm 4'11.5. Our driveway slopes down and back. Which means I had no hope of ever reaching the pedals. Hubs had just worked out and was sitting upstairs, meditating. And I needed him to move his car so I could get out. So I am fuming and agitated. We finally get to summer camp and have to wait a ridiculously long time because the family in front of us are newbies and need everything explained at least thrice. My son sees two of his friends and wants to play. We have exactly 5 minutes before we have to leave in order to make our appt on time. Luckily one of the friends has to leave as well. We walk in to the dentist at 10:59. He has a perfect checkup: no cavities, bite looks good, all his adult teeth are in. We go home but I have to leave in an hour to take my car for its NYS Safety Inspection. Now it's pouring. Uh oh. Cub Scouts Rocket Night is in 2 hours, rain or shine. Our friends will be there. It'll be fun, and it is. But by 9 pm, we're all sitting on the sofa in front of the TV, feeling totally exhausted.

I'm a little tired of hearing people complain about being tired and overweight, but not making time for exercise. For them it's so much easier to diet. But it's not really working because they're not increasing their metabolism so their bodie are just adapting to less food. What I'm really tired of is learned helplesslness that manifests itself as a series of excuses. You can't fix people or make them do what you think is right, only show them information and hope they can utilize it productively.

The gym is relatively empty. I see B as she exits. Not too many regulars. Too nice a day and people want to get things done before the heat sets in. Because I don't allow myself the chance to talk myself out of working out, because I'm already here, dressed with my gear, there's nothing to do but work out in spite of how disinterested I feel at the moment.

My right shoulder and arm feel odd and achey today, but not DOMS. More a neurological ache. Smith Benching and Inclined Benching are okay but I don't push too hard. I find that I seem to run out of breath during Inclined Benching because I can't inhale deep enough with weight in that position. It's like being crucified. Arms held higher than the shoulders don't allow the diaphragm to extend and contract properly.

I get a little creative with DB Laterals and Reverse Inclined Flyes because 25 lbs is heavy. Since I still have the 20 lb DBs at my bench, I use them for reps for the last set of DB Lateral Raises, and then pick up the 25s for the subsequent DB Reverse Inclined Flyes. I up the weight just a tiny bit on Lying One-Arm DB Lateral Raises. What a miserable movement. My right shoulder clicks uncomfortably. It's my excuse for failing at the 3rd set of Close Grip Bench Presses, only getting 12 reps instead of 15. Rip Skulls are okay, mostly because I chat with D for a few minutes. My sunburned left shoulder is peeling, no matter how much cream and oil I apply to it. Tiny flakes of skin pepper my black tank top and pants. It's a good thing I lay a clay-green towel down on the bench before I do anything.

Nothing like HIIT cardio when you're already wiped. Surpassing my own expectations on performance though, managing to hit 290 Strides Per Minute (SPMs) for a few seconds for a few cycles. LISS is extremely tolerable after HIIT. Stretching feels good if I can do it a few times a week AFTER my workout. But I don't say anything to the fools who insist on stretching before their workouts. Today I see a new female trainer with an elderly client. Okay, he's not elderly. Maybe he's in his 50s? She's showing him physical therapy moves and seems a bit surprised when I bench press at the Smith.

I'm an anxious person. I'm not sure if I was born that way or it was just the circustances of my childhood. Perhaps I've watched too many X-Files episodes but I always suspect overwhelming anxiety when people commit atrocities against themselves and their families. There's lots of medicating against anxiety. Celebrities are the most notorious for this type of bad behavior. Exercise is my medicine.

Monday Cardio and Push Day Workout
(3.98 miles total; 19,140 lbs moved)

Cross-Trainer

Steady State

Calorie :   70 CAL
Distance: 1.84 mile
Speed :    7.35 mph
Duration : 00:15:05

Smith Machine Bench Press

165

Set 1 : 30x15
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 100x10
Set 4 : 120x8
Set 5 : 130x8
Set 6 : 90x25

Smith Machine Incline Bench Press

120

Set 1 : 30x15
Set 2 : 70x12
Set 3 : 90x8
Set 4 : 90x8
Set 5 : 90x10

Dumbbell Lateral Raise

35

Set 1 : 20x12
Set 2 : 20x12
Set 3 : 25x8
Set 4 : 25x8
Set 5 : 25x12
Set 6 : 20x15 SuperSet with

Dumbbell Reverse Flyes

37.5

Set 1 : 20x15
Set 2 : 20x15
Set 3 : 25x12
Set 4 : 25x12
Set 5 : 25x15
Set 6 : 25x15

Dumbbell Lying One Arm Lateral Raise

12.67

Set 1 : 10x8
Set 2 : 10x8
Set 3 : 10x8 Bleah!

Barbell Close Grip Bench Press

119.17

Set 1 : 45x25
Set 2 : 65x25
Set 3 : 75x12 Bleah!

Barbell Reverse Grip Skullcrusher

52.5

Set 1 : 15x12
Set 2 : 37.5x12
Set 3 : 37.5x12
Set 4 : 37.5x12

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   209 CAL
Distance: 2.14 mile
10 min HIIT
20 min LISS
Duration : 00:30:03

Leg Day is More Than Lifting Weights

Timing is everything. I couldn't quite get my act together this morning for no apparent good reason. I did add chopped dates and walnuts to my oatmeal today to forestall mid-workout hunger pangs and it took me a while to eat it. I was wondering when I'd be rid of my old subie. I don't like it hanging out in my yard, plateless and bereft. While I was loading my gym gear into the new Subie, the phone rang but the caller didn't leave a message. I'm glad I have Caller ID so I could just hit redial and connect with the caller. It was the junk car towing service wanting to set up a pickup time for tomorrow. I don't know why they don't leave messages on answering machines. Of course, this is time for between 8 and 10 am. Right before I have to take my son to his camp for the Meet & Greet, and then off to his dentist. Later I have the NYS car inspection. And then finally, Rocket Night with the Cub Scouts. Where I get to hand off a baby robin that I've had in my freezer for the past week. Yep, this is going to be a busy weekend.

I don't push a lot of weight. Especially with my wonky joints. I'd rather do cardio even though I look nothing like an avid cardio enthusiast. I've just discovered that one of the LifeFitness Cross-trainers actually has a Zero setting in Levels. It seems to help take the pressure off my ankles and knees. Inevitably though, after 17-18 minutes, half the toes of my right foot, and part of the sole just under the ball joint are numb. My body doesn't handle repetitive pressure very well and I attribute that to collagen issues. Luckily, walking about restores normal sensation.

My knees and lower back complain until I get my position right in the Smith for Squats. It's the same deal with Smith SLDLs. Even with VGs, I'm having trouble hanging onto the bar at 120 lbs for reps. It's frustrating. My fingers start to go numb. My left hand never fully recovered from the pressure damage from a few months ago, and now I think it's spreading. Parts of my palm are sporadically painful. Not a stress fracture. More like soft-tissue damage. Hopefully it'll heal on its own if I'm careful not to be too abusive. Summer is here and I'll have to do abbreviated workouts anyway. It's all in the timing.

The gym is always quieter on Fridays even though I spot a few regulars. The Mayor does a quick workout on the Cables before exiting. I notice Shazam and Maroon, but mostly it's HS kids. Especially after 11 am. There's a tall blonde boy who reminds me of Johnny Quest. He's always hovering, the way HS boys do. The HS girls are much more business-oriented in their demeanor. The emotional maturity gap is still vast at this age.

I'm finally getting this Smith One-Leg Split Squat right, now that I've dismissed the notion of elevating my rear foot. I'm short. I got short legs. I can feel my hamstrings now when I push up. Maybe my glutes and quads will be sore? Maybe not. The body is amazingly adaptable so it's good to mix up your workout every few weeks. I do grab a bosu for the dreaded GHRs. They're actually feeling a tad easier today even though I was completely expecting to fall on my face.

I get on the elliptical for 30 min of Intervals and make it to minutes 17 when there's a low growl. Dang, I'm hungry! Water helps. Cardio helps. But I can still feel my stomach gnawing on itself. Then I decide to do just 15 minutes of LISS on the Step Mill. I drop my heels down past the step and rise up on tiptoes before stepping onto the next one. It's a way to stretch out calves and give them a vague body weight workout. But really, I don't need bigger calves. Or bigger quads. Maybe bigger hammies would be nice.

I'm drenched. Almost done. Just need to stretch for a bit. And WTF? I haven't done pistols in a long time. Normally my knees and quads are shot by now, but today I feel limber and fairly fresh. So I walk up and down the mat, doing Pistol Squats with each step. When I stop, it's because I'm bored and want to take a shower, not because I can't do them anymore.

Leg Day Workout
(6.82 miles cardio not including Step Mill; 17,880 lbs moved)

Cross Trainer

Steady State

Calorie :   138 CAL
Distance: 3.82 mile
Speed :    7.63 mph
Duration : 00:30:04

Smith Machine Squat

210

Set 1 : 30x15
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 140x12
Set 5 : 150x12

Smith Machine Stiff Legged Deadlift

168

Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 120x12
Set 5 : 120x12

Smith Machine Single Leg Split Squat

112

Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 80x12
Set 4 : 80x12
Set 5 : 80x12

Glute Kickback

12

Set 1 : 12 Lap/Rep
Set 2 : 12 Lap/Rep
Set 3 : 12 Lap/Rep

Elliptical Training

Interval Prgm

Calorie :   262 CAL
Distance: 3.02 mile
Duration : 00:30:00

Step Machine

Calorie :   87 CAL
LISS
Lap/Rep :  34 Lap/Rep
Duration : 00:15:00

One Leg Bodyweight Squat

Set 1 : 110x6
Set 2 : 110x5
Set 3 : 110x4