Born Again Gym Rat: It's All Good

Friday, August 14, 2015

It's All Good

No scrawny gams here!

I was a bit bummed that I didn't make 7 miles today although I sure tried hard, but I came up just a tad short. It's hard to hit that goal more than once a week. Today would've been the 2nd day. And I can honestly say that I don't miss the 10 minutes of HIIT cardio I skipped on Wednesday. I missed Leg Day last week as well. So I'm not horribly surprised at how ghastly heavy the Smith One-Leg Split Squats feel today. But I grind through it and get my sets done. I was toying with the idea of doing a few more sets of Smith SLDLs, but quickly changed my mind when the two beefy Latino HS boys showed up behind me.

They warmed up for benching with BB shoulder raises. Fine, but don't throw the weights to the ground in front of you when you're done. It's noisy, annoying, and at some point, those solid-state BBs will break. Personally, I feel as if the short one is always trying to get my attention, but being "idiot boys with too much to prove", they think that making a lot of noise is the way to do it. I slam my weights back on the rack (normally I'm silent) and stalk off to do GHRs. Which I still hate, but still do.

Sporadically, I'll catch a glimpse of a HS girl watching me at the Cage Stretch, load plates on the bar, or position myself for a set of GHRs. They're younger and as such, they should be stronger and more limber. I have yet to see this made evident though. I see a new member. He's in great shape with well-defined arms and shoulders, and a V-shape physique. Perhaps a former college athlete? He chats up a lot of the regulars, women especially. His grey hair and demeanor suggest late 40s, early 50s. He's a proponent of snacking right after a workout, so I often see him lounging at one of the tables. At first I thought he was waiting for a spouse or partner but he's been joined by a different woman each time, and lately, by no one at all.

The older regulars are more distinctive than the younger ones, but I can pick out Maroon, The Mayor, Red, BadTeeth, Shazam, Hollywood, The Manchurian, Hannibal Baggy Knees and PJPants. I'm surprised to see Blondie, sporting a weird short mohawk. He hasn't been around for some months, but usually has badly dyed yellow hair and fluorescent clothes. He's not pretty, like a misshaped version of Owen Wilson, and his insecurity and hesitation is obvious. I'm not entirely certain that he knows what he's doing at a gym.

Hint of Leg Biceps! Yaaay!

After the 2nd cardio session, I take time on the Stretch Cage. I never see anyone except me on it these days. The guide book with laminated illustrations is missing from the center of the rack, but that can't be the reason that no one uses it. I drop onto the Mat and do some Pistol Squats and splits. When I sit back to do shoulder rolls, a slender young woman approaches me. I'm always nervous when people want to talk to me, worrying they're going to tell me that my underwear is sticking out of my shorts or something like that. Instead, she gushes about what good shape I'm in and how flexible I am. I thank her, and tell her that I wasn't when I started. Just keep working at it. What I don't say is that I'm probably more than twice her age, so yes, I'm doubly impressive!

I've scheduled a new Visual Field Test for next Monday, so I'll be late to the gym. I should probably eat breakfast! I got really hungry two thirds into the last cardio leg, and it's distracting. Luckily, a gulp of water usually extinguishes the complaints for a little while. The proximal pinky phalanges is a tad sore today, as is that particular knuckle. This doesn't bode well for my plan to whack the machine twice a week. I'd like to just do cardio and body weight exercises for a few weeks. It will be all I have time for. One has to be adaptable, but it helps immensely if you can plan it out in advance.

Friday Cardio and Leg Day Workout
(6.96 miles total, 11,670 lbs moved)