My Hubs is Making Me Fat

I've only gotten myself to the gym 3x this week. Yesterday was a rain-soaked miserable day and I never got out of my pajamas. Not even to walk the dog. I could tell my son wasn't feeling so good when he fell asleep in the middle of the afternoon on the sofa. He normally never naps. My hubs and I went to the gym this morning, and let my son sleep in. He was still asleep when we got back!

I could've done a combo Push-Pull day, mixing benching with RDLs or BB Rows, but I decided that today was just going to be Push! After 30 min on the elliptical, I knocked out my pull ups, push ups and crunches. And then, because we had a bit of a time crunch, I skipped planks and knee-ins and moved towards the weights. The old man I call Ming The Merciless was on the Smith, so I settled onto a flat breaker bench. Unexpectedly, he came over to tell me that he had just one more set. How nice! I guess the regulars know who I am, and what I like to use, even if I'm not chatting with any of them. The Mayor is absent, but I see Skinny J with someone who might be his wife. My hubs is off doing his own shoulder workout. We rarely have any interaction at the gym because we both have our own routines.

Flat benching starts to twinge my right shoulder at just 120 lbs so that's my max for today. 25 reps at 90 lbs is work, but not impossible. The Inclined Benching is also hard today, probably because I haven't fully recovered from whacking the kickboxing machine on Wednesday. Actually, my quads are kind of sore too!

DB Lateral Raises super set with Reverse Inclined Flyes are almost impossible. I muscle through them, glad that I'm facing the mirror and there's no one close by to see me grimace. A middle-age guy I've never seen before, with a big head like Hulk Hogan, stares after I take my hoodie off and drape it over the bench. I don't like laying on the bench without something clean between me and it. Like my freshly laundered hoodie.

I've been eating rather poorly all holiday break, between the pulled pork tacos with too many salty condiments, to the meatball pizza my hubs brought home the other night. I'm slated to make pot roast again for New Year's Eve supper. Still, I gasp a little when the gym scale reads 113.2 lbs. Ugh. I don't normally eat this badly, but it's hard to tell my hubs that I don't want to snack on cheese and crackers when he's laid it all out in front of the TV. And our newest favorite show is Canada's Worst Drivers. Seriously. We stream it off the Kodi device, and watch shows like Downton Abbey and Murdoch Mysteries, as well as movies like Moana, and Magical Beasts and Where to Find Them.

The new Lands End workout pants seem better now that they've been washed. Not quite so clingy. I dragged my son off to Kmart and bought him two pairs of sneakers for school and kung fu. And myself two more sports bras. I was quite pleased to see that Everlast has sizes XL, 2XL and 3XL. And somehow, they've changed their sizing so that I'm good with just an L. I love the fact that Kmart prices are cheaper than going to Marshall's. The bras were $9 apiece, which is great considering that they have removable no-peek padding! My son's sneakers listed at $30 but rang up at $20 apiece. Awesome considering how fast he seems to be popping out of his clothes...

I've totally forgotten that I have an eye doc appt on Tuesday at 8:30 am. Okay, I might still make it to the gym though... My hubs is off Mon and Tuesday since he had to work this past Wednesday. He's happy enough. But I need to get this bulking checked, and but quick!

Friday Workout

30 min x-trainer
Calories 143
Miles 3.85
Average Speed 7.68
Average Pace 7:48

HGPU 31
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50

Flat Breaker Bench
Bar (45) x 12

Smith Flat Bench
Bar (30) x 12
12 x 80, 100, 120
25 x 90

Smith Inclined Bench
Bar x 12
12 x 50, 70, 80

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

Mid-Week Workout

 My hubs found out that he needed to be in Boston this morning before 7:45 am so he left around 4 am, way before I was awake. He didn't get home until this evening, and brought pizza! Yaaay! Meanwhile, I went to the gym, then retrieved my son to do a week's worth of errands in a few hours before the nor'easter hits us tomorrow. Hopefully, it'll just be rain...

new pants

The gym is only partly crowded at 10:30 am. The kids don't show up until closer to 12:30, when I assume they've rolled out of bed. I do my 10 minutes on the elliptical to get the blood moving, and then plant myself in front of the Nexersys. I'm there for over an hour since it takes me time to wrap my hands, and I take a few minutes between sessions. Each round is 3 minutes plus 1 minute of rest. I set my programs for 5 rounds at each level, so that's 20 minutes per level and 3 levels. If anyone's waiting for me to be done after a single 3-minute round, well, they're out of luck. Personally, I don't see the point of just boxing a round or two, but I'm kind of compulsive.

I'm wearing new gym pants I bought from Lands End. They're too shiny to wear anywhere but the gym because of all the spandex. And they're clingy. But they're comfortable enough to wear kickboxing. I'm a bit bummed that they're a tad long even though they're a Petite 28" inseam. Maybe I'm shrinking? It's just annoying how the pants cling to my ankles and need to be folded up half an inch...


I do 15 minutes on the elliptical, using Program 1. Then a quick set of pull ups before showering and changing. Meanwhile my son texts me if I'm done yet. He got a lot of video games for Christmas, and a big sheep pillow from the Hearth & Plow catalog. Because, inexplicably, he loves sheep and lambs. Which means he refuses to eat lamb chops. It's okay. A boy can have quirks.

My hubs really spoils me. He got me the sheepskin steering wheel cover I wanted (my son didn't have any problems with that), because while I have heated seats in my car, my hands are always pained by how cold the wheel is, even with gloves on. He also bought me gloves. And a sheepskin seat belt cover. And red plaid flannel shirts (I asked my son for a specific one from LLBean and I got that, but my hubs decided he liked a different pattern and got that as well), and a new iPod.

My favorite -- 6th generation nano

3rd gen iPod -- needs a case

I don't need an iPod. I have my old 6th gen nano (which was originally meant to be a watch from what I understand) with the handy clip that I use to affix to my waistband. Oh hell, I still have my iPhone 3 and two 3rd gen iPods, one with Kidz Bop music on it! This new one doesn't come with a clip, but it's a beautiful cinnamon red, and has Bluetooth. Which means I can use wireless earbuds. It also means I'd need to load all my music on to it from my ancient MacBook. I'm thinking I need to transfer all my files onto a USB drive anyway... But I need an iPod holder because, as I explained to my hubs, women's gym clothes don't have pockets! Ugh... My hubs was kind enough to order me a protective case that comes with a clip. Also in red!

the latest nano with new case

And what did I buy him? Several cool T-shirts with gaming logos on them, and two books on Newfieland, otherwise known as Newfoundland, Canada. Because he likes listening to their radio shows. Everything else, I gave him before Christmas because it was camping gear... Oh well.

Wednesday

10 min elliptical
Calories 100
Miles 0.87

Nexersys
5 r Beginner
5 r Intermediate
5 r Advance

15 min elliptical
Calories 148
Miles 1.30

HGPU 31

Photos posted for actual stats:

5 rounds Beginner
(a great warm up!)

5 rounds Intermediate
(I managed to keep myself focused for all 5 rounds!)

5 rounds Advanced
(I don't often see the machine telling me that I'm outpacing and over power at this level. I'm happy!)

5 rounds Advanced
(Mostly the machine kicked my butt!)

I Hate the Crowded Holidays

My hubs and I got to the gym a bit late on Monday. And it was soooo crowded with faces I'd never seen before. I guess folks are getting to their New Year's Resolutions early. I did manage to do 30 min of cardio, and my basic core warm up, which means a set of pull ups, push ups, crunches, knee-ins and planks.

But there were literally no benches available, with three boys to a station tag-teaming. An older guy in the Smith machine, but only there to use the Inclined Bench for his DB Presses... And I'm not the type to interrupt a workout, so I'm done at that point. I'm literally tripping over bodies and unfamiliar faces. Next time we need to go much much earlier in the day! My hubs is happy enough. He complains he can't straighten his arms out from Friday's Back and Bicep workout. Tomorrow he has to go to Boston for the day so I'll head off to the gym solo and let my son sleep in. It IS Christmas break after all, and I think I can see him growing right before my eyes. I'm kidding. Or not.

I made a pot roast for Christmas Eve dinner but it took so long that we had it the next day for Christmas lunch. It was a crock pot recipe which actually turned out well, except I can never get the gravy right. Thank goodness for Knorr packaged brown gravy mix. Seriously. We ate most of a 5 lb pot roast with boiled red potatoes and gravy. Yesterday my hubs made kalua pork, which is the base for pulled pork: salt, liquid smoke and 10 hrs in a 250F oven. We have another smaller pot roast planned for New Year's Dinner. I can't believe the year is over...

Didn't go to the gym today. Instead we went to the movies because it's $5 Tuesdays. The theater was packed with several films selling out. We didn't see the Star Wars movie, or Assassin's Creed. No, we went to see Sing because I wanted to see something happy and silly. And it was delightful. But no original tunes. Oh well...


Monday's Workout

30 min x-trainer
Calories 142
Miles 3.79
Average Speed 7.57
Average Pace 7:55

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s 

The Day IS a Wee Bit Longer!

Because my son boards the school bus at 7:13, the sun's barely in the sky even if it's vaguely light out. Today the sky was a bit brighter! It's the last day of school for him this year, so it's basically a no-learning day where the school's get Federal money but don't actually teach anything. Pizza, holiday candy and a movie are what's on the agenda. Jeeze...

My hubs is off from work today and Monday so I tell him to come to the gym with me. He gets a work-related call just as he's about to start, so I get to watch him stare at his phone for 20 minutes while I'm on the cross-trainer. Then, because we have different workouts, I lose sight of him until the very end of my workout where I tell him that I'm ready to stop at any time. Of course, today is the first time I've seen two different guys use the kickboxing machine. My hubs wants me to show him how it works, so we use the left machine, the one that works okay as long as you're not actually logging into your profile. Well, at least he's gotten a basic idea on how it works even if he's not quite clear on how the labels correlates to a specific blow.

I do only 30 minutes of cardio today, but maintain my core warm up routine of pull ups, push ups, crunches and planks. The Smith is free so I do RDLs, followed by RG BB Rows. I've taken to keeping my gloves on even when I use the Versa Gripps because my callouses are getting out of control. I periodically try to file them down, but they're at the point where I'm picking at the peeling discolored edges. I don't want them to rip off and bleed like I've heard happen to other lifters. I wear gloves most of the time, but this is probably the worst my callouses have ever been, probably because pull ups. Yep, pull ups are ruining my hands. Even with gloves!

My skin is extremely dry and sensitive, and has always been prone to over-reacting to physical trauma. I scar easily, so callouses shouldn't really be a surprise. Short of applying salicylic acid (it comes in stick form now and looks like an unpleasant lip balm) directly to my hands, I'm not sure what else to do. My hands are so small that I have a hard time getting the file at the correct angle to smooth down the rough edges. Constantly slathering my hands and fingers in vaseline or Bag Balm works as long as I remember to do so. Once I forget, well, it's like I never even started.

There are a few regulars, and later, a lot more younger guys. They seem to cluster around the cable system where I'm finishing up Seated One-Arm Cable Rows. At least, until I pull out my earbuds and chat with my hubs. He's also doing a Pull Day but his routine calls for Lat Pull Downs, DB Rows and an assortment of curls. He asks me about dead lifts but not only am I uncomfortable giving advice or instruction about it, the only Olympic bars free for such movements are on the other side of the gym, in the CF area. You can't actually tell if the equipment is in use until you wander over there. It's kind of a pain unless it's something you're dead set on doing.

Still, I feel pretty good about my workout, even if I only did two sets of pull ups and skipped the last cardio session. The gym scale is obviously not broken, as it read 111.4 today. No doubt all the sodium in the baked corned beef I made last night for supper caught up with me. I did soak it to remove most of the salt, slathered it in dijon mustard, brown sugar and honey mustard, and sealed it in foil to bake in a 350F oven for 2.5 hours. It came out great! But I could still taste the saltiness in the meat. I'm planning to make pot roast for Christmas dinner. I've never made one before, and I hope it turns out well since these hunks of beef cost a lot more money that one would expect! If not, oh well, lesson learned... and we picked up a pork shoulder just in case. You can never go wrong with kalua pork!

I've been on an adult beverage ginger kick. Red's Apple Ale came out with a ginger flavor that was great! But I never saw it again. The Angry Orchard and StrongBow versions are okay, but I like one's that taste more like ginger beer. Stewart's makes a nice non-alcoholic one with a bite. My hubs brings home a brand I've never heard of before. He went to the local beer distributor and asked about the Red's. It's probably a limited edition so I'll really never see it again! But this Crabbies is quite excellent, with a sharp bite and just a bit of alcohol. I'll probably never see it again. We did try a limited edition Leinenkugel Cranberry Ginger shandy, which walks a fine line between being almost too sweet and mildly pleasant. Or as my hubs says, "It's a beer for people who don't really like beer." Uh, yeah, that'd be me. Maybe I should just stick to my Red's Apple Ale?

Friday Workout

30 min x-trainer
Calories 143
Miles 3.90
Average Speed 7.79
Average Pace 7:42

HGPU 31

Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s

Smith RDLs
Bar x 15
12 x 80, 100, 120, 130

Smith RG BB Rows
22 x 80, 100, 120, 130

HGPU 31

Seated Cable OneArm Row
45 lbs x 12 x 3

Is the Day Longer Yet?

It almost reached 40°F today, but that wasn't warm enough to do anything about the snow and ice on our front lawn. I wear gloves when I drive because the steering wheel is painfully cold. My new used Subie does have heated seats though, a luxury I didn't realize the car came with until just a few months ago. I'm enjoying that feature immensely.

This is an XL sports bra!

I'm at the gym slightly earlier and it's crowded, steamy and loud. Ugh. Today is my 2nd Push Day this week. I did toy with the idea of just doing cardio, and using tomorrow as a Left Overs Day, but since I rarely work out 5 days straight anymore, I figure I'd see how I hold up. I'd probably make better gains if I kept up this routine, but I'm not all that sure I want to get bigger. Already, my favorite fleece pajamas top feels tight in the shoulders. I'm a small person. It's not like I can just buy a bigger size when nothing else has changed! I'm already worrying about where I'm going to find sports bras to fit me since the XLs are getting a bit tight. And I'm not all that big! What the hell do the big gals do?! Or do they even worry about it?

The gym scale reads 110.8 lbs for the 4th day in a row. Well, that's never happened before. I can only surmise that either the scale is broken, or my body is stubbornly in stasis. Okay, I admit I'm not dieting or doing anything restrictive. I'm even enjoying a beer or hard cider every now and then. So at least my weight's not going up, right? 

I'm dragging a bit on my favorite cross-trainer. I muscle through the pull ups. Push ups aren't a problem, and neither are crunches or planks. The Smith seems to have been cleaned or greased! The bar glides up and down effortlessly now, so I'm very happy. My shoulder twinges and I skip the max weight for Inclined Presses. There's no reason to risk injury. However, I can handle the three super sets for DB lateral raises and Reverse Inclined DB Flyes. A bearded fellow who resembles Conor MacGregor (the UFC lightweight champ) is benching on the Inclined Breaker Bench behind me. Well, this guy might be shorter and a tad wider. Like a bull. Later, I see him doing bicep curls, moving both big-ass DBs up simultaneously. Yep, he's a bull...

I don't bother with the lighter weights for Rip Skulls. Why waste time and energy? I know I can handle 40 lbs so that's what I use. I might be able to get a few reps at 45, but not without risking my left elbow. Well, it also twinges after a hard set of pull ups. I blow off Tricep Cable Press Downs because they don't really benefit me. Then off to the elliptical for another 30 minutes. I'm still cruising to Billy Idol because I don't mind listening to the same album several times over. Finally, there's that last set of pull ups to do. I see HoodieBoy at one of the machines, although I'm still not sure what gender. Later, when I stretch out on the big blue mats, HoodieBoy ventures over to use the adjacent Hanging Leg Raises station. He's short, like me, but not as short. The other HS boys tower over him. I can finally tell he's a boy, not because I can see his face, but because his calves are hairy. No girl would ever come here and bare such furry legs! I hope he persists with the pull ups. Eventually there'll be something awesome under that hoodie.

The parking lot is emptier than it was this morning when it looked like someone must be giving free money away it was so crowded. The supermarket is only half as crowded as expected, but some shelves have been wiped clean. Like the bin for parsnips! WTH? I can't imagine they're that popular, but maybe that's the point. Whatever the store had has been sold. Bummer...

My hubs tells me that his office is closed tomorrow, although my son still has school. A no-learning day though... So my hubs and I will go to the gym together tomorrow. And we'll do our own thing. Maybe there'll be parsnips at the grocery? I'm planning on making a pot roast for the weekend. It's a dish I've never made before. Tonight I've got a corned beef baking in the oven, slathered in honey mustard. It's a corned beef from last March, when they went on sale. Hopefully it'll taste good.

Thursday Workout
6.24 miles total cardio

30 min x-trainer
Calories 148
Miles 3.63
Average Speed 7.26
Average Pace 8:15

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Bird Dog 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s

Smith Incline Bench 60
Bar x 15
12 x 50, 70, 80
25 reps x 60

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyers
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

Rip Skulls
40 lbs x 12 x 3

30 min elliptical
Program 3
Calories 297
Miles 2.61

HGPU 31

Happy Winter Solstice

I was very excited to get to the gym today since it's been quite a while since I've had an entire week free. Still, I got to the gym late because mornings are the best time for me to do things like re-order the Holiday Cards, browse through emails and sort through bills. Plus, I hate the morning rush. When I arrive late, there's no one in the locker room. Just the way I like it!

I'm actually a bit stiff from yesterday's RDLs, but that's never stopped me from doing something I love. I just need to warm up properly, so it's 10 minutes on the elliptical to get the blood moving. Today is the Winter Solstice, although the actual arrival time was 5:44 am, over an hour before sunrise. It's a bit warmer today too, but not enough to melt the ice crust that blankets last week's snow. There's no one at the machines. There never is. That's fine with me.

I start off slow since it's been a few weeks. After 5 rounds of Beginner Follow Me, I feel properly warmed up, and I need to change my tunes to something more reliable. The problem with my cardio mix is that newer songs seem much louder and I'm constantly having to adjust the volume. It's a distraction that I can easily avoid if I just select one artist, one album. I choose Billy Idol. He's great to dance to, and by default, to box to... seriously.

The machine gets a bit crazy during the Intermediate rounds. It always does so I shouldn't be that surprised. I also manage to blank the screen a few times. That doesn't bother me anymore. Of course, the upper Cross pad (facing my left) seems a bit loose now. As long as it doesn't break off, I'm good. I dislike the Intermediate rounds when they contain a lot of Sweeps because I find it hard on my joints. Plus, I'm not really sure if I'd ever actually use this move in real life, whereas I could see punching someone really hard. It's during the Advance rounds that the machine really goes crazy, and it shows in the scoring. I knew I was in trouble when Round 2 of Advanced opened with the avatar flashing as if it'd already been hit. To me, that means the machine opened the round in mid-program. It gets progressively worse, with the machine flashing arbitrary and mixed combinations that don't match the avatar's blinking body part. Oh well... at least it finished with a reasonable round.

My friend sends a holiday card and tells me that her cat has been diagnosed with lymphoma. Oh no... She's a childless widow with two cats, living in a big house the next town over. I view treatment options online because she tells me that the cat is having 26 weeks of chemo. Uh, that might be longer than the cat will live, although I've read that chemo will make the cat feel better. He won't be cured. In fact, the average survival rate is 6-9 months after diagnosis with chemo, and a mere 4 weeks without it. My hubs informs me that no way are we ever spending money on chemo for our pets. Sadly, I'm inclined to agree since our priority is our son.

Wednesday Workout

10 min elliptical
Calories 97.6
Miles 0.86

Nexersys Follow Me
5 r Beginner
5 r Intermediate
5 r Advance

HGPU 31

Photos for actual stats:

Delusions and Then Some

I'm still 110.8 lbs which is okay, but not great, but not horrible. It's better than 113, especially since I'm not even 5 feet tall. My son is now a full inch taller than me, having sprouted 3 inches in the past 6 months. I guess kids do that. Unfortunately, I stopped gaining height when I was 10 years old so yes, I am the size of a 10 year old, although I like to think I'm considerably stronger. And while I'm okay with being roughly 110 lbs, I'd be happier just a few pounds lighter because my clothes would fit just a tiny bit looser, better, more comfortably.

Some people seem a bit more delusional. I frequent an online weight-lifting site where we cheer on our "friends". A woman recently friended me. She seems harmless enough. But there are certain aspects of her online personality that make me wonder if I shouldn't unfriend her. We can choose however we want to be known and her screen name is Mrs X. It's not really X but I'm not sure what to think of a woman who defines her identity as a relationship to her hubs. But that's not enough to unfriend her. No, there's more...

Never mind the endless nattering and cheerleading about going keto. People have what works for them. Or not. Never mind the endless chatter about being a good person and working hard on the marriage. Uh, this is a muscle-head site. What's weirding me out is her latest post where she states she hasn't tracked her weight since July and shows a 30 lb increase in 5 months. She attributes that to Thanksgiving and wedding anniversary overindulgence. Sorry, what?! The last time some gal put on 30 lbs it was because she was going to deliver a baby in the near future. So it's all I can do to bite my tongue and not ask if she's eating for two. Because keto isn't healthy for unborn babies. I think she's just nuts though...

Today is a Pull Day and I've arrived late morning. The gym is mostly empty so I'm happy, but of course, it'll fill up again towards the end of my routine. As much as I hate doing cardio on the cross-trainer because there's only one machine that I like, and I invariably get numb toes from it, I dutifully start my workout warm up with 30 minutes on it. I'm dragging a bit from yesterday and I already know that I'm going to skip the elliptical session later. The cross-trainer seems to help me maintain my weight whereas the elliptical does not. Go figure.

Even though my mileage is down, I can still muscle through a few more pull ups than usual. Yaay me! The core routine seems very routine. I actually breeze right through push ups so maybe I ought to put variations back in? There's a guy in the Smith doing BB Shrugs. I'm not sure why you'd want to do shrugs in the Smith since there's no one in the Squat rack. Otherwise you'd have to trek all the way to the other side of the gym to the CF area where there are two loose Olympic bars and a rack full of plates. I haven't even ventured there even though I used to do my RG BB Rows without the courtesy of the Smith machine. But I was younger then. And the gym was a lot less crowded with equipment.

I do a few sets on the MaxRack but I hate this contraption. The bar is much heavier and constrained from left to right. It's awkward for me to use. As soon as the Smith is free, I'm over there in a heartbeat. The Smith needs to be cleaned but I keep forgetting to mention it to the staff. There's a lot of visible dust in the pulley system, which makes the motion somewhat sticky. Ugh. Still, I get my reps and sets for RDLs, and RG BB Rows. I'm about to wander over to the Stretch Cage for another set of pull ups when I see that it's occupied.

Some kid in a navy hoodie, and long board shorts doing pull ups. I'm not sure how many. But instead of walking away, he/she (I can't really tell) rests a minute or two and proceeds to do another set. And another. Only a few reps for each set, but I admire the persistence. Of course, I'm not one to sit and hover, so I grab a handle and knock out my Seated One-Arm Cable Rows. This makes doing pull ups that much harder because this movement pre-exhausts my biceps, but I don't really have a choice. I don't want to waste time because I have plans that include baking a banana bread for the Boy Scout Holiday Party tonight, picking my son up from his after-school chess program, walking the dog, and trying a new chicken recipe that calls for vermouth, garlic, lemon and "herbs de Provence". Uh, I'm just going to sprinkle thyme, basil, oregano, marjoram and rosemary.

Eventually the kid is done and I get the chance to stretch my lower back and hammies before doing my last set of pull ups. I'm a lot stronger than I used to be since I can still remember struggling with a mere dozen pull ups. I attribute that to learning how to use my back instead of my arms, but it's a hard thing to teach. There are a few regulars but most of them are gone from the morning. I saw The Mayor lingering by the Smith while BB Shrug guy was unloading the bar. Of course. And I couldn't wait until he said his say and left so that I could finally do my routine.

In the locker room I chat briefly with two ladies. We all discuss losing our jobs and considering alternate career options. I mention that my hubs suggested I become a personal trainer because I like to work out. The older lady pipes up with "Oh no! People would hate you because you're tough. I've seen you work out!" I don't tell her that I'd dumb down the workouts or that I really hate the idea of having to sell a program or machine because I don't believe in them. I only know what works for me.

Tuesday Workout

30 min x-trainer
Calories 140
Miles 3.68
Average Speed 7.35
Average Pace 8:10

HGPU 36 Yaaay!

Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Bird Dog 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s

MaxRack RDL
Bar (55 lbs) x 12
12 x 75

Smith RDL
12 x 80, 100, 120, 130

Smith RG BB Rows
22 x 80, 100, 120, 130

Seated One Arm Cable Rows
45 lbs x 12 x 3

HGPU 31

Sometimes They Come Back

I'm still not getting to the gym as early as I could, but mostly because I'm doing chores that I'd rather not come home to once I tire myself out. Like dishes and laundry, and getting the dog's supper ready... it's just a reheat of some leftover chicken, but if I boil it up in the morning, it'll be cool enough to toss onto his kibble by evening. Everything takes planning...

The dog is infinitely better as long as I don't give him anything fatty... like cheese or peanut butter. Sigh. It's bitterly cold, and a good time to try out the alpaca hoodie I bought this summer at a Native American Pow Wow... it has no tags so I'm not even sure it's really alpaca. It could be an acrylic fake for all I know. But it is warm and extremely lightweight. A few nights ago the dog was upset with something just outside our front door. In the dim lamplight, I can see a large dark shape scurry down our walk way and into the woodpile at the end of the driveway. It's most noticeable characteristic was the long skinny stiff tail. So it's not a woodchuck. Or a possum or raccoon. Too big to be a vole unless they've grown to giant proportions. I finally settle on a mole. Because they apparently don't hibernate! And we do have a disrupted front yard that could be the work of moles and their collapsing tunnels. Hmmm...

Today, I have enough time to do both sets of cardio and knock out some weights. My joints are tender though, and I'm careful with my exercises. My left hand is sore from pull ups, and I can feel the inside of that elbow twinge every now and then. When I bench, the left shoulder twinges momentarily as well. Usually it's the right shoulder. I haven't flat benched in weeks now because Inclined Benching is easier on the shoulders. I can't use as much weight either, but it's still a decent chest, anterior delt and tricep workout.

I see a few newbies, and a few regulars. I don't bother with anyone. I wish I could take a photo of myself while doing DB laterals because I can see striations in my delts and chest, and the bi's and tri's look awesome as well. But I have my hands fulls. 25 lbs is the most I'll be able to use because my wrists and elbows won't handle anything heavier. I have to work within my limitations and make the best of that. So I do workouts that might seem perplexing, but they work for me.

There's an oddly familiar face on the treadmill. He used to work at the gym quite a long time ago. I call him Gazelle Boy because he's tall with long thin arms and legs. And he had the perfect gait running on the treadmill. Last time I saw him was a few years ago. He'd hooked up with a hot blonde with a great body, but disturbingly peculiar face. It was as if her lower jaw, chin and throat had been grafted from someone 50 years older. Today GZB is solo, and he's still long and skinny with tattoos covering most of him. I think he must recognize me somehow because he stares just a little, as if trying to remember if he knows me. I do have a lot more hair than I used to, but in general, I'm pretty much the same. Except maybe I've got more muscle. But not huge amounts more.

I don't have time to stretch out, but I snag another set of pull ups before I leave... it feels okay. Tomorrow is Pull Day, and hopefully I'll get to the gym a tad earlier.

Monday Workout
(6.54 total cardio miles)

30 min x-trainer
Calories 144
Miles 3.97
Average Speed 7.92
Average Pace 7:34

HGPU 33
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s

Smith Inclined 45 Bench
Bar x 15
12 x 50, 70, 80, 90
25 x 60 too easy

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

Rip Skulls
40 lbs x 12 x 3

30 min elliptical
Program 1
Miles 2.57
Calories 292

HGPU 31

Memory Failures and Oblivious Newbies

I got to the gym really late today because I spent several hours searching for my ancient iPod. I had the distinct memory of dropping it into the ziplock bag where I keep multiple earbuds in my gym bag. I searched all around my gym bag and pulled everything inside it out. Finally it occurred to me to retrace my steps and actions. And I discovered that my iPod was in the pocket of the sweatpants I happened to be wearing. Ugh! So that distinct memory was either a lie, or an older memory from a time when I'd actually performed that action! It was what I had planned to do and had done so often before, but it was not what I had actually done.

Memory is deceptive and fluid, and not to be trusted. We can have memories of things that never happened. My son and I have been discussing dreams, especially dreams that seem real until one realizes that no, we don't indeed own a stove top with a shelf in front where the burner knobs sit perpendicular to the front of the stove. That was an image from a dream, a harmless false memory.

But we use our memories to gauge our positions in time, and sometimes, they are inexplicably false. I got caught in NYC during the summer blackout that took out most of the Northeast and parts of Canada. There were no trains, no traffic lights, no lights, no water, no refrigeration, no bathrooms. The pay phones were working though and I remember calling my husband to tell him that I was stuck outside Grand Central Station. He offered to drive down and get me. I distinctly remember telling him to stay home with our son, because I wanted our son to be safe. And in my memory, my son was about 18 months old. Except the great blackout occurred in 2003. And my son was born in 2005. Hmmm. My husband teases me that I must've fallen out of an alternate timeline. Yeah, okay.

Well, at least I made it to the gym, albeit much later than planned, which effectively cut my gym time in half. So I skipped part of my cardio workout, and a bunch of other exercises, but did the core components. While I'm working delts, I see a newbie woman. She's doing delt raises with DBs standing right in front of the DB rack. That's a rude rookie move. She's dressed like a Dana Linn-Baily wanna-be, with white leggings and a cut-off tank. One arm is heavily tattooed. I'm not a big admirer of tattoos on body builders because the ink obscures the muscle. She has a good basic structure but nothing to really look at. She's moving between the DBs and a cable station, and is completely oblivious to the barbell she knocks into.

Normally this wouldn't be an issue except that it's fully loaded and actually in motion. Her action causes the dude on the bench to lose his balance and the bar tips. He manages to get one end on the stay, but the other is precariously angled down 45°. Because of the spring collars, the plates don't fall off onto the floor. The guy's not in any immediate danger, and luckily Little R notices the situation and is able to give the fellow a hand with the bar. Wanna-Be girl is still oblivious, and later walks into a pull-down bar situated on a hip height handle rack. I've never seen her before, and I hope I don't see her again. Seriously.


Friday Workout

30 min x-trainer
Calories 142
Miles 3.79

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Bird Dog 2 x 60s
Side Plank 2 x 60s

Smith Inclined Bench
Bar x 15
12 reps x 50, 70, 80
8 x 90
25 x 60

Smith RG BB Rows
25 x 50, 90, 120

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

HGPU 31

Abbreviated Tuesday

I had all sorts of plans to be productive this morning, but of course I went to sleep too late and had trouble gathering my thoughts. Eventually the coffee kicked in and I came to my senses. I went to the gym, used my Kmart 20¢ off per gallon coupon for BP gas to fill the car, went to my glaucoma doc appointment where my eye pressures were okay at 13 & 14 but not great, dropped off three bags of assorted outgrown boys winter clothes at GoodWill, and mailed holiday packages to my brother and sister and remembered to buy stamps to mail our holiday cards. Then made it home in time to greet the hubs who had just returned from Boston, start the laundry (because I can't stand having my gym clothes stew too long in my car) and drive off to pick my son up from his after school chess class. The boys are fed (including the pups) and I barely have time to knock out a few words online. This constant running from point to point is probably what most parents do in the "modern world". Now, of course, I'm yelling at my son to get ready for Boy Scouts...

I had to decide what was more important: cardio or deadlifts? I could spend my hour and a half doing mostly cardio and bodyweight exercises (with time to shower and change) or I could sacrifice one of my cardio sessions and actually get some lifting in. I opt for the latter. I don't have time to do everything I'd like so I lose a set of pull ups, and the One-Arm Seated Cable Rows. The Mayor has been very quiet lately, so either he's got laryngitis for real or he's no longer trying to get noticed. Even PJ Pants and Shaggy keep their distance. Yaaaay!

There's a wiry old guy at the Stretch Cage so I bide my time by doing a few knee-ins. Meanwhile, he's grasped the front edge of the cage roof to do pull ups, and then he pulls his entire body up parallel, with his feet resting high up on the back bars, like an ancient SpiderMan. Well, I've never seen anyone do THAT before! Very cool... and a hard act to follow. Still, I manage to muscle my way through my set of hammer grip pull ups. I have the blue gloves on, which are the wrong gloves, so I don't have a good grip on the bars. The blue lifting gloves are better suited for actually weight lifting. My red gloves are thinner and better for pull ups and push ups, but because they're thinner, they're also starting to tear at the edges. Lately they've been catching at the seams. Bummer...

This morning while I was running around my house trying to get my act together, I notice my arms in the distant hall mirror. Hey, I can sorta see horseshoes! I try to get a photo but the cell doesn't have a good enough camera for the distance. If I get closer to the mirror, I lose the lighting. I use my digital SLR with the long lens, but of course, it's made for right-handed people. So getting a shot of my left side is easy, but getting one of my right side with my left hand is problematic. And fuzzy. If I had the time and patience, I could set up a tripod to get the shot. Oh well...  But now I don't feel so awful about putting on weight. Of course, I'd still like to lose these extra 3 to 4 pounds. And my gym, Gold's Gym is offering a 12-week Transformation Challenge worth up to $100,000 in prizes. But the top winner gets about $6500 cash. It briefly crosses my mind, but it doesn't seem like enough money for the pain and suffering of getting "competition lean". Seriously.

Tuesday Workout

30 min x-trainer
Calories 141
Miles 3.76
Average Speed 7.50
Average Pace 8:00

HGPU 31

Smith SLDLs
Bar x 15
12 x 80, 100, 120, 130

Smith RG BB Rows
21 x 80, 100, 120, 130

Knee-Ins 50
HGPU 31

Pushing to Start the Week

My son had a sleepover where he got no sleep at all, but that's to be expected of little boys. Even though he's taller and outweighs me, my son is still a little boy. My husband got home in time to change and we went for the first time to the Gold's Gym Holiday Party at a newly renovated local bar. It was crowded! I saw a few familiar faces and a lot of strangers. Drinks were enormous, and I'm a flyweight. The chafing dishes of food were empty in seconds so my hubs and I went to the Chinese restaurant next door for a meal. But I don't handle liquor well, and I have to admit that I was quite hungover come Saturday morning. I can count on one hand the amount of times I've been hungover!

However, I do remember making a few observations. There were lots of middle age men and women, but not with each other. B was there with her gym friend BL. They've known each other since grade school, but I'm surprised B's hubs wasn't in attendance. Apparently, he doesn't come to these sort of things. B was wearing a slinky dress, but that was lost in the "standing room only" crowd. She's only an inch taller than I am. I saw two other women I barely recognized because of their make up. Like me, they're barefaced when exercising. The realtor, V sported harsh black eyeliner that portrayed a wild punk-rock side I'd never considered of her. Her hubs seemed bored. I saw a few guys I recognized but don't speak to, including the Mayor. I pointed him out to my hubs. Luckily the creepy guys were missing so I'm assuming married guys had other things to do if they weren't in attendance with their wives or girlfriends.

When I get to the gym today I note that the Mayor is much quieter. Super creepy PJ Pants keeps his distance. I don't see Shaggy or Frankenstein. But the big old WW2 vet (okay, he's probably not quite that old) announces cheerfully as I walk in the front door, "Here she is!" I'm a bit perplexed and I give him a slight uneasy wave. I don't know him, but I did see him at the party Friday. I think there must've been a bunch of the younger guys there too, but I don't remember them. Today, three or four of them steal glances between sets while we're all in the free weight area.

Today is a Push Day but I'm cautious about Flat Benching today. I woke up with an unusual stiffness on my right side, over the hip but towards the back. Coincidentally my hubs also complains about the same discomfort in the same spot this morning. His explanation is that we were both abducted by aliens during the night. Um, I don't think so...

Instead of looking for a flat bench, I'm content to use the Adjustable Inclined Bench in the Smith. It's set to 45 degrees. I normally have the bench slightly more upright but I figure it's good to change things up. This angle makes it more difficult to reach the bar to the stays and my right hip is stressed because my feet can't set flat on the floor. Yes, I have short legs. The Mayor and a few guys are behind me on the breaker benches, and normally I can hear them even with headphones on. Today, I can't. Yaaaay! I move to the DB area for my superset. It's going to be the only truly heavy lifting I do today because everything else is very routine. Rip Skulls are my last exercise. Except for cardio. And pull ups. Of course...

Monday Workout
(6.44 total cardio miles)

30 min x-trainer
Calories 143
Miles 3.87
Average Speed 7.73
Average Pace 7:45

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 80, 80, 60
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s

Smith Inclined Bench 45°
Bar x 15
12 reps x 50, 70, 80, 90
25 reps x 60 lbs

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

Rip Skulls
12 x 30 lbs, 35, 40

30 min elliptical
Program 1
Calories 291
Miles 2.57

HGPU 31

Happy Holidays

The chances are good that school will be on a two-hr delay tomorrow. And hubs plans to drive to Boston tomorrow for a Tuesday meeting. Not sure what my chances are for the gym, or shoveling! Regardless, here's our annual Holiday Card...

Finally Friday

I haven't been to the gym since Tuesday so I feel a bit guilty. But taking a few days off isn't necessarily bad. For me, it actually improves my stamina and I can go 15 rounds without feeling seriously winded. If anything, I'm actually punching my combinations faster by the end of the last session. I'd like to think I'm just as accurate, but the machine has a different opinion. During the first round of Beginner, it negated all my front kicks even though the console lit up green, showing me a proper strike. But the Accuracy meter continued to drop. I think the sensor might be damaged.

I also see the Cross pad (top, facing my left) start to wobble after I hit it with a particularly vicious Power Hook. Ooops! The screen blanks a few times, but not due to any Cross or Jabs. It's the Hook that's really knocking it silly. Oh well... I don't break a sweat until the very last round of Beginner. Intermediate is frustrating as usual, especially since I'm not fond of the Sweep moves. But the Advance has a few rounds that mimic the Beginner except that the combinations are much faster. I can deal with that. Especially since I have Billy Idol plugged in and I can move with dance rhythms. It really makes a big difference!

I've sucked down nearly the entire 1.5 liter bottle of water so I have to pace myself during elliptical cardio and pull ups. Yeah, even though kickboxing the machine is cardio intensive, I don't really consider it cardio because of all the kicking and punching. Plus, you break 5 times after 3 minutes for 60 seconds. There's a longer break between Beginner, Intermediate and Advance naturally, but it's not like I'm chatting and drinking a cup of coffee!

I see a few regulars today, and I'm surprised that I can't actually hear The Mayor even though he's at the far end of the weight room. He's got the desperately raspy voice of a man at all-night rave so even when I can't see him, I can usually hear him. Maybe he's got laryngitis? Creepy guys are at a minimum today. There's a couple of people with their kids today. One is a Latino father trying to show his teenage son how to use the Assisted Pull Up and Dip machine. The kid is better off learning to do real pull ups and dips, but I guess you gotta start somewhere...

My gym is hosting a Holiday Party at a local bar and this will be the first year that I might attend. If my hubs is up to it. Our son is at a sleep-over party tonight so I don't have to worry about him. It's basically up to my hubs... He got in from Houston last night and is probably still tired. But it'd be nice to go out and socialize a bit, even though I'm not sure I'd actually talk to anyone from the gym. Well, maybe a few of the ladies, and the gym staff of course. But definitely not the creepy guys!

Friday Workout

10 min elliptical
Calories 98
Miles 0.86

15 rounds Nexersys
5 r Beginner
5 r Intermediate
5 r Advance

30 min elliptical
Program 3
Calories 283
Miles 2.52

HGPU 31

Photos posted for actual stats

5 rounds Beginner

5 rounds Intermediate

5 rounds Advance

Anxiety Relief

I have a hard time falling asleep and like a child, I tend to wait until I can barely keep my eyes open. Then I grouse when the alarm sounds too soon in the pre-dawn dark. My mother suffered from an assortment of mental and emotional disorders but her most destructive was severe anxiety. I wonder if it's hereditary or environmental. She most clearly suffered from PTSD, having fled the bombing of Canton as a child in 1938. An untreated case of rheumatic fever led to destruction of her heart valves, and has recently been implicated in severe cases of OCD. She definitely had that. And agoraphobia. And probably a few other undiagnosed disorders. And while I don't think I'm horribly warped from my own dramatic childhood, I do suffer from anxiety. My only successful relief has been exercise, and lots of it.

I get anxious when I travel, so I tend to be a homebody. I worry about everything. Probably because I tend to over-think everything. That's why the gym is such a relief. It's the cure for my own head. I plug in my tunes and go about my routine. Most of the time it's not possible to worry when you're focusing on pushing heavy weight. Cardio is the only place where the mind can wander, unless you're moving so hard that the only thing you can focus on is the beat of your tunes.

Today I manage to get respectable mileage. I'm at the gym late enough so that most of the creepy guys are leaving when I come in, like PJ Pants, Shaggy and Frankenstein. Yaaay! I can still hear The Mayor behind me when I'm at the Smith and I shove my earbuds in tighter. Old guys must be deaf. And they fail to realize that people like me don't want to hear them. Don't care what they're chortling about. Other old guys stop by to swap stories. But women don't, especially the younger ones. Because like me, they're busy getting work done.

I skip the push ups and core today and settle for a few weight-lifting movements. I had thought I was just working on Wednesday, but it turns out that I'm also working on Thursday. And since I'd really like to whack the machine on Friday, and I just did body-weight stuff yesterday, well... it's kind of a no-brainer that today would be cardio and some Push and some Pull. I skip SLDLs because I haven't had enough sleep and I don't want to hurt myself. I'm tired and I adjust my expectations accordingly by cutting reps or sets altogether. It's still a badass workout. Well, at least I managed to do a few extra pull ups at the end.

Tuesday Workout
6.3 total cardio miles

30 min x-trainer
3.69 miles
140 calories
7.38  average speed
8:08 average pace

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50

Smith Inclined Bench
Bar x 15
15 x 50
12 x 70
10 x 80
25 x 60

Smith RG BB Row
21 x 80, 100, 120

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

30 min elliptical
Prgm 2
Miles:  2.61
Calories:  297

HGPU 36 Yaaay!

And The Forecast Calls for...

I got the call at 5:02 am. And the text, and cell phone call. School is on a 2-hr delay due to snow and slippery road conditions so I don't need to get up at 6:30! I can get up at 8:30! But I still need to walk the dog, and heat up chicken and rice for his breakfast so I can mix in his meds. My son stumbles out of bed and grumbles when I make him wear his winter coat. It's 34°F outside and even though it'll be a balmy 44 when he gets home, I worry about things like Fire Drills and him standing outside without a coat. I still need to shovel the dog ramp, walkway, driveway, and most of my car because I am not one of those people who drive by just peeking through what the wiper cleared on their windshield!  They have no side vision and snow will come flying off their roof. I hate those people. Seriously.

I get to the gym late and realize I've forgotten to administer my eye drops. Ugh. I'll have to do it when I get back to the house. Even though I slept in, I feel tired. And I still have this cough! It takes longer for it to manifest itself which tells me it's deeper in the lung tissue. But I still feel as if I'm getting better. It's just taking a really long time. Sigh.

Monday is considered Universal Bench Press Day but I'm good with not doing those if the Smith's not available. It's not. So I just muscle through chin ups, push ups (I lose count around 70 and do an extra 10 just in case), crunches and planks. And then I'm back on the cardio platform for round two. A last set of pull ups and I'm done! I might bench tomorrow, or just do Inclined Benches. Those are easier on the shoulders, but then again, I am using less weight. I've ordered another pair of earbuds from Amazon because nothing is as good as my old pair of Sony earbuds that I got from Kmart for $6. I actually find them again, but now they're over $29 on Amazon. I put those into my Later Basket, and instead order a completely different brand, Rovking, which got great reviews and are half the cost. We'll see... hearing my tunes makes all the difference in whether I have a good workout or not.

I've talked my hubs into going to a party at a bar this coming Friday. It'll be the first time we've ever gone to a "gym party". They're sponsoring the eats, but it's a cash bar. I'm not much of a mingler, but since we're missing out on hubby's company Holiday Party (he'll be in Houston for that) and my son has a sleep-over party, well... it's good to do something different every now and then. I'd really like to go dancing actually. There might be a DJ later on. Maybe even dancing. I don't care about the gym people who might or might not go. I just want to have a drink and go dancing with my hubs.

Monday Workout
6.26 total miles

30 min x-trainer
Miles: 3.69
Calories : 140
Speed: 7.36
Pace 8:09

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100 (110?)
Crunches 3 x 60
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s

30 min elliptical
Prgm 1
2.57 miles
291 calories

HGPU 36 Yaaay!

Pushing Through Push Day

I'm so tired that halfway through my swim class, my thighs burn with lactic acid. My shoulders are unusually fatigued so my form deteriorates as I try to synchronize my stroke with breathing. There's only a few more classes this term and I haven't signed up for the Winter Session. Because I can't bear the thought of getting cold and wet in the winter. When I get home, my son is still doing his math HW. He's struggling to finish 100 questions done online. It's a nefarious program (IXL.com), because each correct answer gives you 1 point, but a wrong answer sets you back 5. He's literally spent over 4 hours trying to get through fraction multiplication and as he tires, he makes silly mistakes. When I get back from swim, we do the remaining problems together, but it still takes us another 2 hours. That's a ridiculous 6 hours of homework for one night of 6th grade math. Neither of us gets enough sleep. This morning, I dawdle with errands like driving to the Post Office before going to the gym. Well, at least I've had my coffee.

I've sworn off Ryka athletic shoes as of today even though I'd love to support this company, I just can't shrug off the fact that it cost me $23 to return (via USPS) two pairs of running shoes to California. They offered free shipping, but returns are on the customer. The shoes looked promising, but both had severe issues. I even ordered a full half size larger than my last order, but shoe sizes must be shrinking in the US. The first pair (Devotion) was so narrow that I could barely squeeze my left foot into it, much less lace it up. That's the foot without the bunion. The box and shoe both say 6.5W, but they are visibly narrower than any of the shoes I own (including another pair of Ryka sized 6W). They are clearly mislabeled but Ryka doesn't offer exchanges.

The second pair of shoes (Indigo) is comfortably wide (also a 6.5W), but the arch is so high that it's painful just to walk across the living room floor. I try switching insoles between shoes, but it doesn't help. The shoe does sport an incredibly cushiony heel, but it's no good if walking is impossible. Both shoes have to go back. So I'm spending $23 for nothing. Grrrrr! Well, I've learned my lesson. If I'm going to purchase online, I'll have to go back to Zappos where returns are free. The same can be said of LL Bean. And with Land's End, I can just drive to the local Sears to return items.

My heart rate isn't as low as yesterday, probably because I've inexplicably managed to put a smaller drop of pilocarpine in each eye this morning. Online, I find that the drug does indeed slow the heart rate. Well, that's not all bad considering mine is usually racing in a scary fashion while I do cardio.

The cross-trainer is in use so I get on the elliptical instead. I'll use the cross-trainer later, when it becomes available. I'm just too tired to deal with the more difficult cardio machines. Pull ups are a struggle, and I decide to completely skip push ups and crunches today. Instead, I do a few sets of flat benching on the Smith machine. There is a twinge in my right shoulder so I don't go to my max weight of 130 lbs even though I've drop-set the reps to make this easier. But I'd rather not damage my shoulder. High reps feel good though. I'm too tired to do too many sets of Inclined Benching. 90 lbs feels ridiculously heavy. Ugh! What the heck is wrong with me!

I do manage to complete the routine DB Lateral Raises super set with Reverse Inclined Flyes. Meanwhile, the gym is slowly filling up. I see two guys wearing T-shirts from the fire department a town up the road. (All our fire houses are staffed with volunteers.) These two middle-age guys are in remarkably good shape, muscular and lean. One's got a beard that reminds me of redneck shows on the Discovery channel. The other has a weird curl to the top of his hair, like AstroBoy, except that he's blonde. They're not typical of the gym crowd here, a mix of retired seniors, teens from the local high school, middle age people trying desperately to get in shape, and over-weight beefcake wanna-be's. AstroBoy keeps staring in my general direction, and I'm not sure why. Because I'm fairly clueless when it comes to other people.

For my last Push Day movement, I do a few sets of Tricep Cable Push Downs with a V-bar. I have not done these in probably 6 months or longer so I start off very light: 20 lbs. Okay, that was like not using any weight at all. Gradually I get to 45 lbs. Next time I'll start with 40 or 45 lbs. I know I've gone as heavy as 50 but never more than that. It's hard to push that much weight if you don't actually weigh all that much. Today the gym scale tells me 111 lbs, and that's after I've sucked down my entire 1.5 liter bottle. I still have a deep wet cough. Ugh.

I'm about to start pedaling on the elliptical again (Intervals) when I realize that absolutely all the cross-trainers are empty. Including the one I favor. So I move all my gear over and proceed to wipe that machine down. I always wipe down the cardio with bleach water BEFORE and AFTER I use it, because people are pigs. I already have a cough I can't seem to shake, and I see people walk away from equipment without ever picking up a paper towel and spray bottle of bleach water. It's the people who leave the bathroom without washing their hands... they're out there! The same people who leave their used tissues and gum (right out of their mouth!) stuck to the side of the machine. Yuck!

I finish with one last set of pull ups. Mission accomplished. Done!

Friday
(6.3 miles)

30 min elliptical
Program 3
Miles: 2.47
Calories: 276

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50

Smith Flat Bench
Bar x 15
80 x 12
100 x 10
120 x 8
90 x 25 reps

Smith Inclined Bench
Bar x 15
12 x 50, 70, 80
90 x 6
50 x 25

DB Lat s/s Rev Incl Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

Cable V-bar Push Down
20 lbs x 15
30 x 12
40 x 12
45 x 12

30 min x-trainer
Miles: 3.83
Calories: 142
Average Speed: 7.65
Average Pace: 7:50

HGPU 31

Warming Up to...

I know everyone is different and responds to exercise differently. So it takes me a good 30 minutes of cardio and a bunch of body weight movements before I feel "warmed up". Most would agree that at least 10 minutes of vigorous motion that causes you to break a mild sweat would fulfill the requirement. Stretching is not a warm up. Personally, I don't think sitting fully dressed in the dry sauna for 10 minutes constitutes a warm up either. But I see women do this regularly. They bring their phones in with them and spend 10 minutes texting before going out into the gym itself. I told my husband about this when he said he'd never use the men's dry sauna. (Too many creepy naked old guys in there.) And no, he doesn't think that constitutes a "warm up" either. But maybe I'm wrong?

Several online sites state that saunas serve to relax your muscles. Probably not what you want to do before you go exercise. On the other hand, some physical therapists believe that sauna heat will help alleviate muscle pain before your workout, and calls the sauna a type of "passive exercise". Personally, I think that's a lot of bunk. If you're sore, do some mild cardio to warm up and improve blood flow. Sitting on a bench in the heat is like waiting for the bus on the equator. It's not exercise. It's not a warm up. Sure, you'll get sweaty, but there's no benefit, except maybe an excuse to look at your phone while you're at the gym.

Even though I have swim class this evening, I'm resigned to doing a Pull Day. And cardio. Always cardio. Perhaps it's because I had 3 slices of pizza with meatballs, mushrooms and garlic. So I already know the scale will not be kind. But I do knock out my 100 push ups, and then go for 31 more Hindu push ups. I do get my 3 sets of Hammer Grip Pull Ups. I do planks and crunches. I get to the Smith and get all my reps for all my sets. I notice that the callouses on the palm side of my knuckles (there's got to be a name for this, right?) are starting to indent. Uh oh. What does it mean when you've got dimples in your callouses? I've tried filing them down, but until they start to peel (and I hope they don't), there's no way to remove them. The multiple sets of pull ups are hard on my hands as well and there's some soreness between my fingers. Ugh.

Big dude is behind me to the right.

There's a big dude working out with a much smaller guy. I've been seeing these guys a lot lately. The big guy always wears a watch cap and makes me wonder if he's bald. He puts some impressive plates on the bar, but his range of motion is limited to just a quarter of an actual press. The smaller guy has some impressive muscles on his frame, but they're wiry muscles and not bulky. He has much better form even though the big dude seems to be coaching him. Range of motion is important, but not always. It depends on what you're trying to accomplish. I don't use full ROM for my pull ups because that's too hard on my elbows and forearms. I've already suffered from a variety of tendinitis. So I do partials where my elbow are bent and I'm pulling from my back. Doing partials for OHP or even flat benching seems a bit sketchy. Maybe good for a pump or a warm up, but strength or size? Maybe I'm wrong?

My heart rate is lower than I expect. I suspect that it's the pilocarpine. I barely make over 6 miles today. I'm not unhappy about the heart rate, but I'm a bit bummed about the mileage. On the other hand, I do have swim class this evening so best not to totally burn out just yet.

Thursday Workout
6.11 miles cardio

30 min x-trainer
Miles:3.60
Calories:139
Av Spd:7.19
Av Pace 8:20

HGPU 31

Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Hindu Push Ups 31

Smith SLDLs
Bar x 15
12 x 80, 100, 120, 130

Smith RG BB Rows
21 x 80, 100, 120, 130

HGPU 31

Seated one arm cable
45 lbs x 12 x 3

30 min elliptical
Program 2
Miles: 2.51
Calories: 282

HGPU 31

The Moldy Girl

I think I'm getting used to administering pilocarpine drops twice daily in both my eyes. The drops do sting and feel like I'm squirting citrus into my eyes. But I guess you can get used to anything, especially if it's something that might keep you from going blind. The liquid bandage I put on my finger also stings, but it's also an antiseptic so that's expected. The wound is difficult because it's a gash in my cuticle, at the edge of the nail bed. Fingers bleed profusely, and even though this is more a paper cut (fomented by the edge of a metal tray that I was scrubbing), it bleeds like something more serious. The New Skin finally thickens enough and I wrap a plastic bandage around my finger.

Later, I peel an orange and wonder what the red gooey dots are on my paper towel. And on the kitchen table. And what the heck? It takes me a full 5 minutes before I realize it's actually my finger, bleeding out from the bandage. Because the orange juice has dissolved the seal. Well, that's not mentioned on the packaging anywhere! Ugh. Okay, Take Two. I wash and dry my finger, apply more liquid skin, and wrap another plastic bandage around it. Luckily, I have a box of blue nitrile gloves that fit well, and are better than most of the cheap dish washing gloves from the supermarket. Problem solved, as long as I'm in my own kitchen...

At the Smith machine today

It's raining when I get to the gym but it's not crowded. That makes me happy. The power blips while I'm in the locker room, and although all the machines are working, not all the overhead lights have recovered. Patience pays off, and I'm able to mount the favored cross-trainer for 30 minutes. But I'm tired. And my cough seems worse today. I'm not getting the mileage I'm used to so I'm a tad disappointed. My heart rate seems unusually low today. Usually it's on the high end of things. Pull ups are hard today, and I'm actually dreading doing deadlifts. So I don't. Instead, I decide to do a Push Day. I'll be working tomorrow. I can always do deadlifts on Thursday or Friday when I'm feeling less susceptible to injury.

Even push ups feel incredibly difficult once I get to 80 reps. So I stop. Knock out some crunches, and then 25 Hindu (Dand) push ups. They're suppose to be harder than Dive Bombers because you push yourself back up into the Downward Dog position as oppose to gliding back low on your belly. These really aren't that hard. I could probably do 30. Next time I will.

Smith Inclined Presses follow, and then I move on to the DB area for DB laterals super set with Reverse Inclined Flyes. I don't know why I'm so surprised when I do more reps on the latter exercise. The gym is starting to fill up with guys. And one or two "power couples". I hate it when people pull a bench out just to sit on, and it's in everyone's way. Then they leave and never put anything back. Such bad gym etiquette! I'm glad I don't work here.

Some people wear waaay too much cologne, or godawful dime-store "perfume" that reeks of flammables. Some guys need to wash their gym clothes more than once a week. But the worst is the moldy girl. She doesn't realize she's moldy. Maybe it's the towel she used to dry her hair, but once she aims the hair dryer at her head (and at me behind her) in the close confines of the tiny locker room, I start gagging and coughing like I'm going to spit up a lung. All I can smell is sickly-sweet moldiness. Or mildew.

To be honest, I'm not really sure what the difference is, just that this is the smell that happens to clothes that get put away when they're not fully dry. Mildew is the smell of damp towels sitting in a pile too long. Of clothes taken out of the dryer prematurely. And this gal blow-drying her long blonde hair positively reeked of it. My coughing fit causes her to cut her session short and she flees. Should I have said something to her? Like what? "Excuse me, but you're covered in mildew." Uh, maybe not. Maybe it's not her towel, and actually her?!

My clothes are soaked from the rain, and I'm tired enough to consider wearing my peony print pajamas to Boy Scouts this evening. (The hubs is en route to Boston so he's missing all the fun.) Truthfully, my hubs actually thought the pajamas were just a set of women's casual wear, so I could probably get away with it. But the pants don't have any pockets. Again, neither do most women's sets, and half the pants I own have ridiculously tiny, almost purely decorative pockets. As if all women always stuff everything into their purses. Good grief...

Tuesday Workout
6.04 total miles

30 min x-trainer
3.54 miles
138 cal
7.04 av speed
8:31 av pace
124 av heart rate (weirdly low today)

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 80
Crunches 3 x 50
Hindu Push Ups 25

Smith Inclined press
Bar x 15
12 x 50, 70, 80, 90
25 reps x 50 lbs

DB Lat s/s Rev Inc Flyes
25 lbs x 12/15 x 3

Rip Skulls
30 lb bar x 13
35 x 13
40 x 12

HGPU 31

30 min elliptical
Program 1
Miles: 2.50
Calories: 280

 HGPU 31

Deep Listening

I've had this deep wet cough for several weeks now, and no matter what I do, or don't do, I can't seem to shake it. The past two mornings are the first in a long time that I've woken without the nasty post-nasal drip sore throat that usually accompanies this ailment. But I still have the cough. And every now and then, I lose my voice to an internal conspiracy of bodily fluids. Yuck. Well, at least I don't have pneumonia. My brother's girl didn't attend the Thanksgiving dinner because she was home in bed with a raging fever, and a diagnosis of walking pneumonia. Several courses of antibiotics failed to make any impact, and she's allergic to penicillin. Eventually, she recovered enough to get on a plane back to college, but I know from experience that she's going to be exhausted just walking to class. I had walking pneumonia once. In college. The cough I have now isn't anything as terrifying as drowning in your own snot. It's just exhausting in its own way.

After my husband leaves for Boston, and I put my son on the school bus, and the dog gets his medicated meal of chicken, rice and Metacam, and a nice leisurely walk, I actually go back to bed. And sleep for an hour. When I get up, I realize I have just enough time to get a quick work out in, and still be able to dash off to the grocery. The child is out of milk, and the dog needs more chicken. The dog is fully recovered, as is evidenced by his frantic dancing to tell me that there's food in the kitchen. Yep, he's well enough to bark furiously at the postman, and try to charge him at the door! He's still not quite 100% on the back end, but he's got a sensitive tummy and the slightest things upset his digestive tract. It's good to see him being a pain in the butt again though.

At the gym, I see my favorite cross-trainer is vacant so I get to do 30 minutes on it. Then pull ups, knee-ins, and push ups. But I lose count doing push ups. I think I've done 80, but I'm not sure. Screw it. I move on to crunches, and then, instead of planks, I do a set of Hindu or Dand push ups. Not to be confused with Dive Bombers. These are actually pretty easy, but I'm conscious of the time so I only do 25. No stretching, no extra set of pull ups.

Tomorrow is a Pull Day, and not an abbreviated one. I'd just like to be done with this cough, and I am taking zinc and other vitamins fairly regularly. I do wonder if the pilocarpine drops, which as also used to treat dry mouth, aren't having an effect on my cough.

Monday Workout

30 min x-trainer
3.76 miles
141 cal
7.52 av speed
7:58 av pace

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 80
Crunches 3 x 50
Hindu Push Ups 25