Unthrillable

Today is Halloween, but it's also Monday. And probably the worst day for a holiday based on late-night shenanigans and partying. No one parties on a Monday night. As I drive around, I note that maybe one house in a dozen has any semblance of season decorations. Barely anyone has pumpkins, much less jack o' lanterns. Admittedly, we did not purchase a pumpkin this year, so we did not carve any scary faces. I do have two resin jacks that light up in the living room window though. And lights, cobwebs and a cute skelo-pup with glowing red eyes. But like last year, and the year before, no one will come knocking at our door tonight. There aren't really any kids on our road anymore since most have either grown up and moved away, or just moved away. Still, my son wants to go Trick Or Treating. Maybe we'll check out the next road over.

No one at the gym acknowledges that today is Halloween, except for maybe the one woman wearing orange and purple. I'm the only one wearing anything with a skull pattern, and these are leggings that I've worn to the gym every Halloween. Because I've put on a few pounds lately, I'm worried that the fabric might not be as resilient. Everything feels too tight. The last thing I want is for my workout leggings to tear or rip. Ugh. But they survive. I don't do much in the way of stretching though.

I've been feeling very lethargic and I'm not sure if it's seasonal or just stress. I'm easily stressed, probably because I overthink too many things, and then I overwhelm myself. It leads to a sort of mental paralysis which is definitely not productive. Tomorrow is the first day of November, and I'm behind in all the things I need to get done: finish a story I started last Spring, create a photography website for myself before my two shows next summer, work on my show material, work on the story I started some years ago that I have a quarter completed and outlined, but... maybe start to shop the children's stories that I completed some years ago. Plus, I was doing some logo work and I should probably finish that within the next week or so... Left to my own devices, I wind up doing a lot of nothing. What I really need is a plan, and then a list.

Having put on 5 lbs in a matter of weeks is definitely scary. This time last year, I had actually inexplicably dropped weight without any effort. That was also scary. But I prefer being lighter than heavier. Now I've got to figure out how to put a quick stop to this and reverse course pronto! I look at my workout and can't see adding anything more to it, so I need to change what I have. And back to salads with dinner. Or, as dinner.

I'm bummed that some guy is using the Smith, but after I get two sets of RG BB Rows done in the adjacent MaxRack, he's done. Yaaaay! I drag a small flat bench over and get my sets done. I know I could've gotten more than 6 reps at 130 lbs, but I'm babying my joints. The shoulder doesn't hurt but it feels a little iffy. Worse is my right thumb. Over the weekend, I tried to open a new bottle of toilet cleaner and sprained my thumb. (I finally got my hubs to open it.) Child-proof caps are literally me-proof as well since my hands and fingers are so little. My 11 year old son has bigger hands than me now. So today the thumb is also a bit iffy, and I'm careful not to put too much weight on it. Fingers are so dam delicate!

I drag the incline bench over to the DB area. It's getting crowded. There's a guy in a wheelchair with his aide. She's helping him do a few DB movements. There's a really big guy behind me doing DB lateral raises. He has a long ZZ-Top beard in bad need of a trim. For some reason The Mayor feels compelled to drag a bench (from the other side of the DB rack) over and place it right next to mine. It makes me claustrophobic. I hate being too close to other people when I'm working out because I'm always worried about people accidentally smacking each other. He can't help but stand in the space between benches and chat with the big bearded guy. I turn my iPod up louder. And all I keep thinking is "What a dickhead." I'm so glad that I'm only doing 3 sets. No Rip Skulls today, but maybe I'll try doing Tricep Press Downs at the cable station. There's no one there, and the V-bar I like is already attached! Yaaay! I haven't done these in ages so I'm excited to see if I can still do them.

Of course I start off slow with just 20 lbs. Then 30 lbs. Then 40 lbs. Well, if I can get 15 reps, I should probably up the weight but not sure that 50 lbs isn't too much. I should go for 45, but suddenly there are waaaay too many bodies at this four-sided cable station, including The Mayor. Seriously? WTF? Three sets is enough for me today, and I'm off to pedal the elliptical for 30 minutes. Then a last set of pull ups before I leave. Done. But should I be doing it differently? I'll have to think about it... maybe I'll go back to doing Tabata-style HIIT cardio. Ugh... that's always painful.

Monday
(5.04 total cardio miles)

30 min elliptical
Program 1
2.52 miles
285 calories

HGPU 31
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 100
Crunches 3 x 60

MaxRack RG BB Row
55 lbs bar x 12
75 x 15

Smith flat bench
15 x bar
12 x 80, 100
120 x 10
130 x 6
90 x 25

Smith inclined
Bar x 15
12 x 50, 70, 80

DB Lat s/s Rev Flyes
20 x 12/20 x 3

Tricep cable press down
20 lbs x 12
30 lbs x 15
40 x 15

30 min elliptical
Program 2
2.52 miles
284 cal

HGPU 36