I've worked out at a lot of different gyms, from Madison Avenue Muscle (see YouTube link) to Better Bodies (of Brian Moss and Gladys Portuguese fame -- and another YouTube video) and Fifth Avenue Gym in South Slope Brooklyn (which is now closed and reminiscent of a prison basement). Yeah, I'm old. But I can still kick some serious butt. However, today I'm taking it easy. Sorta. Just some cardio and a few body weight movements. After 30 minutes on the cross-trainer (where I surprise myself by making it past 4 miles), I knock out pull ups (hands about shoulder's width apart), knee-ins and a few push ups. Because I've neglected abs all week, I know crunches and planks are going to hurt. And they do. I finally strip off my blue hoodie to do my shoulder exercises with the baby bells. T, Y and I raises. A stocky middle-age guy doing DB curls while seating on a giant exercise ball seems a little surprised. Not sure if it's because I'm a woman, I'm Asian, or that I actually have arms. Unlike most of the ladies. Today there are a very few ladies in the gym, and those that are here, are on the cardio machines. Figures. Because I'm back on the cardio platform as well.
This time, I'm on the elliptical for Intervals. I know. I just did that on Wednesday. And yesterday I whacked the machine. But if you suck at something, then that's the thing you work on until you don't suck at it anymore. And I suck at cardio. Mostly because I have troublesome joints. It doesn't help that the rest of mainstream media has finally gotten on the bandwagon about NSAIDs and the risk of cardiac issues, like stroke or arrest. I feel compelled to get back in shape before I start looking seriously for a paying job. My back-to-back photography shows are a distraction, but at least I can put them on my resume, and update my website with pieces I'm proud to show.
My legs feel like logs, and not the type that roll by themselves. More like dead weight, so I'm surprised that I can actually keep my SPMs (Strides Per Minute) well above 200. Mostly I'm doing a minute at 240, then dropping to 160 for another minute. Then trodding for two minutes at 120, or someplace close. I actually hit 270 for a split millisecond. Boy, did that hurt. My lungs. Nothing else really hurts. Unless you count the growling tummy. But that's not really pain. Meanwhile, Gym Owner has Client on one of the erg machines, and they are chatting and laughing loudly. If you can talk, you're not working hard enough!
When I'm done, I stretch at the Stretch Cage and then examine the roof bars. I'm not exactly sure how wide the next set of rungs are, but since I'm at the end of my workout, I don't really have anything to lose. Because the roof arcs up, it's damn near impossible for me to get my chin past the edge. I manage 12 decent pull ups, which is actually more than I expected. Later I look up the dimensions of the Stretch Cage, but no one can tell me how far the bars are from each other. I guess, based on a width of 48 inches. At home, I put a straight edge to my shoulders and estimate I'm about 14" wide. So my first set of pull ups is at shoulder's width, and the 2nd set is 10" wider. I'm okay with that. It's more than any girl I've ever seen at my gym... and quite a few guys.
Friday
6.7 miles
30 min x-trainer
Calories 146
Miles 4.03
Average Heart Rate 155
HGPU 26
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 50
Crunches 3 x 50
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Push Ups 50
T, Y & I Raises
3lbs x 15
5lbs x 15
30 min elliptical
Intervals
Calories 305
Miles 2.67
Average Heart Rate 146
Max Heart Rate 166
Wide HGPUs 12
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