Starting the Week with a Combo

Part of the central display at Cabelas

The weekend was cold, but sunny. Today it's warmer (25F) but overcast. Just as my son got home from school, I got the text, email and phone calls cancelling all after-school activities due to the threat of freezing rain and icy roads. I'm glad I'm waiting until tomorrow to get my car washed! Yesterday we decided to drive 1.5 hrs to East Hartford where there's a Cabela's Store. I've never been in a store that not only had giant displays of stuffed critters in various life-like poses (wolves surrounding a fallen caribou, mountain goats atop cliffs, etc.) but also a live trout and eel aquarium.

Of course, most of the good winter gear was gone before Grayson hit, but we did snag a decent pair of water-proof hiking boots for my son. It's hard to determine size without actually trying footwear on, especially with thick winter socks. The Cabela's brand boot, size 10EE, fit comfortably and my son was surprised since he normally wears an 8 these days. We got really hungry on the drive home even though I'd made fried egg sandwiches for lunch. It just wasn't enough, and my hubs had a hankering for the Texas Roadhouse. Click here for the menu, and calorie count!

The problem with using MyFitnessPal is that you need to be connected to its database. No signal at the restaurant so I had to enter all my food once I got home. And some foods were hard to figure because they were part of the Combo Appetizer, a whopping 1100-1530 calories, I guess depending on whether you substitute deep-fried pickles for one of the other three items: boneless Buffalo Wings (can we just call them chicken nuggets?); Rattlesnake Bites (deep-fried jack cheese with bits of jalapeno) and Tater Skins topped with bacon and cheese. I had two nuggets and a Tater Skin. I can't figure out how many calories that is because you don't know how big an actual serving is for the calorie content listed for each a là carte item. (Being accurate is boatloads of work!)

The rest of the meal was fairly easy to input, and a bit scary once I got home. A single roll with a bit of cinnamon butter was a whopping 180 calories! I'd ordered two low-calorie sides (mixed veggies, and green beans), a 6 oz sirloin steak and a side of ribs. I ate all the veggies first, figuring if I was bringing home leftovers, the meat would fare better. I only ate half the steak and didn't even touch the ribs. (Guess what I'm having tomorrow for dinner?) I wind up over my budget by 88 calories, and even though the sodium was within MFP's limits at 1636 mg, I thought the food was salty. I'm salt-sensitive so I'm not surprised that the gym scale reads 112.9lbs today. And that's after I drank my entire water bottle.

The workout was good and the gym not horribly crowded. No New Year newbies yet! Warmed up with 30 minutes of cross-trainer, figuring if nothing else, at least I got some cardio in. Did my pull ups (the last 6 are so hard!) and push ups and core stuff. Then saw that the Smith was free. Yaaay me! Did my Inclined Presses and added a few reps to my heaviest set. I had on the more-supportive Asics so I decided to ease back into RDLs. I got as far as 120 lbs before my back decided enough of that. I may have a disc issue after all — I'm not willing to chance it, so 120 lbs is all I did. Then skipped the BB shoulder stuff and went back to the DB superset and finally, Rip Skulls. I was a bit worried during the last set because suddenly my mind starts telling me I'm kind of tired and now I'm concerned about my left elbow failing. I've got to muffle that voice!

Meanwhile, I hear really loud whining and later discover it's The Mayor. Of course. No one else makes such a racket at my gym. I wasn't ready to call it done just yet though, and looked over at the ellipticals. Stinky Butt was on one right smack in the middle so I decide to do something else. I see the Expresso bikes and select a 2-mile ride without even logging in. I'm a little sweaty when I'm done, but I'm hoping warm enough to do some Mat stretches. Vertical splits are good (leg in front, leg in back), but the horizontal split (legs out to the side) has always been problematic for me. A tight tendon inside my left thigh and knee gets painfully achy if I push too hard or if I'm not properly warmed-up.

Speaking of stretches and splits, my hubs and I have been watching a lot of Jean-Claude Van Damme movies (Double Impact, Time Cop, Universal Soldier) because I introduced him to the new action/comedy series on Amazon, Jean-Claude Van Johnson. JCVD makes a lot self-referential remarks, so we wanted to revisit his classics before viewing episode 3. I never realized he had such a baby-face back in the late 80s! My hubs says, "He must be ancient now" and is shocked when I tell him that JCVD and I are the same age. He's still got a phenom bod though, and the Master of the Splits still has that amazing over-the-head kick. We're both amused to learn that not only did he master karate and kick-boxing, but he also studied ballet for several years. He also has two kids (in their late 20s) who are also martial artists in their own right. Cool!



Monday
5.82 cardio miles

30 x-trainer
Calories 142
Miles 3.82
Average Heart Rate 158

HGPU 26
Mid Band Pulls 15
High Band Pulls 15
Push Ups 60
Scissors 50
Bicycles 50
Crunches 50
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s

Smith Inclined Press
Bar (30) x 15
50 x 12
70 x 12
80 x 12
90 x 12, 10, 8
60 x 25
50 x 25

Smith RDLs (super light)
Bar x 15
80lbs x 12
100 x 12
120 x 12

DB Laterals s/s Rev Incl Flyes
20/25lbs x 12/15reps x 3 sets

Rip Skulls
40lbs x 12reps x 3 sets

Expresso Bike
Campus Loop 2 miles
10:35
56 cal