Solo Wednesday Workout

I got to the gym earlier than I have the entire summer, but I was still later than I wanted. The problem is that the school district finally decided to listen to parents and experts bemoaning the early start time for Middle and High School. So during the summer, the district decided to enact a slightly later start date, as well as designating specific buses for each school. No more HS and MS kids on the same bus. However, since this is a new program, today (the first day of school) was the actual trial run. And our school bus was about 30 minutes late. No one answered phones at the Transportation Dept or the Middle School. The bus driver apologized for being late and explained she had to have the office reconfigure the routes better since she'd just dropped off the HS kids and didn't even have time to change the signage on her bus to signify that it was now a MS transport. This is crazy. I'm sure my son completely missed first period. But of course, so did a lot of other kids. I hope tomorrow is better.

Today is my first real solo day back in the gym. I see a lot of morning regulars, but the ellipticals are free and I'm happy that I can use that for my maiden voyage. I'm going to try the Norwegian 4 X 4 HIIT program, which entails a 5 minute warm up (striving for a moderate HR), then 4 minutes at 95% of your maximum HR, followed by 3 minutes of rest, which I'm guessing is a slow jog? Do that 4 times, and after 33 minutes you're done. I choose the elliptical at the end which seems to have the best HR monitor. One of the machines not only doesn't give you any HR indication, but also fails to indicate what incline level and resistance it is set at. The TV is on over the console. It's tuned to my favorite show, Supernatural. It even has working subtitles! But I'm too focused on where my HR is and should be to look up.

The first thing I notice is that there is a considerable time lag between increased exertion and a rise in the heart rate. It's at least 30 seconds if not longer before the numbers start to climb. The monitor is in the metal bands on the elliptical handles. I try not to shift my hands once the little red heart symbol starts to flicker, but inevitably, the machine loses my pulse. I'm constantly rearranging my grip to get the proper contact for the monitor to work. Ugh. I also notice that even as I slow down because my HR has skyrocketed, there is another lag. Sometimes after 3 minutes of a slow jog, I boost my SPM (strides per minute) from 90 to 240 and watch the HR numbers drop. So weird. Then they linger at 135, disappear and reappear at 180. Oops!

When I get home, I search the internet for information about heart rate monitors and discover two new terms: cardiac lag, and HR vs. pulse. The best monitors have sensors that attach over your heart to get a true heart rate reading. Other devices, such as cardio-machine sensor handles, actually read your pulse. There can be a considerable lag between the heart beat and the pulse rate — consider the pump of blood from the heart muscle all the way to whatever pulse point you're using as an indicator. I read complaints and questions from various sports enthusiasts who all report a lag between increased effort (or excitement) and a rise in heart rate. Whew! So this is normal! I'm even more amused by watching my heart rate plummet when I suddenly increase my exertions. Eventually my heart rate catches up, but without a reliable monitor, I tend to overshoot the goal significantly.

While I've looked at heart rate monitors (HRMs), I've never seriously considered using one for several reasons. First, I don't wear wrist watches and a lot of fitness trackers are worn like bracelets or watches. I have tiny hands and super thin wrists. My issue with Raynaud's means I don't wear anything binding or tight. The FitBit my son won at a school raffle actually doesn't monitor heart rate (so what good is that?!) and I'm not interested in how many steps I've taken. Watch and bracelet trackers monitor your pulse, but skin conditions (how sweaty do you get?) can alter the readings.

HRMs that strap to your chest are reportedly more accurate than the pulse-counting watches and bracelets. However, I can't actually see me wearing one since it's all I can do to wear a sports bra under my tank, and those are several sizes larger than my tank because otherwise I can't seem to exhale properly. (Have I mentioned the fact my body doesn't deal with constrictive clothing very well?) It doesn't help that reviewers state that chafing, battery life and reliability are also issues even with the top-rated monitors like Garmin, Wahoo and Polar. You need to connect with a health app on your smart phone to view a continuous readout of your heart rate. There are also new optical, in-ear HR monitors incorporated into sports ear buds. They are pricier than normal earbuds, and while the science may be sound, the actual usefulness and longevity of these items are suspect, based on customer reviews at Amazon for the Under Armour-JBL joint-brand item. 

Of course, I've also read that some trainers think that training for your HR zone is a lot of crap and doesn't really indicate how healthy or efficient your heart is. I admit that I'm seriously annoyed at being limited to something below 167.4 beats per minute because I'm 58. A lot of people are 58 years old, and we don't all have the same cardiac capacity or limitations. I don't feel awful after the Norwegian 4 X 4. (I'm a lot more blitzed when I go all out doing the Intervals program.) But the articles I've read found a significant improvement in cardiac capacity with subjects doing the 4 X 4, not the "all-out for a minute, rest for a minute" type of HIIT. Because this actually doesn't feel as intense as my usual HIIT routine, I'm game to try this for a few weeks. Or, at least until I have eye surgery and then I'm limited to just a lazy stroll. Sigh.

I manage 20 HGPUs, but I feel too tired to do any more. (I don't want to stress my elbows or forearms.) At least until later. The Smith is available and I toy with the idea of doing a Push/Pull workout, meaning Benching and RDLs, but then I think better of it. I don't want to be here all day. I have things to do! Instead, I do a normal Inclined Bench routine, then another set of pull ups. Then push ups and core. Then a final set of pull ups. Done! And I've only been here for 90 minutes! Actually, 90 minutes seems like a long time and I don't even rest that much between sets. Tomorrow I'd like to whack the Nexersys for a few rounds. Do another bout of Norwegian 4 X 4 on Friday. I've packed on a few pounds over the past week and my clothes are again too tight. Sigh...

Solo Wednesday

4 x 4 Norwegian:
5 min warmup / 4 min 85-95% HR (143-159) / 3 min rest (80-90)
4 sets (minute marker 5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26, 30, 33)
Miles 2.59
Calories 275
AHR 135 (80%) / 192!? (115%) according to the monitor
but that's not what I observed on the console. What I see the machine registering is
NOT the range it shows me after the workout is done.

HGPU 20

Smith Inclined Press
Bar (30) x 15
50 x 12
70 x 12
90 x 12
65 x 25

HGPU 20
Push Ups 40 + 10
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Crunches 30/20
Bicycles 50

HGPU 20