Where Does the Time Go?

I just can't get a handle on my time at the gym. Today is a cardio workout day, plus some pull ups, push ups and core movements. Theoretically, this shouldn't take that long. Not as long as a workout that also involves weight lifting! And yet... I don't spend time chatting with other members either. Not in the locker room or on the gym floor. So why am I leaving the gym hours afterwards? Okay, there is time spent changing and showering. It always takes longer with long hair, and especially with severely dry skin. My skin will be painful if I don't moisturize. But still...

Granted, it takes me a good 15 minutes to get started, mostly because after I've stashed my gym bag, I've got to use the toilet. And then, because my Bluetooth earbuds suddenly died yesterday, I have wired earbuds, which means I'm trying to figure out where to thread the wires and if my waistband will support the iPod clipped to it. Once I get going though, I feel like I'm in constant motion...

Today I do HIIT cardio for 33 minutes followed by a cage stretch and pull ups, then push ups and core. Next is just 15 minutes on the Octane, followed by another set of pull ups. Then 15 minutes on the Step Mill. Followed by a Mat Stretch because my hamstrings feel a little tight. So I'm totally surprised when the clock reads 11 as I approach the locker room. I stepped out onto the gym floor around 8:30, which means I've been here for over 2 hours. That's crazy considering I don't really feel as if I've done anything. I bail on Leg Curls and Walking Lunges, but I won't have time to do them on Friday either, unless I cut my cardio short on that day. I'm meeting a friend around 10:30 am and I hate being late.

Time seems to fly as you get older, and I can't not wonder if it's my brain's thought processes slowing down. There's evidence to support this theory, but there are other reasons as well. Most popular is the belief that new experiences capture your attention and make you focus. This gives the illusion of longer time. Events or experiences we are overly familiar with just whiz by. This is readily apparent when driving a familiar route and you wonder how you got from point A to B without remembering passing all the landmarks you've seen a thousand times before. But driving a new route seems to take forever!

Having slower a brain function is totally upsetting, because it means my reflexes are probably slower too. Ugh. I don't actually feel slower though, but that's probably an illusion since it's difficult to judge things objectively outside of yourself. The mere act of observing distorts the results! Not as badly as the side classroom mirror distorts my image though... I'm back to drinking a lot of water during my workout, nearly finishing the entire 32 oz bottle. I'm still sniffling, though not as badly. And because I'm on the mend, my throat and mouth are horribly tissue-paper dry. The only good thing so far is that my weight is creeping (like molasses) down ever so slightly. Whew! In order to sharpen reflex skills, I do several rounds of Follow Me on the Nexersys kickboxing machine. That's the plan for tomorrow!

A friend complimented my "new" purple winter coat. I got it (on sale for 50% off) because I wanted a lightweight down coat that came to my knees and had reasonable pockets. I have warm down parkas in my closet, but the people who design these items never consider that they should keep the pockets the same size as regular jackets. So my petite-sized jackets have petite pockets placed unreasonably high, as if I were using them to cover my breasts. The pockets are so tight and small that they're mostly unusable for the most mundane tasks, like holding gloves and car keys. Ugh.

The new coat fits okay if I'm just wearing a shirt, but is too tight in the shoulders for me to don a sweater. For that I'd need to go up a size, and those had already sold out. My friend tells me that the coat doesn't look too small on me. (Whew! No unsightly strains across the armpits.) I like long coats, but I'm not tall enough to pull off Spike's black leather duster.

At home, it has suddenly occurred to me (and you would think I'd've figured this out sooner but knowing something and truly understanding it are two different things, especially with body self-awareness) that I can just grab my son's winter coat off the hook if I'm stepping out to get the mail. He's been bigger than me for over a year. I have his hand-me-down hoodies from when he was 10 and 11. There's plenty of room in his never-worn-this-season winter jacket. It's hard for me to remember that I'm a small person, mostly because I don't feel like one. I've just got short legs.

Cardio Wednesday

Norwegian 4x4
5 min w/u (4 min on / 3 min off) x 4
5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26, 30, 33
Calories 274
Miles 2.57
HR average 138 / max 184 (lowest 97-114)

Cage Stretch
HGPU 20

Push Ups 60?
Crunches 30/30
Bicycles 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s

15 Octane + (2 cd)
Default setting
Calories 100
Miles 1.36
Steps 1882
Floors 31
HR av-max 123-171 (low 105)

HGPU 20

15 min StepMill
Level 3
Total steps 528
Floors 33
Calories 84
HR 131

Mat Stretch