Today, fifteen minutes before my alarm was set to go off, the phone rings. Caller ID says it's the school district. What? They've just announced a two-hour delay. I look out the window and realize that it's snowing hard. Ugh. Well, at least I get to sleep in for another two hours before going out to assess the situation. It's 22F so the snow is heavy powder, only an inch deep but enough that I don't want to pack it down underfoot or under tire. Packed snow becomes ice and that will last for months! I grab my broom and sweep the snow off the steps, walkway, from around my car, clear my windshield and then sweep the driveway. It takes a bit over 30 minutes to get everything clear, just in time for me to wake my son for school. I don't ask him to help me on school days because I know he'd be really upset at going to class sweaty and dirty. And since I'm headed to the gym after I drop him at school, I don't care how hot and messy I get. I just count it towards my warmup.
I've planned to do HIIT cardio, several sets of pull-ups, some core and whatever two cardio machines aren't occupied. I've done the Norwegian 4x4 program countless times, but today I suddenly make the direct connection between my weird pulse rate and Raynaud's syndrome. Raynaud's is where the blood vessels of the extremities succumb to stress by contracting in spasms. It leads to numbness, tingling, and a sensation of icy cold fingers and toes. The stress can be physical pressure (online medical literature only says emotional stress but I think they're wrong because 90% of primary Raynaud sufferers are women and most if not all of the research has been done by men and yes, I'm being totally serious -- look at how women's pain is underestimated) or an extreme temperature change.
In my HIIT cardio program, I pedal for 5 minutes at a leisurely pace, then go as fast as I can for 60 seconds, then drop down to 75-80% of maximum for 3 more minutes before 3 minutes of slow pedaling akin to a jog. Repeat the 1 minute fast as possible / 3 minutes pretty fast / 3 minutes slow for 3 more intervals.
During each peak, my pulse rate (reported by sensors in the handles) drops to its lowest point, then shoots back up as I slow my pedaling. I know that my feet are prone to numbness during this period because pedaling as fast as I can means I'm exerting a lot of pressure on my quads as well as the front of my feet, just as if I were running. Contracting blood vessels in my hands and feet might be impacting the reported pulse rate. I'm not sure if my pulse rate and heart rate are the same when my hands and toes go numb. I'd have to set up a dual-monitoring system to find out. When I look online, I don't see anything posted showing this is even a topic of interest. Because who else besides a gym rat like me would notice such an anomaly, right? And I'm one in a million. Kidding. Or not.
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| 3 layers of orange cuz it's the color most discounted |
The literature on Raynaud's is incomplete. Or maybe I have a subset category of this syndrome since it's not emotional stress (as stated in online literature) but physical stress (like gripping too tightly) as well as extreme temperature that causes me numbness and pain. I personally would like to tie this to my skin disorder, or some connective tissue disorder since "poor circulation," i.e., collapsible veins runs in my mother's side of the family as well as ichthyosis vulgaris. Couple this with my (and my mother's) extreme discomfort with tight clothing (too much pressure on internal organs) and perhaps I'm making correlations where none exist? To paraphrase all the cop shows I've ever watched, I don't believe in coincidences.
What this all means is that it's vitally important to pay attention to your body when you work out. We're all different and our bodies don't handle the same stressors the same ways. And while it's critical to challenge yourself, it's equally important to know your body's limits. I know I have small, shallow joints that are overly flexible and prone to tendonitis. I've discovered that I can do 20 pull-ups without issue, but doing more causes my right elbow distress. However, throughout the course of a cardio workout, I can do several sets of 20 without incurring any pain. Seems counterintuitive that doing 4 sets of 20, totaling 80, is less damaging than doing a set of 25.
Know your limits. Then you can work around them.
Surprise Snow Cardio Friday
Norwegian 4x4
5 min w/u (4 min on / 3 min off) x 4
5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26, 30, 33
Calories 277
Miles 2.60
HR 135-192 (97)
Cage Stretch
HGPU 20
Push Ups 52
Crunches 30/30
Leg horizontal scissors 50
Bicycles 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
15 Octane + 2cd
Default setting
Calories 110
Miles 1.51
Steps 2082
Floors 34
HR max 127-147
HGPU 20
15 StepMill
Speed 3
Total Steps 533
Floors 33
Calories 84
HR135
Walking Lunges
29+31=60
HGPU 20
2:1 Lying Leg Curls
15lbs x 12 each leg
20 x 12, 12, 12
Cage Stretch
HGPU 20
Mat Stretch
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