Some Days Are Good Days

Wednesday, on my drive home, I had to stop in the middle of the road to let a pair of geese cross to the other side. The road becomes a causeway over a large reservoir. There were close to two dozen small dark birds swooping over it perilously close to being hit by vehicles because they were flying so low and erratic. No doubt they were scooping up the mosquitoes and flies that inhabit those waters.

I'm not sure if they were swifts or swallows. I've seen chimney swift nests affixed to strip mall columns so perhaps these were those. I drove super slow with my hazards on and I would've videoed them if there hadn't been a truck right behind me. Luckily lots of other folks have posted videos of these birds dive-bombing hapless creatures and drones alike. This video is kind of cool.


Once across the water, I proceeded at a reasonable pace until my turnoff on to a rough pot-hole cratered road. There's one house that usually entertains a large flock of wild turkeys and I was not disappointed. Closer to home, I had to slow for a deer ambling across. Then I had to stop to wait for the fawn that was following. Some days are like watching the Nature channel right from my car.

Today there's nothing to see. It's raining again, which is okay because I tossed a packet of wildflower seeds out into my front yard. I also planted some milkweed seeds, but I'm looking to buy actual plants this weekend at the Cornell Cooperative Extension plant sale. Although milkweeds are offered for sale at big box stores like Home Depot and Lowes, those plants have been sprayed with pesticides and any butterflies and caterpillars feeding on them will either die or develop severe deformities, as per customer reviews for both stores.

Today is Cardio Friday. I'm game. HIIT Cardio was routine. Pull-ups make my right elbow hurt, but truthfully, it hurt before I even left my house this morning. I muscled through pushups and core, then went straight to the StepMill. What's nice about climbing steps is that it starts off as if you're not doing anything. Without increasing the speed, by merely repeating the same five step-movements I'm able to bust a good breathless sweat. I don't understand those folks who drape themselves over the handles as if they can't hold themselves up. It's not me.

Lying leg curl or torture device

I do manage to do two more sets of pull-ups between my cardio intervals. Because the Octane seems to put a lot of stress on my feet from the lateral motion, I choose the cross-trainer for the last 15 minutes. And unlike Interval training, I don't slow down but go full tilt for at least 13 of those minutes. The Walking Lunges are always exhausting and my quads clench for a few seconds when I'm done. But then, I'm fine. The 2:1 Lying Leg Curls are another story though. I can't make it past 8 reps and I don't push. Part of me worries again about raising my IOPs because lying face down is bad for pressures. I keep my head up but it's still a concern.

The last set of pushups isn't bad and the Mat Stretch feels good.

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 283
Miles 2.62
HR 137-188 (109, 87, 113)

Cage Stretch
HGPU 23

Push Ups 60
Crunches 30/40
Leg horizontal scissors 50
Bicycles 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s

20 Step Mill
Level 3
Calories 114
Total steps 720
Floors 45
HR 139

HGPU 23

15 Cross Trainer+3cd
Manual 1
Calories 145
Miles 2.23
HR 156-147

HGPU 20

Walking Lunges
30+29= 59

2:1 Lying Leg Curls
30lbs x 8, 8, 8 (!)

Push-ups 50
Mat Stretch