End of Week Gains

I let my son sleep in until I figured he had had at least 8 hours. Then I dragged him off to the gym. It was nearly 2 pm. We had both stayed up too late watching season two of Stranger Things. Season three aired on July 4th, but I needed a refresher on everything that happened prior. Thank goodness for streaming content on demand!

At least my son wasn't yawning all the way to the gym. We got on the elliptical for 33 minutes, then did pull-ups. He crossed his legs and tried to keep his body straight, which adds difficulty to the movement. He only gets six today. Still, it was a good effort. We move on to pushups. I sit and count out 30 for him. Then core. I find the horizontal scissors to be the most difficult, but since he does them in kung fu, he's not bothered by them at all. His weakness is the Side Plank. I jokingly call it the Broken Starfish because we have one bent arm and a leg might or might not be raised in the air. I find Bird Dogs relaxing. He struggles to keep his balance.

Now we're at the Smith doing Inclined Presses. There are a few teenagers in the free weight area. It's early afternoon and most of the regulars have already gone. My son spends most of the time staring at his phone, but he knocks out 12 reps for each weight that I set up. I'm impressed that he manages to complete two full sets of 12 reps apiece for his heavy set of 70 lbs. It's not horribly heavy for a kid that weighs more than twice that amount, but I think it's great considering two days ago he bailed at 10 and 8 reps. I don't have any problem with my sets of 25 reps even though I did DB flys and shoulder supersets yesterday.

We move to the Seated Cable Station. My son wants larger handles so we affix the super-light aluminum neutral-grip handles. He marvels at the difference between them and the stainless steel ones with the narrower diameter that I favor. It's only because I have such small hands and fingers. I increase the weight and my son is able to keep his form. Fifteen pounds might not seem like much, but it makes a noticeable difference. At the Lat Pull Downs, I ask him if he's willing to try going heavier. "Okay, sure." It's not something he'd ever suggest himself. Heavier weights make him pay more attention to his form, but we stop short of my heaviest set. He's not ready for that. I'm happy that not only is he not sore from Wednesday's workout, but he's willing to entertain my attempts to make him stronger.

I let him choose the final cardio exercise. He shrugs and suggests recumbent bikes. We do 20 minutes plus a 5-minute cool-down. I have to consciously pedal faster while I read film reviews on my phone. (Jumanji: The Next Level and Knives Out both look entertaining!) When we're done, I note the irony of being sweaty and yet feeling my joints stiffening, as if I hadn't moved all day. That's not how this usually works!

We stretch out in the classroom and my son asks me if I can explain the whys and how of rigor mortis. I admit that I've never thought to examine the process except in knowing that forensic scientists use the stages of rigor to determine how long something's been dead. Smart questions and now I'll have to look that up!

July 12 Friday Combo

Norwegian 4x4
5 min w/u (4 min on / 3 min off) x 4
5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26, 30, 33
Calories 291
Miles 2.66
HR 133-190 (105, 85)

Cage Stretch
HGPU 23
Child 6
Child Push Ups

Crunches Legs Up 40
Bicycles 50
Crunches knees bent 50
Horizontal Scissors 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s

Smith Inclined Press
Bar (30) x 15
50 x 12
Child 70 x 12, 12
70 x 25, 25, 25

Cable Rows
70lbs x 12
77.5 x 12
85 x 12

Lat Pull Downs
Ch 70 x 12,
85 x 12 , Ch 12
100 x 12, Ch 12
115 x 12

20 Recumbent Bike (child choice)
+ 5 cd
Level 1 manual
Calories 84, 103
Miles 2.50, 2.91

Mat Stretch