First Nor'easter of the Season

The pups got to run around the Bark Park yesterday and today. It was sunny and unseasonable at 40F. Of course, we're all bracing for the storm that's supposed to hit us tonight into tomorrow. It's the first nor'easter of the season but it is December so no real surprise there. Further north, in Massachusettes, a few feet of snow have been predicted. Feet? Maybe I should bring more firewood into the house? I do have snow shovels and pet-safe ice melt for the walkway, just in case. 

I don't get to the gym until a few minutes past noon and I watch the sky change from brilliant sun to darkly overcast. Program 2 on the Precor is always the hardest so I'm not surprised by the numbers although I did expect the HR to peak higher, oh let's say closer to 200 or more. Reading through the glaucoma support group posts, I'm made aware that a lot of eye drops have bizarre side effects that concern heart rate and blood pressure. Some lower them too far, especially if the patient is taking a beta-blocker. One of the meds I take has a list of rare side effects that include both high and low blood pressure, anxiety, depression, abnormal heartbeat, high cholesterol, pink eye.... Good grief!

A low heart rate and low blood pressure can lead to dizziness and falls. I've had some mild vertigo lately, but I attribute that to rolling over in the wrong direction and giving myself BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo). It's very annoying and makes me a tad queasy. The change in air pressure due to the impending storm doesn't help either. 

I do more pushups than I planned because I got lost in the rhythm of counting. It happens! Everything was routine, including the ClimbMill which stayed at 52 steps per minute most of the time even though I set the Speed to 6. That should translate to 60 steps per minute but that's not what happens. At least the shower was glorious, with a torrent of piping hot water that I cannot replicate in any fashion at home. Yes, it's the little things that make going to the gym rewarding. 

I took yesterday off because I've decided that if I get less than 5 hours of sleep, going to the gym is just going to get me sick. The Sleep Cycle app says I got exactly 6 last night although I was in bed for nearly 7 hours. I think it must be picking up other sounds and movements in the house, like the dogs and my son who is, like many teens, a night owl. Mornings are hard for both of us but there's no discussion about walking pups. Dogs must go out to pee and we have to take them. And then the sun comes up. 

4December2020
Friday Before the Nor’easter

Precor elliptical
35 min
Program 2
HR 143, 189, 91
Cal 313
Distance 2.83

Crunches x 60 x 2
Piriformis Stretch
Plank 60s
Fire Hydrants 25 x 2
Bird Dogs 60s x 2
Fire Hydrants 25 x 2
Plank 60s
Pushups 53
Quick Mat Stretch

DB raises supersets
lateral standing 15 lbs x 15 x 4
reverse inclined flys 15 lbs x 20 w/u
20lbs x 20 x 3

Matrix Step
Speed 6
Min 15
HR 141
Cal 113
Steps 774
Floors 48