Inspite of Soreness

I woke up sore from the weekend where I spent a few hours using hedge trimmers and parrot beak loppers to clear a path to our ancient wood racks. There are still two full racks although the wood has been there for a few years, and not all of it is worth burning anymore. But we also have an empty rack that can be filled once we finish splitting wood left to us by neighbors who needed to take down some trees a few years ago. Those logs have been sitting under a tarp, just waiting for a powerful hydraulic splitter. Luckily, a friend from the dog park offered to let us borrow his 34-ton gas-powered splitter for the week. 

Loppers and hedge trimmers are tough on the forearms and mine are sore but they're not the only discomfort I'm feeling. Shoulders, perhaps from Friday, knees and middle back as well... But it's the forearms that has me the most concerned: how badly will this affect pull-ups today? I'm glad that the "trail blazing" hasn't aggravated my sciatica the way it did back in August. My mid-back has been mildly sore for weeks and all the bending and reaching that whacking weeds, even dead ones or perhaps especially dead ones, is stressful on what is most likely disc issues.

The gym is populated with regulars I haven't seen in a while. The morning crowd eerily absent. Perhaps because this is a short week with Thanksgiving on Thursday and Black Friday immediately after. I'm a bit breathless after cardio and the little voice in my head wants me to bail on the pull-ups. But I don't and am rewarded with 15 reps, which honestly, surprises the heck out of me because damn it, pull-ups are hard. I don't even feel my forearms when I do them. 

After core and stretches, I have just enough time to do a few sets of DB lateral raises superset with Reverse Incline Flys. In spite of my soreness, these aren't terribly hard. If I didn't have to rush home and take the pups to the park, I'd stay and do another few sets. There's no one in the DB area and that makes me happy. What makes me unhappy is how easy it's been to put on a few more pounds. It's getting ridiculous and my clothes are getting tighter. Ugh.

22 Nov 2021
Rainy Monday of a Short Week

Precor elliptical
Program 2
Time: 30 min + 5 min cd (5504)
Distance: 2.82
Cal: 312
HR: 148-188, 115

HGPU 15

Crunches 60
Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch
60 Dead Bugs
Elbow Plank 60s
Quick Child’s Pose
Cat stretch 12x
Fire Hydrants 25 x 2
Bird Dogs 60s x 2
Child’s Pose
Push-Ups 25
Air Squats 25

Mild Mat stretch w 3 Eye Yoga

DB Lateral Raises s/s Rev Incl Flys
   10 lbs x 15/20 reps x 1
   15 lbs x 15/20 reps x 3