Fatigue Friday

I made myself go to bed at 11 last night, but I didn't fall asleep right away. Even after playing a few rounds of Spider and Pop Time, and my eyes were burning heavy, I only slept for a few hours before stumbling to the bathroom, or waking up and wondering what time it was. I had even sipped a bedtime mug of Sleepy Time Vanilla Chamomile tea, but all that did was make me feel groggy and hungover when the alarm sounded at 7, and again at 7:25. I heated some coffee, got dressed, administered my glaucoma eye drops and took the pups to the park. It was littered with small broken branches and a lot of wet leaves. Even though it's hot enough to feel like summer, the shortened days let everyone know that Autumn is here. It's so dark at 8 pm that I need a headlamp to walk the pups on the road, but at least the asphalt is cooler and easier on doggy feet.

I really want to talk myself out of going to the gym, but I know I'm not going on Monday. I'm tired and concerned that my eyes are burning like I've been swimming in a chlorinated pool. It just means I'm a bit worn out. I get to the gym late and the parking lot isn't very crowded. That's promising. I'm still debating what kind of cardio to do when I step out of the locker room. The elliptical is free so that's kind of a no-brainer. I'm not expecting much in the way of performance today. I only notice how sore my body is when I squat down to pick up after my dogs at the park. Otherwise, all I feel is fatigue.

I'm not moving as quick as I'd like. I worked really hard to make 2.8 today, but part of that problem was the fact that I had no idea you could punch in a program like Manual just to bring the elevation down (from a ridiculous 13 to a more manageable 6) and then change the program mid-course (to Program 1) without having the machine reset. So the first 5 minutes of this is at Manual with me trying to adjust some of the settings. 

The a/c isn't noticeable in the Aerobics Room which is disappointing. I'm drenched. It's cooler today but extremely humid. Thunderstorms later today and sporadically all weekend. The 90 second plank is hard, especially after the first 45. Then I'm breathing deeply and trying to hold my position. Everything else is fine and I opt to completely skip wall squats. I try to do my push-ups next to a mirror so I can check my form as I have a tendency to drop my head. I don't know how others do push-ups unless they focus their gaze on something in front of them instead of looking at the floor. I was bored, so yeah, I shot a video of me doing push-ups today. 

I admit I'm pretty quick but having short arms, there's not a lot of distance to cover going up and down... I guess if I wanted to make this exercise harder I could go slower, but considering that my glaucoma doc doesn't really want me doing this (had me drop my reps to 25 from 50), I figure quick is the way to go. Some might criticize the wide-arm stance I take, but narrower hand placement hurts my elbows, and no exercise is worth risking joint and tendon damage. That's also why I don't do pull-ups every day, and why the only ones I do are neutral/hammer grip ones on a bar I can actually get my very small hands around. Working out as an older adult means making compromises!

Exiting the Aerobics Room, I'm taken aback at the amount of people in the weight area. It's kind of crowded and I'm in no mood for the teenagers in the DB area. I'll do my DB Shoulder routine another day. Happily there's no one on the Step Machines and it's been months since I've been on one. Most of the time they're occupied anyway so it's a welcome surprise to see them vacant. I do my 10 minutes at speed 6, which is still somewhere between 52 and 55 steps per minute. It should be 60 steps per minute but the machines are kind of old, and I'm just happy they work at all. After 5 minutes, I've gone from cooled down to drenched again. It feels good. 

Today I test out the last of my new gym clothes: an Under Armour tank. Because UA makes their women's clothes ideally for girls with Barbie stick-thin arms, I sized up and bought a Medium. The gray fabric is soft and silky and the tank is slightly oversized at this point. Actually, it looks a little messy but I don't think I would've fit into a size Small even though all my other clothes are Small. It's the same lately with Land's End boy clothes: the arms are so narrow and tight even on billowy oversized husky shirts and hoodies. Cutting corners on fabric on someplace that's bound to be noticed! Not smart at all.

8 Sept 2023 11:30-1:05 pm
Fatigue Friday

Precor elliptical #1
Program 1
Time: 30 + 5 (5502)
Distance: 2.8
Cal: 309
Avg Hr: 149, 182-88


20 Hip Bridges
Crunches 60
Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch
60 Dead Bugs
20 Hip Bridges
Elbow Plank 90s
Quick Child’s Pose
Cat stretch 12
Fire Hydrants 30 x 2
Child’s Pose / Cobra Pose
Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2
Push-Ups 25
Air Squats 25
Upper body stretch
Eye yoga

StepMill (L)
Manual 10 min
Speed 6 (52-57)
Steps 533
Floors 33
Cal 78
Hr 137