Less Busy Than Expected

Pupper with friends

Since the new mattress is scheduled to arrive tomorrow afternoon, I went to the gym today. But I got there late so I had to make some adjustments: I cut out the last set of pull-ups and the last round of cardio. I was surprised that the gym seemed fairly empty. Many regulars were MIA; maybe they also assumed that Mondays would be full of people making up for indulgent weekends? 

I walked a lot this past Saturday as my husband and I went to the annual Hudson Valley Garlic Festival. The iPhone Health (8,239) app and the FitBit (8,229) app disagree on exactly how many steps but log remarkably close enough. That's reassuring.

We taste-tested some interesting garlic concoctions, like garlic fudge. And bought cheese redolent with sweet and savory black garlic. There was a lot more black garlic available but of course, since I discovered I could buy a decent bag of it from H-Mart for $11, those paltry containers of black garlic for $7 were too pricey. We also enjoyed a wonderful garlic chowder that had 4 different garlic ingredients (fresh, powdered, oil, dried) as well as potatoes, corn, onions, celery, broth, flour, and a touch of cream. We ate it while sitting inside a lecture tent where someone was giving advice about growing and mulching garlic.

This morning, the dogs were happy to have friends at the park so I stayed later than usual. (The arch enemy dogs apparently come even later now.) I'm not quite sure where all the time goes though, since it was well past noon by the time I got to the gym. Wind Breaker wasn't on the elliptical. Actually, no one was on any of them, except for me. I knock out two sets of pull-ups between the elliptical and the step machine. The pull-ups feel okay so I'm encouraged that maybe I'm regaining reps, although in a painfully slow manner.

The Senior class ended and there was no one in the Aerobics Room. I skipped the movements that aggravate my sciatica. It's much less problematic lately, but still more annoying than last year: stinging numbness in the foot, toes, calf, hip when I transition from sitting to standing/walking. Eventually I can shake it off. Laying in bed is still unpleasant unless I'm on my side, but that's bad for glaucoma. The new mattress should be delivered tomorrow so I'll finally discover if a better sleeping surface helps. I certainly hope so!

30 Sept 12:18-1:48

Monday — All Cardio

Brilliant Day — Timolol / sciatica

Delivery tomorrow

Precor elliptical #1

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5560)

Distance: 2.83

Cal: 314

Avg Hr: 161, 194 maximum

New FB: 51-136

HGPU 14.5

Matrix StairMaster (L) 1:06

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-36 (2-1)

Steps 440

Floors 27

Cal 66

Hr 131

HGPU 14.5 

20 Hip Bridges

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Push-Ups 25

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Furniture as Exercise

Sha Cerlin platform bed

I skipped the gym yesterday and the day before. It wasn't as if I was sleeping in or blissfully napping though. On Wednesday, I managed to patch parts of the parquet floor, pulled the king mattress and box springs off the frame, and then dissembled the bed frame into pieces that could be carried across the yard. That literally took all day. The old mattress is more than 35 years old, but oddly still seems to be in decent shape. It's really heavy. I got the new mattress on sale, but it's still pretty pricey. But it's meant to last another 35 years, so I hope it lives up to its reputation... 

Yesterday, I unboxed the new bed frame. I selected it because it had thousands of very good ratings (durable, easy to assemble, looks nice), I like the idea of a platform bed, and it's supposed to be able to support 800 lbs because it's mostly welded steel. The other contender was wood and rated to 350 lbs, and that just made me nervous. My husband is over 200 lbs and I'm 116. What if the dogs decided to jump in?

The bed came in a 100-lb box of individually labeled and packaged parts, and an assembly manual replete with diagrams and important tips. The first directive was to make sure all the parts are there, before starting the assembly process. That took a bit of time since I had to unwrap a plastic bag off each item to find the little white sticker with the identifying item letter. Some items were plastic-wrapped and then zip-tied together. And because I hate chaos, I had to gather all the plastic bags and all the cardboard for recycling. All the styrofoam and other plastic foam packing material to the actual trash bin.

I took a few breaks to eat lunch, walk dogs, eat dinner. Sometimes I just needed to rest my back after spending hours bent over thumb-sized bolts. Reviews for the product often state that the box is very heavy. Indeed! They also brag that it only took them a few hours to assemble, but they were two people. One fellow said it took him three hours but he was working alone. It took me a lot longer than three hours! But of course, I'm a lot shorter and smaller than most people. It was challenging to balance a long strut on my leg while lining up screw holes on a base!

It didn't help that towards the end, I discovered that I had the headboard positioned backward and had to undo bolts to flip it over. Afterward, I then had to flip over a cross-bar piece. This all takes time. And I only realized that after a center strut wouldn't reach the foot board. Apparently, lot of people make this error because the first paragraph of the online product description states what that strut length is in a king bed, and if it doesn't reach, to check the orientation of the header and footer. Ah...

I calculate it took me 7 hours if I exclude housework, meals and puppy chores. But it is done. Mostly. My old mattress is on the new frame until the new mattress is delivered, now scheduled for Tuesday afternoon. Originally, I had wanted to put the old mattress in the hall, but no matter how hard I tried, I could barely budge it. Part of the issue was my inability to gain any traction: my feet would just slide out from under me no matter what footwear I had on. Damn parquet floors. 

I make it to the gym today and I'm really tired. I have bruises on my arms and legs from hauling the old bed across the yard. I don't remember ever bruising so easily, but maybe that's just because I'm old? Wind Breaker is already on elliptical #1 so I do my cardio on #2. I see vaguely familiar members from years ago. Some are much skinnier now, like they've been sick. It's especially true of a few of the men: stick thin arms and legs instead of muscles. I don't think it's age. I think it's serious, like long-covid. Or cancer.

I'm tired but I'm still able to get to sets of pull-ups. Not as good as Tuesday, but not horrible. I'm surprised when Wind Breaker leaves the elliptical and doesn't return, while his water bottle is still in the holder. Normally he takes a break and comes back to pedal after 10 minutes. But not today. The step machine is torture and I try to ignore my discomfort. I wouldn't be able to exercise the way I do if it weren't for earbuds and music! I don't give my best on the cross-trainer as a friend starts texting me and I text back. But I am moving, so it counts.

I do most of the core exercises in the damp humid Aerobics Room. I realize that although the sciatic leg is bothered by some of these movements, it didn't actually hinder me during bed frame deconstruction and new bed assembly. Sleeping on a mattress on the floor hasn't made much of a difference either. Most of the foot/hip numbness occurs when I move between sitting and standing/walking. Sitting doesn't hurt. Walking doesn't hurt. Except in the transition. Then there's a lot of toe tapping and foot shaking to get the tingling to stop, or at least not get worse.

27 Sept 11:47-1:41

Friday — All Cardio

Cloudy Day — Timolol / sciatica

Wed-Thursday old new bed frames

Precor elliptical #2

Program 1

Time: 30 + 5 (5494)

Distance: 2.81

Cal: 310

Avg Hr: 149, 185-81

New FB: 51-134

HGPU 14 (sore right thumb)

Matrix StairMaster (R) 12:37

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Minimum 5 minutes

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-36 (2-1)

Steps 424

Floors 26

Cal 64

Hr 122

HGPU 14

Life Fitness X-Trainer #5 (12:56)

Program Manual L1

Time: 12 (+3min cool down)=15

Distance: 1.13

Cal: 109

Avg Hr: 110-115

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges pain right leg

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

   Skip Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Pushing vs Pulling

the funniest thing I've seen lately

Before I got a chance to finish feeding my dogs this morning, a burly deliver driver sauntered up the driveway with a long heavy box (81" x 16" x 5") on his shoulder. I signed for it and he left the package perched against the 5 steps leading to the front door while the dogs were barking furiously from the living room window. I had to put my shoes on and grab a pair of gloves before I realized just how unwieldy this parcel was. At roughly 100 lbs, I couldn't actually pick it up. I could pick up one end and push it though. It is much easier to push heavy objects than it is to pull them. There's no handles anywhere on the box. 

Thank goodness I have several mats outside the front door and I could use them to ease the friction of a cardboard box grinding against perpendicular step edges. Good practice for when I have to drag the mattress off the bed frame and hopefully land it in the hallway with box springs to follow. Once I dissemble the old bed frame, I'll unpack the new one and (fingers crossed) assemble it properly, just in time for the new mattress. Hopefully. I still have to make repairs to the parquet wood tile flooring that has buckled in spots due to the humidity of living on wetlands. I've got several cases of extra tiles in the garage and yesterday I bought a couple of tubes of the necessary adhesive. It looks suspiciously like Elmer's, but I could be wrong. Unfortunately, it's never as simple as it first appears. Apparently the fellow who installed this flooring over 30 years ago, cut down some of the tiles to make them fit. I'm not sure why exactly but now I'm going to have to either glue down older segments or actually cut apart newer tiles. Ugh.

 

I still planned to hit the gym since I didn't go yesterday. Plus, I'm worried that dancing with the bed frame packaging has done a number on my back. My necks and upper back feel very tense, like cords are a skosh too tight. I decide to address any future inflammation with a preemptive dose of ibuprofen before I get in the car. Normally, I just have coffee but today my stomach's a bit upset with coffee and NSAIDs. It's a valid approach when dealing with potential injury. I've already got something wonky happening as per the sciatic nerve and I don't want to make that worse. But I need to do what needs doing, so...

I don't know if it was the impromptu workout this morning or the ibuprofen, but my cardio routine felt okay. While the elliptical did drag a bit, I managed to improve slightly on pull-ups, steps, and the cross-trainer. I'll take it. I might go to the gym tomorrow and Thursday since the mattress is scheduled for Friday afternoon. Or maybe I skip tomorrow and get as much as possible done. Once I dissemble the bed though, I'm not sure where I'm going to sleep since the sofa isn't actually the most comfortable, especially when sharing it with a 64 lb dog who goes sleep-running... I am looking forward though to finally sleeping on a new mattress. It's been more than 30 years!

24 Sept 11:44-1:50

Tuesday— All Cardio

Cloudy Day — Timolol / sciatica

Pushing a bed frame into the house first / preemptive ibuprofen

Precor elliptical #1

Program 3

Time: 30 + 5 (5476)

Distance: 2.80

Cal: 309

Avg Hr: 142, 195-85

New FB: 51-134

HGPU 14.5

Matrix StairMaster (R) 12:31

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-38 (2-1)

Steps 454

Floors 28

Cal 68

Hr 123

HGPU 14

Life Fitness X-Trainer #5 (12:53)

Program Manual L1

Time: 12 (+3min cool down) =15

Distance: 1.36

Cal: 114

Avg Hr: 129 (1:09)

HGPU 13

20 Hip Bridges pain right leg

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

End of the Week

I'm so tired that I'm glad I don't go to the gym on weekends. I did go today after a lot of procrastination, so I got there late. Still, I got on an elliptical! While Wind Breaker was on #1, there was another dude on #4, leaving 2 and 3 vacant. Weird but good for me since I dislike elliptical #4 intensely. I didn't do as well as yesterday, but close enough. At first I'm quite chilly, but after 6-7 minutes it's as if I'm a sieve with sweat spouting out of my head and dripping off my face and hair. I can't stop blowing my nose either, as if I'm sweating on the inside as well.

I still haven't recovered enough to do more than a dozen pull-ups, but at least it's still a dozen pull-ups for every set instead of diminishing returns. I'm surprisingly tired by the time I get to the step machine, and I worry that I won't be able to make it through the entire 10 minutes. Thank goodness the machine drops down to speed 2 at minute 9 and then to speed 1 by the last minute. Yes, using the timer function has benefits, notably the automatic cool down program. I look around the free weight area and see a few vaguely familiar faces; people who haven't been around for years are back again, wondering where everyone else is. But it's mostly kids, although the Odd Couple are back with him doing muscles-ups and her staring at her phone most of the time.

It's the end of the week and I've been trying to touch base with the mattress delivery company. They've called the past two mornings but my phone never rings and instead sends the call to voicemail directly. Weird and annoying. It also means I've had to order the bed frame (put it on a wish list on Amazon so I'd have all the info handy). I'm hoping to get them to both arrive within the same week. My house is tiny so there's no place to store anything. The mattress delivery service is supposed to remove the old mattress and box spring. 

Those things are a royal pain to dispose of otherwise. The town offers to pick up mattresses if you schedule it, but there's literally no place to prop the huge items up where they won't fall into the road. I've seen rain-soaked mattresses out in driveways for weeks waiting for the rubbish hauler. If I put my old mattress in my driveway, I'm not getting my car in or out. It's one or the other...

I get on the LifeFitness cross-trainer but I'm not feeling it. So, while I do select 12 minutes of easy cardio and allow for an additional 3-minute cool down, I don't grab the moving handles. Nope. Giving the arms a rest before the last set of pull-ups. Honestly, finger fatigue doesn't help when your biceps decide they've had enough even if your back says we can get one more. 

The Aerobics Room is unpleasantly warm even though there was a Senior Class there earlier. Apparently, those old bodies just don't generate enough movement to sweat. I skip the exercises that make my sciatica unhappy, or I interrupt the position with ankle flexing and limb stretching to keep the tingling at bay. It seems to work with the Hip Bridges and Bird Dogs, but there's not a lot I can do when I'm in the middle of push-ups except to get the reps done as quickly as possible. Otherwise, the tingling grabs my hip and radiates down the leg into my foot while clenching my calf. Disturbing but not as painful as oh, let's say, shingles. But I worry about nerve damage as I assume the tingling means nerves are compressed and complaining. No one needs that! 

20 Sept 12:14-2:12

Friday — All Cardio

Cloudy Day — Timolol / sciatica

Late start

Precor elliptical #2

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5592)

Distance: 2.84

Cal: 316

Avg Hr: 163, 200-86

New FB: 51-130

HGPU 12 (big crowd of dudes)

Matrix StairMaster (R) 1:02

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Minimum 5 minutes

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-38 (2-1)

Steps 436

Floors 28

Cal 66

Hr 148

HGPU 12

Life Fitness X-Trainer #5 (1:23)

Program Manual L1

Time: 12 (+3min cool down)=15

Distance: 1.2

Cal: 110

Avg Hr: FB 117 (1:39)

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Push-Ups 25

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Just a Tiny Change

I'm not as sore anymore, but still tired, mostly because I had trouble staying asleep last night. Probably because I made the wrong choice and tried to listen to a song mix instead of one continuous channel of sleeping noises, like rain or rain & wind, or frogs, or crickets. The problem with a music mix is that I don't subscribe to the premium channel and the free channel is interspersed with loud, annoying commercials. That'll wake up the dead. When the alarm sounded this morning, I was still tired. Dogs and I went to the park like we always do. I eventually made it to the gym, albeit, later than I'd like.

I'm surprised to see Wind Breaker on elliptical #1. I know he prefers #2. There's no one on #2 so I hop on that. Because I'm a good 20 minutes later than usual, it's possible that there were more people on the elliptical machines earlier. There aren't a lot of people in the gym at noon time. That all changes once the HS lets out... And I'd like to be done before the locker room becomes a girls giggle room. Seriously.

Cardio is much better today. Not awesome, but better than Tuesday. No pull-ups to worry about until tomorrow. Instead, I have to hunt for an available Nautilus bench since the free weight area is always in flux and benches land haphazardly. I secure one in the middle of the room and drag it out of the way to one of the newer cages. It has a loaded Olympic bar that the last user neglected to re-rack. Because I'm not using the bar, I don't care and leave it as it is. I just want to use the bench and not be in the middle of foot traffic. 

I'm actually closer to the lighter end of the DB rack so I'm fine with everything. I see the Odd Couple (middle-age fit dude and shorter, more exasperated wife/girlfriend) move from one station to another. She starts to drag a bench with her, he stops and asks her what the hell she's doing, she shrugs and abandons the bench in the middle of traffic. Yep. Eventually, he comes back and shoves it out of the way. Melodrama...

By the last heavy set of the DB Shoulder routine, I decide to change the order of the exercises. It makes sense to do the biggest compound movements first (inclined DB press), followed by smaller, more specific exercises. Dorsal muscles are smaller and weaker in the shoulder joint than the powerhouse anterior deltoid. So, for the last set I grit my teeth and reverse the order: inclined reverse flyes; lateral delt raises; inclined DB presses. 

Did it make a difference? I almost couldn't lift my arms for the lateral DB raises! Weird! The inclined DB presses felt odd because the stabilizing rear delt muscles were over-tired. It was quite a different sensation, and I might do it again next week. I skip half of the core workout in the Aerobics Room because I'm burnt, and running late. I promised a friend who contracted Covid on vacation (she's back home now) that I'd pick up some groceries for her and drop them off. She's better after driving herself home on Monday with a 103F fever, but still feeling crummy. Fingers crossed I don't come down with anything.

19 Sept 12:12-1:52

Thursday — Mix Day

Beautiful Day — Timolol / sciatica

(right hip-foot numb tingly)

Precor elliptical #2

Program 1

Time: 30 + 5 (5638)

Distance: 2.85

Cal: 317

Avg Hr: 159, 211-81

New FB: 51-142

Nautilus bench

Incl DB Press s/s Lateral Raises s/s Rev Incline Flys

10 lbs x 25/15/25

15 lbs x 25/15/25

20/15/20 x 25/15/25 x 3

Last set Reverse order -- lateral flys very difficult

20 Hip Bridges 

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

So Achy It Felt Like the Flu

In September I schedule the flu shot, and lately, I simultaneously schedule a Covid booster shot. Because I don't want to contract the flu, and I don't want to get Covid or possibly give it to my brother when I see him for the holidays later in the year. He's had it three times and each time it was bad. I don't actually like to schedule, preferring the walk-in options offered by most chain drugstores. Which means I was able to walk-in to the local CVS and get a flu shot and a booster. Last year I did it at the RiteAid. 

The shots usually hit the lateral delt or tricep muscle, but this pharmacist injected me nearly at the top of the shoulder: the thin medial delt, and I felt each injection. The booster hurt a tad more than the flu shot, but more disturbingly, I could hear a sound, a wet slurpy sound. That's never happened before! The pharmacist puts a bandaid on my shoulder but commented that there's no blood, the injection sites didn't bleed. I tell her that one of my docs once told me that I had sticky blood, and that I'm not sure that's a good thing. In fact, sticky blood is a precursor to strokes and high blood pressure. But I haven't been formally diagnosed so I'm not going to go crazy about it. 

My dad was prescribed coumadin (warfarin) for his heart problems. Maybe he had sticky blood too? But he also had spinal stenosis and that worries me. Is that something that could be causing my recurrent sciatica? Probably not since it's made worse by walking, and feels better when sitting. That's contradictory to my sciatica experience.

While my shoulder became sore almost immediately, the rest of me didn't develop aches and pains until bedtime. Which meant I didn't get much sleep because I couldn't find a comfortable position that didn't bother my hips, back, sciatica, knees, shoulders, neck, ears... I was finally comfortable at 6:30 AM and that let me sleep for an hour before hobbling off to get the pups to the park. Luckily, I know that walking is key to relieving sciatic pain. In today's email, I get a link to the Nat Geo articles prescribing walking as a remedy for lower back pain. Well, duh. Click here to read it (not sure if there's a paywall). 

In the NYT, there's an article about gabapentin and its pervasive off-label usage. I'm guilty of that since I got it prescribed for the nerve pain of shingles, but use it sparingly for sciatic pain. But I don't use it often as there are unpleasant side-effects, like brain fog. But it works so much better than chamomile tea or melatonin for getting a solid night's sleep. (Heck, the vet uses it to "calm" down my dogs (along with tramadol) but I don't like using it on them because I think it makes them upset: mentally altered but not understanding why. I like the calming chews better for the pups when there's fireworks or thunderstorms...)

Because I'm still sore and achy, I won't be disappointed in how much or little I can do today. Cardio goes okay although I'm a lot more tired and breathless on the step machine than I'm used to. And pull-ups are hard today, but at least I could get a dozen each time. I guess that, in itself, is a good thing. Not a lot of folks in the gym. The Aerobics Room feels a bit warm and clammy. It's very humid and I expected rain but it doesn't rain. Instead, there's been very foggy mornings with a lot of moisture on my car, and the yard. I joke that I never have to water my lawn, because honestly, the predawn air creates its own watering system. I skip Bird Dogs and Wall Sits. Push-ups still aggravate my sciatica, but not quite as badly as last week. Hip Bridges are tolerable if I stretch my right leg out every few reps.

I mailed my college kid some computer tools and memory chips so he could upgrade his laptop. My husband had these items lying around and thought they'd work okay. If they don't then my son might get a new laptop for the holidays. I'm guessing it's that Intro to BioMed Engineering class with 3-d printing lab, and of course, special software. While I was at the post office, I bought some stamps. I already have those lovely horse stamps, and turtle stamps. But now I have a sheet of newly available Dungeons & Dragons stamps! How cool is that?!

17 Sept 11:44-1:39

Tuesday — All Cardio

Post flu/Covid shot achy

Precor elliptical #3 ugh

Program 3

Time: 30 + 5 (5418)

Distance: 2.79

Cal: 307

Avg Hr: 143, 198-84

New FB: 51-130?

HGPU 12 (achy joints)

Matrix StairMaster (R) 12:31

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Minimum 5 minutes

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-38 (2-1)

Steps 455

Floors 28

Cal 68

Hr 122

HGPU 12

Life Fitness X-Trainer #5 (12:51)

Program Manual L1

Time: 12 (+3min cool down)=15

Distance: 1.26

Cal: 112

Avg Hr: 118-126

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges pain right leg

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

   Skip Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Friday and the 13th

It's well known that wearables like the FitBit are notoriously bad sleep trackers. I didn't have proof until today though. I forgot to set my alarm and woke up when the sun hit me in the face, which was 15 minutes later than I'd like. I still had time to apply 2 out of 3 eye drops, dress, and get the pups to the park. Coffee, lately, waits until I get back if I want to enjoy those fancy cups of cappuccino. There's no one at the park, except for folks playing pickle ball in the tennis courts. No one in the dog park except us.

The FB shows me when it thinks I'm in deep sleep, light sleep, awake, and REM sleep, which says dreaming to me. Except I was trying to figure something out in my dream when I woke up. And the FB doesn't recognize any dream time early in the morning. I remember the black & white dog with floppy ears like a cocker spaniel, and in my dream I had questions about the identity of a person with that dog. It would seem to me a dream that ended abruptly when I woke up, but that's not what the FB recorded. Do you dream during Deep Sleep -- that's what the device recorded.

I go to the gym and the parking lot is promisingly empty considering that it's Friday. I avoid Mondays because that's when people show up out of guilt from overindulgent weekends. I'm surprised that Wind Breaker is already on elliptical #1. That's not his usual machine; perhaps someone else has come and gone on machine #2. I like machine #2 better except for the first quarter of the program when there's a tiny clunk as I pedal forward. Wind Breaker also seems to have thinned his locks which are now a brilliant auburn color. He does hours on the elliptical and nothing else, but everyone has their own agenda. 

Today is a cardio day with pull-ups in between, a routine I'm getting used to. It gives me a chance to explore the software a bit better as well. While there's no surprises with the Precor elliptical, I learn that there is a minimum time to use the Matrix step machine timer and that would be 5 minutes. I set it for 8, knowing that the machine will automatically give me a 2-minute cool down. Pull-ups are decent today, although I do miss being able to do more. It wasn't that long ago that I could get 18 or 20 reps! When I get to the cross-trainer, I set the program for 12 minutes to account for an additional 3-minute cool down. That totals 15 minutes. Another round of pull-ups and then I'm off to the Aerobics Room.

The Aerobics Room is warm and humid, even with ceiling fans whirring. Eventually I stop sweating and the room feels cooler. There's no one else in it although there are other members doing cardio and in the free weight area. HS kids are starting to trickle in. I skip Bird Dogs, Cobra Pose and One-leg Hip Bridges because of how much pain these movements cause. I skip Wall Sits because I did them yesterday... Back on Tuesday, just because Monday is usually a zoo... but it is Pumpkin Spice season. I saw a wall of PS flavored products at the grocery today, and now I'm wondering about PS popcorn and pudding. Well, at least regular cardio (endurance) exercise appears to make your body fat healthier. Yeah, seems contradictory, but click here to read the article.
 

Friday the 13th — All Cardio

Beautiful Day — Timolol / sciatica

(right hip-foot numb tingly)

Precor elliptical #2

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5546)

Distance: 2.83

Cal: 314

Avg Hr: 157, 192-110?

New FB: 51-124 (?)

HGPU 15

Matrix StairMaster (R) 12:31

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Minimum 5 minutes

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-38 (2)

Steps 434

Floors 27

Cal 65

Hr 119

HGPU 13

Life Fitness X-Trainer #5

Program Manual L1

Time: 12 (+3min cool down) = 15

Distance: 1.35

Cal: 114

Avg Hr: 118-123

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges pain right leg

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Skip Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

A Mixed Use Day

It was another crisp morning and the dogs enjoyed romping in the park. Eventually, another dog friend showed up and there was lots of happy yipping. I got to the gym early enough to score my preferred elliptical. Wind Breaker shows up immediately afterward. There's not a lot of people here today. While cardio isn't as good as Tuesday, I'm not concerned. It's close enough. I'll do pull-ups tomorrow. Today I'm more interested in the free weights.

I discover that there are two Nautilus benches and one is in use. But I can claim the other one. Of course, these benches are at the heavy end of the DB rack. The heavier, bigger benches are at the lighter end. I suspect that's because the Nautilus benches are newer and thus closer to the main area. All that this means is that I have to dodge and weave between other members on those bigger benches just to access the lighter DBs that I'm using. But I'm able to do just that and complete all my sets. It's a good day!

I only notice the sciatica when I'm face down doing Reverse Inclined Flys because I need to press up against the back with my legs extended. It puts a lot of stress on that sore right glute and consequently, the sciatic nerve bundle. There's no one in the Aerobics Room and everything is good until I lay down and do hip bridges. Hip bridges never used to hurt, and now they do, starting around rep 12. It's the same thing with Bird Dogs, starting at the 12th second. Push-ups are also painful, and after the DB routine, my arms and shoulders are tired. Everything else is fine, even the Wall Sits... makes me want to say "Thank goodness tomorrow is a Cardio Day."

12 Sept 11:25-1:25

Thursday — Mix Day

Beautiful Day — Timolol / sciatica

(right hip-foot numb tingly)

Precor elliptical #1

Program 1

Time: 30 + 5 (5554)

Distance: 2.82

Cal: 312

Avg Hr: 135, 192-84

New FB: 51-130 FB app refuses to update properly

Nautilus bench

Incl DB Press s/s Lateral Raises s/s Rev Incline Flys

10 lbs x 25/15/25

15 lbs x 25/15/25

(12:30 first heavy set; 12:38; 12:49)

20/15/20 x 25/15/25 x 3

20 Hip Bridges

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Wall Squat 120 sec

A Beautiful Late Summer Day

It was a beautiful day much like today, with a clear blue sky and moderate temperatures. I'm talking about 9-11 of course, which has its 23rd anniversary tomorrow. I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing because I wasn't at work. In fact, I was going in late because I had the fuel oil service company coming for boiler maintenance. I was at the bank when the first plane hit and it had been broadcast over the radio. We all thought it must've been a small prop plane with an inexperienced pilot, not a commercial passenger jet. Today, I go to the gym. It's not crowded.

After 3 mostly sedentary days, today is cardio and pull-ups. Cardio is a skosh better and although pull-ups don't seem as good on paper, they are actually better than last week. Today I could feel the muscles that run down my spine as I pulled up. That would be the tail of the trapezius and I'm guessing that's a good thing. I'm fairly satisfied with getting roughly a dozen reps for each set between bouts of cardio. Throughout all of this my sciatica is virtually non-existent, and doesn't make itself known until I lay down in the Aerobics Room. 

A few hip bridge reps later, tingling pain radiates from my hip, simultaneously clenches my calf and makes the top of my toes go numb. It progresses in intensity until I finish all the reps. Ugh. Doing the piriformis stretches offer relief and I move on to the next sets of exercises. Child's pose, cat/camel stretch and fire hydrants are all okay. The Bird Dogs are still causing me pain and numbness, but I can make it through a minute on each side. Push-ups also cause pain, but a different kind. This is actual pain starting in the glute and slowly inching down my leg until it hits the arch of my foot. Thankfully I'm only doing 25 reps!

I skip the Wall Squats today, figuring that I've done plenty of cardio. Maybe I'll do them tomorrow if I go to the gym. The Senior Class will be in session so I'll most likely do basic cardio and then look for that Nautilus bench. If it's not available, I'm not sure what I'll do. My back is too sensitive to even attempt Seated Cable Rows, much less any sort of DB rowing. I don't know what to make of the hip numbness or the tingling numbness in my toes. I didn't have these issues last year when I saw my doc although she did ask me about numbness, so I can only surmise that the tingling means a progression of nerve impingement. Not good. I see my doc in November and I hope the sciatica will be gone by then... 

10 Sept 11:35-1:37

Tuesday — All Cardio Beautiful Day

Precor elliptical #1

Program 3

Time: 30 + 5 (5564)

Distance: 2.83

Cal: 313

Avg Hr: 152, 186-108

New FB: 51-140

HGPU 15

Matrix StairMaster (R) 12:24

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Speed 5 (45-50) / 29-38 (2)

Steps 438

Floors 27

Cal 66

Hr 135

HGPU 12

Life Fitness X-Trainer #4

Program Manual L1

Time: 15 (ditch 3min cool down)

Distance: 1.44

Cal: 116

Avg Hr: 130-140

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

A Bit Sensational

It makes for a headline that's hard to miss: read about it yesterday and suddenly today, I can't help but trip over the damn "syndrome" on various health news outlets. What is it? Called Dead Butt or Gluteal Amnesia, I have to admit that I've never ever heard of this. And after reading about it, I'm not entirely convinced of the population affected, because it doesn't say in the article. (I've put a link to the NYT article here. Gifted so it's gratis to read.) I do note that I currently do a few of the exercises mentioned, but sciatica makes the glute bridges, especially the one-legged version, extremely painful. 

Before sciatica, the glute bridges were a pleasant way to stretch the hips and glutes. Now, it's a matter of how much buzzing, tingling pain I can put up with... Once I change positions or stand up, then the pain dissipates. I'm happy that all this has been intermittent. I hope this eventually heals into dormancy. That'd be nice!

I'm curious to see how I fare today since it'll be just about all cardio, with breaks for pull-ups. I did manage to finally get past 2.8 on the elliptical. Yaaay! And I got my pull-ups done. I figure getting roughly a dozen reps a few times should count for something. Trudged on the step machine... loving the timer aspect because it's one less thing I have to pay attention to! I try a different cross-trainer and skip the cool down, just because. By this time, I'm drenched and tired and feeling a tad gross. 

There was a Senior class earlier, but the a/c isn't on when I get to the Aerobics Room. I flip one of the box fans on and the room feels cooler immediately. I make a choice to skip all the movements that aggravate my sciatica. It's not doing me any good to do exercises that cause me so much pain. Besides, I suffered through those yesterday so it's not like I'm completely skipping out...

6 Sept 11:52-1:46

Friday— All Cardio

3rd Day! Dead Glutes?!

Timolol / sciatica

Precor elliptical #1

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5566)

Distance: 2.83

Cal: 314

Avg Hr: 151, 190-78

New FB: 52-134

HGPU 15 (4 kipping)

Matrix StairMaster (L) 12:41

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Speed 5 (45-50) / 36-38 (2)

Steps 434

Floors 27

Cal 65

Hr 106

HGPU 13

Life Fitness X-Trainer #5

Program Manual L1

Time: 15 (ditch 3min cool down)

Distance: 1.22

Cal: 111

Avg Hr: 120-124

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges -- buzzing numbness starts at hip, skips thigh, clenches calf and foot/toes

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

More Sleep, Less Cardio

The past few days have been delightful to be outdoors: cool in the morning, sunny in the afternoon, and not a rain cloud in sight. My sleep deficit also caught up with me, giving me a surreal feeling, slight vertigo and irritated eyes. I did errands and chores instead of driving to the gym, yanked bittersweet vines out of my hedges and was about to lop the tops off the privets when I was startled by a rather large bee. On the other side of my driveway, there's a large patch of orange jewel weeds that's abuzz with smaller bumblebees, ladybugs, flies (lots of flies!), and stinkbugs.

The bee in the hedges was twice the size, over an inch in length! Then I noticed the few pale white and yellow honeysuckle flowers entwined in the privets. So unexpected since these last bloomed back in June! It's September! Do they bloom twice in a summer? And what about the carpenter bees? They tend to be very large creatures... I went back inside my house and took a long nap with the dog on the sofa. So happy to read that one can remedy sleep debt (to a point) and that all is not lost with lost sleep!

I get to the gym today early enough to snag elliptical #1. Wind Breaker was on my heels and prefers #2. Even though I seem to have made up for my sleep deficit, I'm still tired and pedaling fast is hard. Again, I don't make it to 2.8, but I'm okay with it. I've decided to save pull-ups and additional cardio for tomorrow. 

Today, I'm searching for an adjustable bench that I can actually use without aggravating my sciatica. I'm early enough that the HS kids haven't shown up yet. I spy a new bench with the brand Nautilus on it. I haven't seen anything marked Nautilus in years, maybe even decades! Better yet, the seat is low enough for my feet to sit flat on the floor. I'm short, so my head doesn't reach the designated headrest part of the back, but rather, just under it. I drape my hoodie over it anyway.

I start my routine with the incline set at 4 holes (on the back) but it's too vertical so I drop it down to 3. Perfect. Except that I need to skootch up the incline when doing Reverse Flys inorder to clear the red adjustment knob under the back. It's always something. I haven't done this set of exercises in such a long time, ever since my sciatica flared up (so at least a month), that I worried about dropping the 20 lb DB on my face doing Inclined Presses. Happily, I don't drop anything but I only do 2 heavy sets.

Kids start trickling in and I'm ready to ditch the weights and do most of my core workout in the Aerobics Room. There's a side door in the free weight area that opens directly into the spacious, mirrored room. I'm still having intermittent issues with certain movements triggering a disturbing tingling that can get rather painful. More often it gets to a point and then dissipates, although sometimes it takes several minutes. While I'm in the Aerobics Room, the smell of burnt blueberry pop tarts, and then empanadas wafts through the air, and suddenly I'm ravenous. Time to go!

I don't know what's going on today, but twice separate black women have stopped to stare at me. They weren't smiling either. One stopped her car while I was checking my mailbox. She didn't say Hi, just stared with her resting bitch face. Not like I was standing in the road either. Then again at the gym as I swiped my ID card at the front desk, a woman I've never seen before stared at me like I've just insulted her. She also doesn't say anything. Just soooo weird. Maybe I have a weird aura today?

5 Sept 11:34-1:25

Thursday — Change It Up

Found a Bench My Size, Sorta

Timolol / sciatica (right hip-foot numb tingly)

Precor elliptical #1

Program 1

Time: 30 + 5 (5432)

Distance: 2.78

Cal: 306

Avg Hr: 147, 179-114

New FB: 52-126 (?)

Easing back light sets

Incl DB Press s/s Lateral Raises s/s Rev Incline Flys (nautilus bench #3)

10 lbs x 25/15/25

15 lbs x 25/15/25

20/15 lbs x 25/15/25 x 2

20 Hip Bridges  pain right leg

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Replace Hip Bridges w/ piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose / Cobra Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2 (tingling)

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (right hip-leg pain)

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Wall Squat 90 seconds

Maybe Less Cardio Is Better

It was the long Labor Day weekend and I finally got to see the Dead Pool & Wolverine movie. That R-rating was raucously well-deserved. (I embedded a spoiler below. It's okay if you haven't seen the movie since there's so much to see and process, it'll take several viewings!) I went with a friend from the dog park who also wanted to see the flick. Her husband is one of those season ticket holders at Yankee Stadium so that's where he spends his Sunday afternoons. 

No thanks! I've only been to two baseball games in my life and they were both super boring. The first one was at Shea Stadium and we sat behind home. The most memorable thing about the game were all the drunk bros spilling their beer all over everyone in the stands. The second game was local and our Cub Scout troop attended. In the blazing sun with no shade. No hits. No score. I have photos of my kid and his friends looking longingly into the distance at a massive amusement park. That would've been more fun.

My husband has never been one to resist near instant gratification. He saw how enamored my kid and I were with the fancy coffee machine at the Montreal hotel. So he bought one for the house. Sigh. Not that I don't love being able to make an espresso, or a latte. It has a milk nozzle for steaming dairy (non-dairy milk works just as well), and it has a self-disinfecting program that kicks in automatically. It makes very strong, very tasty coffee. Only I'm one of those people who lately have their cholesterol creeping up, and filtering diterpenes (via coffee filter) is one way of keeping my cholesterol reasonable. The fancy machine, like all espresso makers, doesn't use a paper filter. Today, while the husband is out of town working, I brewed a normal French press carafe and filtered a cup of coffee just for this morning. I just don't want to be prescribed yet another medication!

Eventually I make it to the gym and am pleasantly surprised that there are few cars in the lot and fewer people inside. All the elliptical machines are vacant, and I wonder if Wind Breaker has gone on vacation. I noticed last week that his voluminous silver hair had become a glossy light brown. I had been pedaling for 10 minutes when he arrives and hops on machine #2. More kids show up as well even though it's the first day of school. 

I'm tired even before I get started so mileage is pitiful. Temps dropped into the 40s last night, which was excellent sleeping weather, but I wasn't prepared to hear my heat kick on. The thermostat is set for 59F. No, I didn't want to get out of the warm bed, except that laying in it is more painful that sitting at my computer, or trudging through the dog park. My sciatica has been active for over a month now, and I'm getting tired of it. Eventually, it'll resolve and quiet down, lying in wait for me to do something else stupid. Like bend over.

I actually ordered a new mattress over the weekend, taking advantage of the Labor Day sales. My mattress is 30 years old and I lugged it up from Brooklyn. It's time for a new mattress. Actually it's time for a new bed frame as well, since my husband complains all the time about the foot rail cross-piece, which juts out and has stabbed everyone in the thigh in the dark in the middle of the night. I'll have to figure out logistics once I get a delivery date because the dogs aren't going to be very helpful. The mattress company says 30 days. The bed frame can ship in 2 days (different company). 

I'm tired and sweaty after the elliptical, but my pull-ups feel stronger. Weird. I get on the step machine and set it up for 8 minutes plus 2 for cool down. The console gives me readings virtually identical to the last time I did this machine. Except last time it was the left machine and today I'm on the right. I expected some variation in the speed because setting it to "5" means that the machine speed fluctuates between 45-50 steps per minute, and it always seemed very arbitrary. But I guess not. Cardio's not so great today, but pull-ups are so much better. I feel less discouraged!

I'm too tired to do the full 20+5 minutes on the cross-trainer, and I set it for 15. The machine hits a 3-minute cool down but I'm not in the mood for it, so I record my data and ditch the rest of the program. I get a decent dozen pull-ups -- that makes me happy. The Aerobics Room has a few people already in it but there's plenty of room and mats. I dread the vibrating tingling that creeps up from my toes and clenches my calf, or spirals down from my hip. I manage to do Bird Dogs by starting with the right leg extended. It's not so much the extension as it is flattening the top of the foot of the bent leg against the mat that really aggravates my sciatica. All sorts of odd unpleasantness. But I'm done. Tomorrow I'll wander around and see if there's a bench that I can actually use. 

Sitting in my car outside, I look around and see a festively decorated vehicle. I'm assuming it belongs to a local HS senior who's happy happy happy... It IS a really nice day.

3 Sept 11:47-1:46

Tuesday — All Cardio

Post Labor Day weekend

Timolol / sciatica (right hip-foot numb tingly)

Precor elliptical #1

Program 3

Time: 30 + 5 (5330)

Distance: 2.76

Cal: 302

Avg Hr: 142, 175-84

New FB: 50-136

HGPU 15

Matrix StairMaster (R) 12:35

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Speed 5 (45-50) / 33-35 (2)

Steps 428

Floors 26

Cal 65

Hr 132

HGPU 14

Life Fitness X-Trainer #1 (12:56)

Program Manual L1

Time: 15 (ditch 3min cool down)

Distance: 1.28

Cal: 113

Avg Hr: 125

HGPU 12

20 Hip Bridges (1:22) pain right leg

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5 (or 7?)

   Replace 10 One-Leg Hip Bridges  w/ piriformis stretches

Quick Child’s Pose

Cat stretch 12

Child’s Pose / Cobra Pose

Fire Hydrants 20 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2 (toes tingling-flatten right foot issue)

Arm rotations 20

Push-Ups 25 (creeping tingle)

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga