Before the Feast

It was with great effort that I dragged myself out of the house into the chilly rain just to go to the gym. I'd already been to the dog park with the pups and there was literally no one else there. Although the parking lot was more crowded than usual, the gym itself was not. Wicked the movie is playing at the local cinema, and today is Five Dollar Tuesday, so there's a lot of seniors and families with non-school age kids in tow. There were also several school buses parked in the back, which meant today might've been a school outing. I quickly decided that I'd revisit the idea of a matinee maybe next week. This week is crazy with kids coming home from college and other visiting relatives.

Wind Breaker is on elliptical #1, #2 has a broken cup holder so I get on #3. Actually, I could move the cup out of #3 and into #2 if I thought that was a better machine, but it isn't so not worth the effort. Because I'd already decided to push some weights around, it made sense to do a different cardio program. Hence Intervals for 20 minutes. Plus a 5 minute cool down. It's a decent warmup. 

My only issue was that I had on new trainers and the soles were so smooth that I kept sliding into the front of the pedal plates. Yeah, I splurged and ordered 3 different pairs of sale sneakers, hoping to find one pair that fits well. I got a pair that I worried might be too wide. It turns out that they're perfect for when I wear heavier wool socks, even though the heel is looser than I'd like. I have a fairly common problem among Asian and Native Americans: wide ball of foot but small heels. I'm keeping that pair for galloping around town, along with an old pair of Fresh Foam New Balance sneakers.

The other two pairs were different Hokas. I'd read reviews that they were lightweight and good for wide feet. I regret the Saucony I bought last year because although it felt good at first, there are days when the shoes hurt my toes or the side of my feet. Weird. The same with an older pair of New Balance sneakers that suddenly feels too short. And if you're feet hurt, the world is a horrible place. Being able to walk/run comfortably is so important to general happiness!

I haven't done Skull Crushers since the gym got rid of all their breaker benches. I find a standard bench near the DB rack. First a few super sets of Skull Crushers & Rip Skulls. My left elbow clicks irritably for the first two sets, and then mysteriously seems fine for the 3rd set. I might be rotating my arm slightly, but I don't really know why the vaguely painful clicking stopped. 

Decided that I shouldn't neglect the delts or biceps so I grabbed a pair of 10 lb DBs. I won't be at the gym again until maybe Friday, so that's plenty of time for recuperation. First standing DB Lateral Raises, then seated DB Alternating Hammer Curls. Then switch to 15 lb DBs and repeat for several sets. I'm careful to control the movement and catch the tricep flexing as I extend my arm down from the curl. Little things like this make me happy. 

There are a few girls/women there, all doing their own thing. The same for the Aerobics Room. I decide not to do Walking Lunges, especially since one of them is side-stepping across the room with a band around her thighs. I do complete 2 minutes of Wall Sits though. Push-ups felt rather effortless, much to my surprise. I was really expecting to have the triceps complain and me fall on my face. But they were fine, although they got a tad achy on the drive home... I'll
probably feel that tomorrow!

26 Nov 2024 12:26-1:55

Tuesday — Assorted Mix Before Thanksgiving

Rain all morning

Precor elliptical #3

Program Intervals

Time: 20 + 5 (3510)

Distance: 1.94

Cal: 207

Avg Hr: 136, 188-79

New FB: 54-137

BB Rip / Skulls Crusher combo 30 lbs

(Each set = 24 reps) left elbow clicks

12/12 reps x 3 sets

DB Lateral Raises s/s DB Alternating Hammer Curls

10 lbs x 15 reps

15 x 15 x 3 set

20 Hip Bridges

Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch

DeadBugs 20 x 5

Piriformis stretches

Child’s Pose

Cat/Cow stretch 12

Child’s Pose

Fire Hydrants 30 x 2

Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2

Push-Ups 25

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Wall Squat 120 sec