End of the Week

There was a dusting of snow and ice on the ground. The dogs ran through the park this morning leaving odd tracks that looked like a cross between tulips and a chupacabra. No one else at the park. It's been like this all week, mostly. With temps below freezing, I am again glad that I invested in the heated water bowl. Of course, there are dodos who walk away with heaters still plugged in, circuit breakers popped, leaving stupid signs telling everyone to bring water since the spigot is turned off. Duh. The Park turns the water off to prevent their lines from freezing. Every year. Meanwhile, there are post-it notes next to the outlet telling users not to leave plugs unattended. Ugh. People are stupid. Seriously. Stupid.

I wasn't sure what to expect today. The parking lot was crowded, but duh, it's Friday and there's a Senior class. The gym population looks the same as yesterday, except I can access elliptical #3. There are new people trying to sign up at the front desk. But unlike yesterday,  there's no wall of treadmill walkers. Or pedalers on the cross-trainer. Or elliptical machines. I wonder where they all went. Or maybe they just don't come on Fridays?

I'm happy to work up a drenching sweat (I need at least 15 minutes to get to that point -- anything less is inadequate) and give a vague thought to attempting a set of pull-ups to make up for yesterday. Maybe after everything's all done, if I'm not too tired? Although yesterday was an abbreviated cardio day, and I've probably gotten better cardio just with the 35 minutes on the Precor today, I determine that today is a mix day, which means commandeering a couple of DBs for roughly 30 minutes. 

It's blustery cold and gray outside, but not raining or snowing. HS kids are back in school so they'll be trickling in around 1:30 and later. I'm happy to find the Nautilus benches unoccupied right in front of the DB rack. Perfect. By the time I finish all my sets, a couple of camo khaki & boots soldier boys are among the mix of HS kids. One of them asks if I'm done with the bench just as I re-rack my DBs. And when I say I am, he thanks me multiple times. I forget that some kids have proper manners, and I'm pleasantly surprised.

I do most of my Core workout in the Aerobics Room, and skip only the Walking Lunges. Push-ups and Air Squats were uneventful. Even the Bird Dogs didn't elicit much of a tingle from the wayward sciatic nerve. Truthfully, only the Wall Sits were killer and I just made it to 90 seconds before I bailed. I'm tired and glance at the Stretch Cage as I walk to the locker room. Not today. 

I'm wearing an older hoodie with a zipper that's seen better days. It's frayed with holes in the sleeves, but fits the way I want my gym clothes to fit. The zipper pull is warped so it sits sideways, which makes it difficult for it to function properly. I've tried to replace this hoodie several times with varying degrees of success. 

It was originally a Land's End kids XL but that company has become maddeningly inconsistent with quality and sizing. Buy a pair of pants in two different colors and you will probably wind up with two different cuts that fit completely differently. As if they were made on different planets by alien life forms. I have pants that are like that.

I've several "replacement hoodies" that I'm not happy with: sleeves are too tight in the arms while the body billows like a potato sack (this happened twice), or the entire hoodie is too small and too short. Today, I see that LE is now offering a unisex all-cotton sports zip-up hoodie. I ordered a Small because it should be roomy enough if it's a true unisex. (Unisex for Americans, not tiny Southeast Asians or skinny Europeans.) Unfortunately, it only comes in gray, black, navy and white. No royal blue. I ordered the gray. If this hoodie arrives true to size, I'll actually consider ditching all the other ones. 

3 January 2025 12:01-1:48

Friday — Mix

Cold!

Precor elliptical #3

Program 2

Time: 30 + 5 (5448)

Distance: 2.80

Cal: 309

Avg Hr: 158, 186-122?

New FB: 46-136

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

10 lbs x 25/15/25 (12:48)

15 lbs x 25/15/25 (12:55)

29/15/20 x 25/15/25 x 1 (1:03); 2 (1:10); 3 (1:19)

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 (tingle)

Push-Ups 25

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25

Neck stretch / Eye yoga

Wall Sits 90 sec