Polar Vortex Wednesday

I finally went back to the gym after skipping 5 days. My kid went back to school with friends on Monday, after the snowstorm we got Sunday night. I did have to shovel out my car to take the dogs to the park, as always. But at least it was a reasonable, seasonable temperature. Then the Polar Vortex swept down from Canada and temps dropped precipitously. Monday night my kid texts me that he's left his computer mouse home somewhere but he has the charging cable and dongle. 

Once I find the specialty gaming mouse, left on a stack of books as if momentarily forgotten, I offer to mail it back. Not in time for classes to start on Wednesday since an overnight delivery would cost more than buying a new device. I box and ship the mouse on Tuesday at the post office, but it takes me so long (I also returned other items via UPS so I was in multiple lines) that I missed my gym window. I don't want to go when it's filled with HS kids! Instead, I pack a bigger box of snacks that was supposed to travel to Buffalo in the carpool, but was left behind as an oversight. Back to the USPS...

As much as my dogs love going to the park, I know that it's too cold to be there for more than 15-20 minutes. It's warmed up to -5F and I have to defrost my windshield. I bring a gallon bottle of water only a 1/3 full because everything in the dog park shed is frozen. A 1/3 gallon is enough to fill the heated water bowl and while it's plugged in, the water stays liquid and drinkable. The car says the temp is 5F when we leave the house. At the park, once I see the dogs favoring their paws, it's time to unplug and go home. One dog is reluctant to leave, gazing into the horizon to view the entrance road for an incoming cars that might have dogs inside them. No one is crazy enough to come today, except us. I hug him, feel him shivering and feel bad for all the critters posted on the Lost Pets of the Hudson Valley.

The gym is oddly empty even though there's a Senior class at 11:30. I have my pick of elliptical machines and select #1. I have on my new LLBean hoodie. It's bigger and heavier than any other of my workout sweats, but it's so cold in the gym that I'm zipped up and even have my hood on while I pedal the Precor until the last 5 minute cool down. More people show up. I do my pull-ups, use the Step Machine, go back to the cardio platform for the cross-trainer. Most of those are in use but I can access the very last one adjacent to the erg rower. I've used that rower a few times, but it makes my hands go numb before I get any cardio benefit, so not worth it to me. 

The Senior class has ended and the instructor is chatting while gathering up chairs when I enter the Aerobics Room. I have a "lunch date" with a parent of one of my kid's friends so I rush through this portion of my routine and skip Bird Dogs, neck rolls, eye yoga and wall sits. Yeah, maybe tomorrow. Maybe I'll do walking lunges too. Or not. I hope it's warmer cuz this morning was bitter in spite of hand and toe warmer packets...

The weird dark spots in my eyebrows continue to spread. I found another spot between my brown and eyelid and that of course freaked me out. It looks like I'm wearing eyebrow pencil when I'm not wearing any makeup at all. At my dermatologist appointment last week, I complained that the spots were not mitigated by the trentinoin cream or sunscreen. If anything, they were worse and spreading. So, I now I have an Rx for hydroquinone cream to use only on those spots for 3 months. Then I have a follow-up appointment. Is this vanity? Well, it's not a face lift...and it's not ozempic. Cuz yes, I could really stand to lose 5-8 lbs.

22 January 2025 11:21-1:07

Wednesday — All Cardio

Polar Vortex Cardio

Precor elliptical #1

Program 1

Time: 30 + 5 (5520)

Distance: 2.81

Cal: 310

Avg Hr: 154, 180-118

New FB: 40-136

HGPU 15 + 1/2

Matrix StairMaster (R)

Manual timer 8+2 cool down

Minimum 5 minutes

Speed 5 (48-50) / 2 (33) / 1 (31)

Steps 434

Floors 27

Cal 66

Hr 109

HGPU 15

Life Fitness X-Trainer #6

Program Manual L1

Time: 10 (+3 min cool down) = 13

Distance: 1.26

Cal: 101

Avg Hr: 119-126

HGPU 14.5

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

Push-Ups 25

Arm rotations 20

Air Squats 25