Not What I Expected

It's probably too soon to tell if my abbreviated cardio is having the intended effect. Today I'm exhausted. I don't think I slept all that well, now that temps are starting to climb again. My bug bites have necessitated the application of bandaids to keep my tender skin from the chafing edges of sleeves. I don't think my nerves have been quite the same since the shingles. Seriously. I also didn't eat all that well either, and today I'm regretting not eating more protein yesterday. Weird, right?

The 15 minute cardio warm up is fine, especially since I'm not on there long enough for my toes to go numb. I manage a good set of HGPUs so that makes me happy. The Mayor and two other middle-age guys are standing but a few feet away from the sit up bench where I do my knee-ins. A wallet and water bottle sit on the floor near the base of the machine. I'm not even going to bother to ask if anyone's using the bench, because obviously they're not. They've been standing in that one spot for over 10 minutes kibbitzing. I do 50 knee-ins and a guy finally goes to retrieve his wallet and water.

50 push ups are good. I don't want to lose my opportunity to use the Smith so I skip crunches and planks today. Besides, I did them yesterday! I'm still dragging around the Rogue collars in my gear bag though, just in case. The one thing I don't like about the Wilma Flintstone tank is that the fabric is only printed on one side. The underside appears whitish, instead of pink all the way through. All my other colored tanks are colored through and through. The tank also seems to pull to the right. Ugh. Just like the ridiculously breezy Avia tank I got at Walmart. Well, at least I'm wearing the hot pink sports bra underneath. They make it look more like an outfit, than something I just haphazardly pulled out of a dresser.

My back is a bit stiff and sore from yesterday. The RDLs are not so much heavy, as I am tired. I get my sets done, but I've done this feeling better. Not sure why though as there are too many variables. The RG BB Rows are okay though. Of course, One-Arm Seated Cable Rows are hard once I commit to sets at the heavier weight. Between sets, I see Gym Owner and Client with the multi-grip bar. Some call it a Swiss Bar. Afterwards, I see Client carry the bar into the locker room. My first thought is that he's going to wash it. Then I realize that Gym Owner probably can't tell him how much it weighs, and there's a digital scale inside. Well, that's one way to figure out how much you're lifting.

I'm glad I'm only doing 20 minutes on the elliptical, even though it's Intervals. Stuff I suck at, stuff that I hate, tend to be my favorite things to do. Kidding. But 10 minutes into the program, the back of my left knees feels odd, and for a moment, as if the tibia and fibula had twisted into each other. It's painful for a split second, and then it's just a little sore. This is the same spot where I still have remnants of the shingles rash. But I can't say I have shingles anymore, can I?
I'm happy when the 20 minutes are over. Time for wide grip hammer grip pull ups. Still not brave enough to attempt regular pull ups. And let's be clear: I am cheating on my hammer grips. I don't fully extend my arms because the pain in my left elbow becomes prohibitive. I'm not doing pull ups to give myself tendonitis, so however I can do them without messing up my joints is how I do them.

Tomorrow I'm planning to whack the kickboxing machine. Although the Gym Owner has fixed the Dry Sauna, I harbor serious doubts that he's going to invest in repairing the Nexersys machines. Which is too bad, because I really like using them.

Tuesday
3.58 miles

15 min x-trainer
Calories 69
Miles 1.77

HGPU 30
Knee-Ins 50
Push Ups 50

Smith RDLs
Bar (30) x 15
80 x 12
100 x 12
120 x 12
140 x 8
150 x 6

Smith RG BB Rows
80 x 25
100 x 25
120 x 25

Seated 1-Arm Cable Rows
30lbs x 12
60 x 8 x 3

20 min elliptical
Intervals
Calories 208
Miles 1.81

Wide HGPU 20

Super Abbreviated Because There's Other Things to Do

After I got my son settled in the Child Care room at the gym, I had less than an hour and a half to get my gear stashed, do a workout, then shower and change before we headed off to see Guardians of the Galaxy at 11 am. I've learned to pre-tape my right hand (before even getting in the car) which saves me a lot of time, and my knuckles. 10 minutes of cardio, including 4 min of Tabata, gets me warmed up, but I'm not breaking a sweat. Maybe it's the A/C. At 9 am, it's already blistering standing in direct sunlight.

The left Nexersys machine behaves decently except for neglecting to register the first several Power Kicks. After the first round, though, the machine registers mostly everything, and I only get a Warning Buzzer 3 or 4 times in the entire 11 rounds. That's only 44 minutes but I have to make sure I have time to unwrap, undress, and shower. The gym is abuzz with activity again today and people are constantly passing behind me. When I'm done, though, I'm sweaty and feel like I've gotten a decent workout.

There are more people at this 11 am showing than at any other that we've been to. But they don't cheer as much as the audience did for Transformers. For that flick, there were several places where clapping and cheering erupted spontaneously. We did chuckle and laugh a lot at all the jokes. Visually, the movie is colorful and action-packed. During the slower, talky parts, us older folks smile at 70s music from our adolescence. And of course, there are numerous references to other movies and TV shows.

Yesterday, after camp, I took my son to visit a newly established MMA school in town. They agreed to allow my son to participate in a class for his age group to let him experience it. He enjoyed the conditioning work (circuit of punching, kicking, burpees, and battle ropes), as well as the grappling session that followed. It's summer so it was a sparsely attended class with most families on vacation. I also plan to sign him up for Swim school again. My son is an excellent, effortless swimmer (imagine a human jellyfish) and I'd like to see him actually excel at something he enjoys besides video games. I told my husband that increasing my son's activity levels would help with his self-confidence, and maybe the discomfort he's having with his size.

The only problem now is scheduling conflicts because every program for my son's age seems to occur on Mondays and Wednesdays after school, including swim. There's a swim class on Sunday mornings but we'd all like a day to sleep in. In the end, it will probably be decided by the Swim school because classes are small, and we'll get notified as to whether we've gotten our 1st, 2nd or 3rd choice for class time. And then I'll figure it out from there.

Tuesday Abbreviated Cardio Workout

10 min elliptical: 3 min steady-state + 4 min Tabata (20 sec On / 10 sec Off) + 3 min steady-state

Cage Stretch for hamstrings and calves

Nexersys Beginner Level Follow Me Avatar (11 rounds 44 minutes)

  Accuracy 97% / Strikes 99% / Average Power 130%

photo for actual stats: