Showing posts with label GHR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GHR. Show all posts

Friday, May 30, 2014

Slow Out of the Gate

The alarm went off and I rolled over to hit the snooze. Then I had to wait for my head to catch up with my brains sloshing about inside. Or at least that's how it felt. Vertigo and inner ear problems seem to be a familial issue. It's most-likely caused by extreme sensitivity to fragrances and allergies, and the subsequent effects on sinuses and the human equilibrium. Since I didn't have any other symptoms, like congestion or a cough, I was perplexed. I get vertigo a few times a year but usually in conjunction with a sinus infection or head cold. I've been lucky for the past two years, ever since I skipped the annual flu shot. Go figure.

Vertigo makes dressing difficult this morning, but I manage to get my son and the dog fed, my son off to school and the dog walked before I head out to the gym. I figure it's either going to make it better, or worse. I feel better outside and driving to the gym poses no problems. My head feels oddly heavy so I wonder if I'm just mildly allergic to something in the air. I sip my water before and after my cardio warm up. Today I do 3 miles to start but because I don't have my hoodie on over my head, it takes me a long time to warm up. But my heart rate is erratically all over the place, peaking at 202 even though I'm at a steady 150 SPM pace. I can't explain it. My hair is annoying as it sticks to my face and neck.

Maybe I'm dehydrated? The more water I drink, the better I feel. The free weight area is oddly empty, but not only is it Friday, it's also nice outside. I'm a bit tired so I'm not completely assured of making all my reps or sets on all my weights. I do it though. Even the 3 sets of Smith SLDLs at 160. Again, it's my grip that starts to fail on the 8th rep. But then it's done. I do a quick Cage Stretch, and just for fun, I grab the inside top of the Cage to see if I can still do a few Pull Ups. My hands are close, facing each other in a neutral grip position. I do 10 easily. I could struggle for two more but I worry about damaging my already fragile elbows and wrists.

Three sets at the Seated Leg Extension and then I look around to see if I can use the Lat Pull Down station (there are two). I grab a bosu and set myself up for those peculiar Glute-Ham Raises, making sure to move slowly and deliberately. I'm wearing shorts but they look like black sweatpants cut off just above the knees. Not terribly flattering, but very comfy. I see R doing Tricep Push Downs so I say Hi to him. He's says he's crazy busy with work, but he and his wife plan to take a week to vacation at a resort in Mexico as a combination Mother's Day / Father's Day get-away. "You're not taking the baby, are you?" I ask. "Oh no, but it's so hard to leave him," he tells me. His in-laws will baby-sit. I'm jealous. I'd like to go on vacation every year, but we don't. Instead, we might go to Florida for a week in October, to visit my ailing Mother-In-Law but also to take my son to Universal Studios. Harry Potter World has a new attraction.

I do 2 more miles on the elliptical, and then a full Mat Stretch because my left shoulder and lat felt odd while I was Squatting. Stretching helps me recover better. I have a lot more energy now and I literally bounce into my splits and stretches. It's worth noting that while I may not bust much of a sweat pedaling on the elliptical, I'm always breathless and sweaty during my stretch routines. Again, I incorporate a knee to elbow movement for the last 30 seconds of the 1-minute plank. It definitely makes the time go faster. My vertigo is gone as well.

The gym scale reads 112.4 lbs. My home scale says I'm 111.2 lbs but still 20.5% BF. However, I can see tiny and subtle changes so I'll stick to this routine for now. Until my son goes to camp, then I'll have to figure out how to incorporate two shorter workouts into my program.

Friday Leg Workout

Workout Logs
Exercise Name
1 RM
Lifting Logs
N/A
Calorie :   257 CAL
Distance: 3 mile
Speed :    --
Lap/Rep :  --
Duration : 00:34:00
224
Set 1 : 30x20
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 140x12
Set 5 : 160x12
202.67
Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 140x12
Set 5 : 160x8
Set 6 : 160x8
Set 7 : 160x8
189
Set 1 : 90x12
Set 2 : 120x12
Set 3 : 135x12
N/A
Calorie :   173 CAL
Distance: 2.01 mile
Speed :    --
Lap/Rep :  --
Duration : 03:42:00
148
Set 1 : BWx10

 
    3x10 GHR at lat pull down station

Friday, May 23, 2014

Cardio and Legs

I decided not to do HIIT cardio this morning because I wanted to get my 3 miles out of the way early. Besides, my past forays with doing HIIT (4 times a week for 3 weeks back in February) didn't seem to make much of a difference. I'll just stick to what I'm doing for now, continuing until July before I change things up again. The difference between doing 2 miles and 3 miles for a warm up is that I actually start to notice my hamstrings more during the longer jaunt. Last week I did close to 5 miles before setting upon the Smith machine for Squats, but I prefer breaking up the cardio into two distinct sessions.

My Smith Squats and SLDLs were fairly routine today, doing the same reps and weight as last week. Except I dropped a few reps in the warm up Speed set. The Smith faces a mirrored wall and in it I can watch all the people at various machines and stations. I don't understand guys with skinny legs and arms that wear lifting belts to leg press. Okay, there were 4 plates on each side, but I don't think he ever took the belt off even when he was doing seated calf raises.

I'm easing up on the Seated Leg Extension because my quads are huge anyway. When all the stations are busy, I find myself doing Lower Back Extensions because I skipped those on Back Day, and I figure it involved hamstrings and glutes. I'm wearing running shorts and a tank so I wait until there's not a huge crowd at the Lat Pull Down station before grabbing a bosu and setting up for those anxiety-provoking Glue-Ham Raises. I know I'm garnering stares but I'm plugged in and I don't really care. I do a few sets, varying between doing a slow sort of push-up and a quicker bounce. I have to be careful with my timing, otherwise I wind up kissing the bosu with my face.

Another 2 miles on the elliptical and I'm ready for a Mat Stretch. I do everything except the plank. My lower abs feel tender today and I'm not sure why because I've been fairly negligent with abs lately. I'm not sure if I'll make it to the gym this weekend or Monday. Tuesday is the 3rd grade trip to the American Museum of Natural History and I'm one of the chaperones. So no gym but plenty of walking and yelling in my "mean Mom" voice. Should be fun regardless.

Legs and Cardio (copied and pasted from JeFit app)
there's no GHR in the JeFit database so I had to add that in

Exercise Name
1 RM
Lifting Logs
N/A
Calorie :   259 CAL
Distance: 3 mile
Speed :    --
Lap/Rep :  --
Duration : 00:33:00
224
Set 1 : 30x20
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 140x12
Set 5 : 160x12
Set 6 : 130x12
202.67
Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 140x12
Set 5 : 160x8
Set 6 : 160x8
Set 7 : 160x8
189
Set 1 : 90x12
Set 2 : 120x12
Set 3 : 135x12
270
Set 1 : 180x15
Set 2 : 180x15
Set 3 : 180x15
N/A
Calorie :   171 CAL
Distance: 2 mile
Speed :    --
Lap/Rep :  --
Duration : 00:22:00
GHR 3 x 10 @ BW
Mat Stretch with 2 x 12 Dive Bomber PushUps, upper & lower back stretch, splits 

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