Hard Questions

I skipped the gym yesterday to sort out some paper work. Things seem to take longer these days although I'm not exactly sure why. Perhaps I get too easily distracted. What started out as some background information on our town's tax revaluation turned into several hours of slogging through a four thousand plus page PDF tax roll and cross-referencing that with real estate websites and online maps. Then a 20 minute phone call with the tax assessor's office to get an appointment for my son and his Scout friends for the interview portion of the Citizenship and the Community merit badge.

I did pull out my scale and get a weight and body fat reading. While I was happy with the weight (107.6 lbs), the body fat reading is creeping in the wrong direction at 15.6%. Of course, I haven't been actively managing my fat intake either so it's not a total surprise. I also took my son to his annual physical, and he got the Hepatitis A vaccine. He'll need another one in about 6 months. He's already had the meningitis vaccine. I'm on the fence about the HPV one though, because I've read too many scary stories. It's impossible to predict the future, but I have to do everything I can to protect my child from things that are impossible to know. On the other hand, he's had the flu shot every year, but I stopped once I stopped commuting to NYC.

Today I do my regular cardio routine, core work and then DB delts. That's enough. The only thing that worries me is that I lose count during my first set of push ups so I don't know if I did 60 reps, or more. To make up for this lack of focus, I do two more sets. Okay, enough push ups today. I even do a set of pull ups, and I'm glad I can get a set of 26, but as I drop down, I foolishly let my arms extend and my shoulder twinges. Last night it was worse, especially while I was slouched on the sofa watching TV. There was audible clicking and definite pain when I moved my arm across my body. Yeah, I've got to get this looked at. Just not sure when.

I finally got two Billy Idol CDs I've had in my Amazon shopping cart for over a year. I liked them so much listening to them in my car (yes, it has a 6-CD player and radio), that I added them to my iTunes to load onto my iPod so I could play Billy Idol for my entire workout. Most of his songs have the upbeat tempo that makes working out fun and exciting. 

So, am I losing muscle mass because of my injury, or just because I'm on the other side of 50 now? It's hard to know. I'm happy that I could get my 6 plus miles, but not happy that the saggy skin on my belly and butt is only going to get worse. Yep, I've got the lower backside of an old elephant matriarch. Just glad I don't have upper arm dangle. Whew!

Friday
6.67 miles

30 min x-trainer
Calories 140
Miles 3.99
Average Heart Rate 149

HGPU 26
Knee-Ins 60
Push Ups 60?, 30, 20
Crunches 3 x 60
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s
Side Planks 2 x 60s

DB front / lateral / rear
15/20/25 lbs x 12/12/15 reps x 3 sets

30 min elliptical
Intervals
Calories 307
Miles 2.68

Caution As Excuse

I woke up at 4 am just as my husband was getting ready to leave for Boston. He didn't wake me up though. It was the unusual pain under my left arm. Lats. My lats are in spasm. The right side as well, but not as badly. The vague sense of heartburn made me wonder if poor digestion was the culprit because I've linked past episodes of back spasms to something I ate and my stomach ultimately rejected... a stray watercress stem, apple skin, a sliver of red pepper. I swallow two ibuprofens with some water and then go back to bed. When the alarm sounds this morning, I'm unusually tired, although my back no longer hurts.

I ease into cardio and don't quite make two miles on the elliptical. When I get to the free weight area, all the benches are occupied by several big guys, even the Smith machine. Bummer. I set up at the Inclined Bench and do a few sets, wondering if this will make me too tired to flat bench properly. My left wrist and thumb are achy this morning. My hands are cold and there's a vague throbbing inside my palm. By the time I get to the Flat Bench, most of the guys have dispersed, and I see a few women benching but hardly any weight. I don't understand why they're barely bringing the bar down either. Is this an exercise in elbow flexion? My wrist and palm still feels a bit off so I decide to only do one set at 125 if I can find someone to spot me. K isn't here today. I see B chatting with M, and I just don't want to ask M. I really hate it when he just grabs the bar from me. Ah, I see JF, one of the trainers. It must be his off day because he's just working out. He's a good spotter, never touching the bar, because honestly, I can get 6 reps at 125 by myself. I just wanted him there in case of an unanticipated failure.

B wanders over and asks me how my weekend went. Then she asks what's the secret to lifting heavy. Secret? I could say Not Chatting, but I don't. Instead I deflect by telling her that 1) I'm bigger and heavier than she is and 2) it's not that much weight. She's shocked. How much do you weigh? Well, it varies but probably about 110-112 lbs. She points to the bench. That's a lot of weight for someone your size. I'm bemused. You mean for a girl. I think you should be able to bench your own body weight. Or maybe that's just some gym rat mythology?

I toy with the idea of upping the weight. Perhaps next week. I've got to figure out the progression better. Instead, I do a drop set, finishing off with 20 reps at 95 lbs. Then back to the Inclined Bench for Inclined DB Flyes. I grab both the 25 and 30 lb DBs because I warm up with the 25s. I keep them for the DB Lateral Raises as well. I figure the only way to make my shoulders grow is to go as heavy as I can for sets of 12 reps. I think it's working.

Normally I'd use the BB Overhead Press Rack for the Bent-Over DB Flyes because it's old equipment, which means the seat isn't too high for my short legs. But a big dude is in it and I move all my stuff over to the DB area where I gingerly perch, nearly on tip toe, at the edge of a newer bench. 25 lbs to warm up. Then a set at 30 lbs. I check my Jefit log and realize I need to grab magnets from the front desk. Okay, now I have 32.5 lb DBs. After three sets, I blow caution to the wind, say WTF and grab the 35 lb DBs. Let's see how many I can do. And I get 12. Two young men are alternating on the Decline Bench across from me. I think they're as surprised as I am.

I clamber onto the Step Mill for 20 minutes, read my email and forum posts and then drop onto the Mat for Dive Bomber Push Ups, a plank and a full Mat Stretch. By the time I get to the locker room, my stomach is growling. The gym scale registers all the salty food I ate yesterday (corned beef with garlic mustard, pan-fried cabbage and sweet potatoes) so 114.0 lbs doesn't come as a complete surprise to me. At least my clothes still fit. And my new Avia sports bra didn't bite into my traps as I was working out, so I'm really happy. I should go buy a few more in that size, brand and style.

Later, I have to take the dog to the vet for his annual checkup, but I'm concerned that he's not quite right. His digestive tract is unusually sensitive and I've resorted to giving him boiled ground turkey and white rice for his meals, and Tylan powder, an antibiotic measured into bread and rolled into "bread pills" that I can push down his throat. He's 11 but he still wants me to chase him around the yard like we were both puppies.

St. Paddy's Day Workout

20 min elliptical = 1.91 miles

Inclined Bench Press
12x45 (bar)
12x65 lbs
12x85 lbs
3x8x95 lbs +2 reps

Flat Bench Press
12x95 lbs
8x115 lbs
6x125 lbs
8x115 lbs
20x95 lbs

Inclined DB Flyes
12x25 lbs
3x12x30 lbs +12 reps
12x25 lbs

DB Lateral Raises
12x25 lbs
4x12x30 lbs

Bent Over DB Reverse Flyes
12x25 lbs
12x30 lbs
3x12x32.5 lbs
12x35 lbs +2.5 lbs Yay PR

20 min Matrix Step Mill = 1051 steps

Mat Stretch with 2 x 12 DBPUs, 60-sec plank, splits, upper and lower back stretches

Maybe It Was Just PMS Without the M

Today I felt a lot better so I suspect that my blue feeling might've been a bit of PMS, without the messy menses. Hormones will cycle for years after the last period but now I have no way of knowing unless I want to subject myself to rigorous blood work. Nah! It's also bright and sunny albeit bitterly cold. I drove my son to the bus stop we normally walk to because the thermometer said -0. It was 5°F by the time I got to the gym and luckily I had all my gear with me. Yay!

The HIIT program as I read it isn't doing much for me so today I change it a tad, inspired by a few other logs I track. Since 10 minutes is the minimum time I can punch into the Precor, with an automatic 5 min cool down, I use the first 5 minutes as a warm up, pacing myself at roughly 200 Strides Per Minute. Then I do a full minute as fast as I can go (250-276 SPM), followed by a minute of panting-hard trotting (79-86 SPM). By the 5th minute, I'm having trouble keeping my speed up after 45 seconds. For the last 5 minutes, I change to 30 second intervals. Now this whole program feels much better. I'm going to try and work my way up to a full 10 minutes of 1 minute on, 1 minute off. I'm warm and feel like a human being now.

I could go home but I figure I'll do a body part that's been neglected lately: shoulders. DB Laterals, Barbell Upright Rows, DB Bent Over Flyes, and maybe a go at that Ab Wheel. I'm glad I have my old routine logs in my cell because I don't remember where I'm suppose to be. DB Laterals feel fine and I manage to muscle my way up in reps to full sets at my max weight. Yay! Then I decide to see how painful BB Upright Rows are. I move cautiously from 30 lbs to 50 lbs. It's my wrist and fingers that start to feel weird and crunchy during the last set. I have my elbows and wrists wrapped by I don't know how to alleviate the pressure on my wrists from this movement. I may substitute a different movement next time, although I'm not sure what.

The Bent Over DB Flys are last. I warm up with the 25s and these feel hard but previous logs states I can do more. So I add a 2.5 lb magnet to each DB and do another set. Then I add another magnet to make them 30s and do three more sets. There are two sets of DBs from 5s to 25s, but there are only single pairs for the rest of the weights. Without the stack of magnets, I'd be waiting around for the 30s, and getting cold. The Mat area (where the Ab Wheel is located) is full of people so I kill time at the Cage and stretch out my hamstrings. Then I wander back. This Ab Wheel has padded handles to grip, and peddles with straps so you can use your feet with it as well. I pick an area of floor situated between all three Mats so that there is a natural stop for the wheel as I roll forward. I should've looked at a few instructional videos before I started this so I don't know if I'm doing it correctly or not. I feel a stretch down the center of my abdominals but nothing else otherwise. Perhaps I'm not doing them right. Later I find a good video online that gives excellent pointers on form (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl_Hp1Wf52k).

Because my workout is short today, the locker room is a complete zoo when I go in to shower and change. The gym scale reads 115.0 lbs again but I'm not surprised. Not only have I not been able to access the rest rooms, but I've drunk more than 3/4 of my 1.5 liter water bottle. Tomorrow is Back Day and I'm starting to feel excited again. Yay! That HIIT is just what I needed today.

Tuesday Abbreviated Workout:

Precor elliptical: 5 min warm up, 5 minutes of 1 min on / 1 min off; 5 minutes of 30 sec on / 30 sec off  = 1.56 miles

DB Lateral Raises: 15 @ 20 lbs / 12 @ 25 lbs / 10, 12, 12 @ 30 lbs PB Yay! / 12 @ 25 lbs

BB Upright Rows: 12 @ 30 lbs / 12 @ 35 lbs / 12 @ 40 lbs / 12 @ 45 lbs / 12 @ 50 lbs

DB Bent-Over Reverse Flys: 15 @ 25 lbs / 12 @ 27.5 lbs / 3 x 12 @ 30 lbs / 12 @ 25 lbs

Cage Stretch with BW heel dips, calf raises and side kicks
Ab Wheel: 3 x 12 but I don't know if I'm doing them correctly (try again tomorrow)